Mad about Mad Men

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I am a known procrastinator and lately I have well and truly lived up to this name. I have discovered Mad Men! I know I am incredibly late to the party here, since the seventh season is gracing our TV screens right now and the first season aired originally back in 2007, but after hearing more and more about it I thought I'd give it a try... And now I'm hooked! I'm only on the sixth episode of season one, but I simply cannot get enough! 

Mad Men is set in 1960s New York at the Sterling Cooper advertising agency, where everybody smokes too much, drinks too much and frankly has too much sex. The whole show revolves around Don Draper, creative director at Sterling Cooper and notorious womaniser. We follow him and the other characters through their day to day business lives and their private lives away from the office.

Why do I love it so much I hear you ask? First (and foremost in my opinion) the costumes are simply excellent. 1960s fashion has always sort of interested me, but I'd never really invested in it until now. The big skirts, slim waists and bright colours that Mad Men is full of is really exciting to me and every time I put an episode on, I can't wait to see what they are wearing. 

Also, a lot of my love for this programme lies with one character: Joan Holloway. Played by the gorgeous Christina Hendricks, Joan is fabulous in every sense of the word. Witty, sexy, curvy and outspoken. She knows more about men and sex than most of us will our entire lives and she is not afraid to show it! Her one-liners are hilarious and her lipstick is always flawless: my kind of woman. She runs the office, and the men know about it! 

Most of the male characters are incredibly misogynistic and are constantly making sexual advances to anything in the office wearing a skirt, and although Joan plays along with this, it is clear she is the one with all the power. While the other girls succumb to these advances or even (gasp!) blush, Joan laughs a little and sashays away: they don't have a chance with her. 

I simply cannot write about this series without mentioning the main man himself, Don Draper. Although married to a beautiful blonde it seems he cannot help but play away from home. This may sound like a trait the rest of the male characters possess, but Don is different. He is actually a gentleman - despite his cheating - and is actually very respectful to the women surrounding him. Also, he is always incredibly well put together. Who doesn't love an attractive man in a suit?  

So, if you are looking for a fantastic source for procrastination, or if there is a void in your life that only a TV series can fill, you need to go watch Mad Men. Right now.