From Teddy Boys to the Tardy Book: What Eton was really like in the Good Old Days

 

Features

From Teddy Boys to the Tardy Book: What Eton was really like in the Good Old Days

 

Nicky Haslam, who attended Eton in the Fifties, recalls the days of beaks, fag-masters and dames

 

By Tatler

13 August 2018

Eton in the Fifties

https://www.tatler.com/article/obsoletonians-eton-in-the-fifties

 

We were a fairly uniform lot, the intake to Eton in the first years of the 1950s. Echoes – even visions – of the war shaped our youthful minds. Bomb damage still blighted cities, tattered blackouts still flapped on buildings, rationing was still in force. The angular modernity of the Festival of Britain had barely pierced our teen consciousness. Perhaps, assimilated from our elders, we hoped against hope that the future would return to a version of a not-yet-forgotten past.

 

So there we were, fresh out of boys’ school, overawed by the size and splendour and age of our new surroundings, by a sense of self, of horizons and of space – your own room, from day one, after regimented, dingy confines in sandy Surrey. One might be scared or lonely, miss Nanny or one’s dog, but soon came a visceral challenge, to grapple with emerging adulthood.

 

We quickly learned the rules, or rather customs. We dutifully prepared our Saying Lesson before Lights Out, we got up at seven for Early School, went to Absence (in fact, presence), then Chapel. We ate revolting Boys Dinner in the allotted 20 minutes before doing battle on the Playing Fields of Sixpenny, or dragged padded grey-flannel shorts down to Boats. We noted the swagger of sixth-form boys, seemingly wildly grown-up, and were careful to do nothing that might single one out to the gods of Pop. We skeltered to Boy-Calls, we skivvied for Fag-Masters, we cleaned their Corps boots, we flattered Tutors, we oiled up to dames, we ‘capped’ all beaks. And we were drunk with relief on graduating from Remove to Upper School.

 

What all this taught us was to be polite, have good manners, to show respect. Even so vast an institution was essentially intimate: we formed a mutual bond, didn’t feel superior, although we scoffed slightly at Tugs (scholarship boys), jealous of their cleverness rather than snobbism. This bonding was essential as there was almost no recreation besides sports – except, thank God, the Drawing Schools. There were no foreigners, though one raven-haired beauty was rumoured to be half-Egyptian. ‘Crumbs! Egyptian!’ we whispered as he passed. There was no swimming pool, no theatre (concerts, or plays, usually Shakespeare, were desultory affairs in School Hall), no cinema, no medicines (my dame believed in a scant thimble of brandy as a cure-all), no cameras or Coca-Cola, no radios, TV or gramophones, and most certainly no drinking or smoking – sackable offences.

 

These privations weren’t exclusively because we were at Eton. There wasn’t, anywhere, pop music, nor young singing idols (though we knew girls who swooned at Johnny Ray and later jiggled about to Bill Haley), no new humour, no dark Nouvelle Vague films, no Going Abroad, put paid to by a £50 take-abroad limit: the theatre was Anna Neagle comedies, artists were in Paris; nightclubs were for one’s parents’ friends, smooching to Edmundo Ros; clothes hadn’t changed in decades, jeans were unheard of. There was no street life we yearned to emulate (though Teddy boys did have a certain allure), no social level to step down to. Drugs were unknown; Du Maurier cork-tips made one dizzy; whisky in quantity unexpectedly made one sick, putting a sticky end to that fumble with the deb we were trying to delight. Thus we had no good reason to believe holidays would be a panacea of excitement, just more huntin’/shootin’/fishin’ and going to the circus at Christmas, along with finding out that we were even more tongue-tied with girls, Nanny wasn’t indispensable, and your sister had adopted your dog.

 

And beyond? There was no gap year. Instead National Service loomed, then Oxford or Cambridge beckoned the brainier, a Guards regiment the rest, and – to the very few – the unmentionable thrall of a more lilac life in an almost club-like gay milieu. For four or five years, Eton consumed our whole being. But some of us understood that we had a lifetime ahead in which to roll, and rock, in the gutter.

A Gentleman’s London, Episode Twentyone: E.B. Meyrowitz

Heritage

Rich History Since 1875

https://ebmeyrowitz.com/pages/about-us

 

Emil Bruno Meyrowitz, born on the 20th October 1852 in Greifenhagen, Prussia, was the founder of the eponymous oculist. E.B. Meyrowitz henceforth began its rich history in 1875. Stores were opened in London, Paris and New York over the course of the next twenty years retailing not only spectacles but all manner of optical goods, devices and instruments. Over one hundred and forty five years later the name of Meyrowitz lives on in its own unique spirit still evoking memories of a brand playing a key role in the early days of aviation, motor racing and mountaineering.

Racing

Pedigree

From humble beginnings in the 1870's E.B. Meyrowitz had soon built a reputation for itself as not only a pioneer in all things optical and ophthalmic but had also extended its prowess to the motor sports arena. Many land speed records were broken between the 1920's and 1950's behind the brand's infamous Luxor Goggles including those set by Sir Malcolm Campbell, Sir Henry Seagrave and John Cobb. The first Le Mans 24 Hours in 1923 was won by André Lagache using the very same goggles. Each subsequent race until 1940 crowned winners donning such eye protection including Woolf Barnato, Luigi Chinetti, Glen Kidston and Jean-Pierre Wimille racing across Bentley, Alfa Romeo and Bugatti. Countless more feats were achieved behind the brand's racing apparel with numerous wins at the Monaco Grand Prix, The Indianapolis 500 and Mille Miglia.

Flight of

Fancy

World firsts were not however confined only to the track. E.B. Meyrowitz goggles were the choice of many a prominent aviator and aviatrix over the years. Charles Lindbergh completed his pioneering transatlantic flight behind his Luxor visors as did Amelia Earhart on her maiden voyage. These same goggles were also used in the first aerial expedition over Mount Everest attempted by Sir Douglas Douglas-Hamilton and David McIntyre. During WW2, such visual aids were also the choice of many prominent fighter pilots across the globe.

Prince Andrew finds £3 million / Sick King Charles Can’t Control Prince Andrew and Prince William POWERLESS

Royalist

Sick King Charles Can’t Control Prince Andrew and Prince William

POWERLESS

Prince Andrew successfully defied the king in refusing to move out of Royal Lodge. Now Prince William sets out his plans for a monarchy with more “empathy” and “impact.”

 

Tom Sykes

European Editor at Large

https://www.thedailybeast.com/sick-king-charles-cant-control-prince-andrew-and-prince-william/

Updated Nov. 10 2024 10:27AM EST /

Published Nov. 10 2024 8:39AM EST

 

Elderly and sick king revealed as powerless

 

Cancer-struck King Charles looked an isolated monarch Sunday as he attended a pivotal veterans’ memorial event in London without his wife, Queen Camilla, who is fighting a chest infection, after a series of casual humiliations inflicted by his brother, Prince Prince Andrew, and his son, Prince William.

 

William, in an intervention that would have been unthinkable before the king‘s cancer diagnosis, set out plans for a dramatic change of tone in his reign, implicitly criticizing Charles, in an astonishing blow to the authority of the cancer-struck monarch.

 

The contrast between William’s and his father’s fortunes was made all the clearer by the triumphant presence of Kate Middleton.

 

Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, attends the Remembrance Sunday ceremony at the Cenotaph on Whitehall in central London on November 10, 2024. Remembrance Sunday is an annual commemoration held on the closest Sunday to Armistice Day, November 11, the anniversary of the end of the First World War and services across

Charles was already smarting from his brother, Andrew, comprehensively winning the so-called “Siege of Royal Lodge” this weekend. Andrew, who was kicked out of the royal family over sex assault allegations, has successfully defied his brother’s attempts to eject him from his palatial home, Royal Lodge Charles threw in the towel this weekend after a two-year whispering campaign, the existence and ultimate failure of which has inevitably served to make him look weak, politically obtuse, and powerless.

 

Charles cut a lonely figure Sunday as he led Remembrance events in London. The impression of vulnerability was starkly exaggerated by the absence of Camilla by his side.

 

Palace sources have insisted there is no cause for alarm and said she will be back on duty next week. However, the diagnosis has done little to project an image of monarchical strength, especially given an emotional reaction Camilla had when they were on tour in Samoa, after Charles said he hoped “to survive” long enough to visit the region again. Palace sources have said she was laughing because of a technical snafu, but pictures suggested a different story.

 

Now, in an astonishingly explicit reminder of the collapse of discipline and the pre-succession era which the monarchy has entered since Charles announced he had cancer, William, 42, fresh off the triumph of his Earthshot Awards in South Africa, openly discussed his vision for changing the monarchy with the Sunday Times royal correspondent, Roya Nikkhah, saying he was going to “do it differently, for my generation.”

 

He added: “I’m doing it with maybe a smaller ‘r’ in the royal, if you like. So it’s more about impact, philanthropy, collaboration, convening and helping people.”

 

He said: “I’m also going to throw empathy in there as well because I really care about what I do. It helps impact people’s lives and I think we could do with some more empathetic leadership around the world. So that’s what I’m trying to bring, that’s what Catherine is trying to bring as well.”

 

Charles laid a wreath of poppies at the Cenotaph in London at 11 a.m. Sunday, local time, in memory of those killed and injured in war.

 

Princess Kate attended the ceremony, as well as attending a Poppy Day event Saturday night. It was just her fourth public appearance of the year, after recovering from cancer. William said he hoped she would return to a fuller program of engagements next year.

 

The war is lost, now the recriminations begin

 

The reaction from both sides keeps rolling in after Andrew’s stunning victory (as mentioned above) over his brother in the matter of his living arrangements at Royal Lodge. While the palace is refusing to comment officially, some of Charles’ friends are furious, saying that he has been badly advised—and calling for heads to roll.

 

The story has sucked up a remarkable amount of royal time and energy since reports Charles wanted Andrew to leave first began appearing in U.K. papers in early 2023, just after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had been booted out of Frogmore Cottage in a kingly fit of pique over Harry’s depiction f the family in his memoir Spare.

 

Now, 18 months later, the king’s camp have been forced to admit what Andrew’s side have told The Daily Beast and others from day one; they don’t have a legal leg to stand on and Andrew and his heirs are entitled to stay at the fabulous, ten-bedroomed, crenelated mansion on 90 acres until his lease expires in…2078!

 

One friend of Charles and Camilla’s said: “Whoever advised the king to set off on this road and keep going down this road has very serious questions to answer. Charles loathes incompetence above all else. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if some people quietly clear off at Christmas never to be seen again.”

 

Another friend of the family said: “I’m afraid it’s another reflection of the family’s fundamental dysfunction. Normal families don’t have these kinds of arguments. The king’s aides were foolish to wash the family’s dirty linen in public in this way.”

 

Charles’ camp have consistently briefed the U.K. media in pompous terms about how Andrew would be forced to leave the property. As recently as September this year, one told the Times Andrew was “taking longer than desirable to recognize the reality of the situation, even though it is clearly the most sensible course of action.”

 

They added: “It can be done tidily or untidily. It can be done with grace and dignity or it can be forced upon him. It’s all rather sad. But as things stand, life at Royal Lodge is set to become increasingly cold and uncomfortable for the duke. The only question now is when he will realize that he has become a prisoner of his own pride.”

 

Friends of Andrew told The Daily Beast this weekend they were happy for the disgraced duke.

 

One said: “We are thrilled for Andrew. Andrew has a cast iron lease on the property so god knows why Charles chose to pick this battle. He has been comprehensively humiliated. It’s hard to imagine anyone would have any interest in where Andrew is living if Charles’ aides had not spent the past year banging on about it. He was never going to just walk away from the property; the lease is a valuable asset he intends to leave to his children, and maybe William will be glad of having Eugenie or Beatrice there in years to come.

 

“It’s a great result for Andrew and Sarah. It’s absurd that Charles wasn’t dissuaded from launching this campaign against them in the first place, but then to continue it this year, when the king has been so ill, was, frankly, nuts.”

 

Royal round-up

Also happening in the royal firmament this week, as reported in The Daily Beast and further afield: William revealed his daughter Charlotte started crying when she first saw his beard. William also said 2024 was the hardest year of his life dealing with the double cancer battle in his family. President-elect Trump praised King Charles as “beautiful” in his Tucker Carlson film.

 

Plans are already underway in the U.K. to try use Trump’s reverence for the monarchy and love of state visits to the U.K. to leverage a better deal for Britain in the coming global tariff wars. Also, Prince Harry may live to regret boasting about his drug use in his memoir if it gets him deported by the Trump administration.

 

This week in royal history

Happy birthday King Charles, who turns 76 on Nov. 14. On the same day in 1973, Princess Anne married first husband Captain Mark Phillips.

 

Unanswered questions

 

Will anyone be obliged to carry the can for the bitter failure of attempts to get Andrew out of Royal Lodge, or will Charles decide the fault is his and spare his staff?

Notre Dame bells ring out in Paris for first time since 2019 fire • FRAN...

‘If you’re not hungry, don’t go’: London restaurateur fights back against cheap diners

 

‘If you’re not hungry, don’t go’: London restaurateur fights back against cheap diners

 

Chef Hugh Corcoran had enough of ‘window dining’ after seeing an increase in guests splitting main courses

 

Morwenna Ferrier

Sat 9 Nov 2024 03.00 EST

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/nov/09/if-youre-not-hungry-dont-go-london-restaurateur-fights-back-against-cheap-diners

 

Shortly after opening his north London restaurant, Hugh Corcoran noticed a pattern among some of his diners: large groups ordering tap water, starters and mains to share. So, he took to social media. “Restaurants are not public benches,” he wrote on his Instagram last week. “You are there to spend money.”

 

By the weekend, his post had accrued 150 comments, some accusing him of being tone deaf, others in agreement. Either way, a discourse was born.

 

The Belfast-born chef opened The Yellow Bittern three weeks ago. It has three members of staff, seats 18 people, and is only open for lunch on weekdays. If you want to book a table, you phone the landline or send a postcard. Curiously, it’s not on Instagram.

 

This early in its life, it should be in no position to change the way we eat. And yet thanks to its famous pies (“we do pies when we fancy doing pies”), his predilection for the long boozy lunch, and its old-fashioned set up – it’s also cash only – Corcoran is attracting and dividing diners who take umbrage with being told there is a right way to have lunch.

 

“There’s an etiquette everywhere – theatres, bars – simple manners. You don’t talk in a cinema, and you go to a restaurant when you’re ready to eat, as a treat,” he says. “If you’re not hungry, don’t go.”

 

His preference, he says, is minimum one plate per person, “but one starter and two mains between four, that’s just not acceptable”.

 

This is a fraught time for new restaurants. Years of work go into funding. Then there are soaring food prices. Add to that the current climate for hospitality: an estimated 60% close within their first year. So why is Corcoran angering his diners?

 

He does reservations by phone because “in London, everyone got into the ‘just in case’ craze – booking online and then cancelling”. The cash-only policy is the last vestige of privacy. That, and atmosphere. “Cards leave out interesting people in society who are cash-in-hand. Frankly, I’d also prefer it if clients didn’t use their phones.”

 

The real issue, he says, lies in “restaurant tourism – going to a place to show that you’ve been to that place, without actually eating”. That, and what’s known as “window dining”.

 

Two recent diners, he says, ordered half the menu, took photographs but didn’t touch the food. “It all went in the bin,” he says. “We don’t want to force-feed people. And you can share food. But if I’m going to get stick for standing against that, so be it.”

 

Jan Ostle runs Wilson’s, a small but critically acclaimed farm-to-table restaurant in Bristol, which opened in 2016. “Sometimes people come in and only order a main, and all your projections get mangled,” he agrees. “The problem is, people want to go out and feel rich but they can’t afford to do it.”

 

“Most restaurants today have to traverse two lines – firstly as a local restaurant with regulars, and secondly as a destination one,” says Ostle. “It’s nice to have both, which we do. But if someone comes in, takes photographs and doesn’t seem fussed on the food, that’s the modern world. You need a thick skin for it.”

 

Annie Gray, a food historian, blames Covid – and years of austerity – for the divide. “People have become entitled. Hospitality has been hard hit – Covid, austerity, cost of living crisis, the overseas labour. But diners don’t necessarily care because they’ve been through it too, and they’re spending money,” she says.

 

This is not lost on Corcoran. In the end, he just doesn’t want to see people eating nothing, but photographing everything.

Southport, Connecticut / VIDEO: 658 Pequot Avenue // Southport, Connecticut - Aerial Reel

Connecticut

Southport, Connecticut | A Historic Coastal Village

Settled in 1639, the beautiful coastal hamlet of Southport, Connecticut, boasts a rich New England history.

 

By Jessica Gordon Ryan

Jan 03 2022

https://newengland.com/travel/connecticut/southport-connecticut/

 

Southport, Connecticut, is a beautiful coastal hamlet in Fairfield County, located just over an hour outside of New York City. The small village, settled in 1639, is part of the town of Fairfield and evocative of its rich New England history. Southport was designated a local historic district in 1967.

 

During the eighteenth century, Mill River Village was a small community of just a few houses and a wharf at the mouth of the Mill River. The harbor allowed for farm products from the surrounding areas to be shipped to ports in New York and beyond. By 1831, this little community, by then known as Southport, had evolved into a bustling commercial area with beautiful homes alongside churches, schools, stores, and warehouses.

 

As a leading coastal port on Long Island Sound, Southport enjoyed great economic prosperity. Soon the railroad would arrive, creating new opportunity while at the same time competing with the shipping industry. By this time, Southport was well-known for its high quality onions, grown on Fairfield’s hills and shipped out via the harbor. During the 1890s, 100,000 barrels of Southport onions were shipping each year, along with locally grown carrots, potatoes, and other goods. In addition to its identity as a shipping center, Southport with the only two banks serving all of Fairfield, was also the area’s financial district.

 

The historic allure remains today. A drive through the charming village reveals majestic, tree-lined streets and elegant, stately homes of varying architectural styles – Greek Revival, Georgian, Victorian, Colonial, Romanesque and Federal – giving us a view into an historic, bygone era.

 

The old village is protected by strict zoning laws, designed to preserve its history for future generations. The small seaport area boasts a private yacht club, its own library, two churches, several lovely shops and antique stores, restaurants and a boutique hotel. The views of the Long Island Sound are positively breathtaking.

 

What puts this small village on the map today is an annual event hosted by the Southport Congregational Church, “Rooms with a View,” started by interior designer Albert Hadley two decades ago. This premier design experience, now chaired by Thom Filicia, celebrates art, architecture and design in vignette form, reflecting a specific theme. The event, which takes place in the middle of November, has showcased some of our country’s top design talents and personalities. Over the past 20 years, “Rooms with a View” has raised over $1,300,000 for the church and its missions.

 

Have you ever visited Southport, Connecticut?

 

This post was first published in 2015 and has been updated.

 

Jessica Gordon Ryan

Design of a Country Estate: Purple Cherry Architects & Interiors Hardcover – 20 Aug. 2024

English edition  by Cathy Purple Cherry (auteur)

 

Driven by a passion for art and architectural design, Cathy Purple Cherry shares the story of a fabulous, newly built, coastal country estate.

 

"This elegant architecture book is not only a delightful visual treat, but it's also filled with descriptions about how the featured Centreville, MD, country coastal estate developed and why the design choices were made. This all adds up to an enhanced reading experience and tour....a diverting read."--Library Journal

 

The vision was for traditional, classic, romantic, authentic timelessness, and approachable elegance. The end result speaks to all of this and more. Architect Purple Cherry tells the story of this luxurious country estate (4 full kitchens, 13 en suite bedrooms) in the Mid-Atlantic--along the Chester River on the Eastern Shore in Centreville, Maryland--and how the vision came to life. The main house, guesthouse, and seven outbuildings are dissected in detail so readers will experience what it is like to develop such a comprehensive project, from the planning to the execution, and all the steps along the way.

 

The book includes an abundance of hard-working information that focuses on the thought processes behind each decision, whether it is the materials employed or the location of each building for walkability and use. Rife with inspiration on every page--whether your dream is a cozy cabin in the woods or an expansive country estate like this one--this book will appeal to luxury home enthusiasts and design professionals alike, transporting readers to a real-life fantasy.

Loro Piana Fall Winter 2024 Campaign

Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors | ITV

Queen Camilla documentary Her Majesty: Behind Closed Doors confirms air date

 

The 90-minute documentary will see the Queen meeting survivors of domestic abuse and campaigners working to raise awareness.

 

James Hibbs Published: Wednesday, 30 October 2024 at 0:04

https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/documentaries/queen-camilla-documentary-confirms-date-newsupdate/

 

The first documentary to feature Queen Camilla since her coronation last year, Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors, was announced in August, and we know now exactly when the 90-minute film will air.

 

The documentary, which will see the Queen meeting survivors of domestic abuse and campaigners working to raise awareness and understanding of the issue, will air at 9pm on Monday 11th November 2024 on ITV1 and ITVX.

 

This means viewers only have a couple of weeks to wait until they can see the documentary, which will follow the Queen over a year, as she attends official engagements and never-before-seen private meetings with domestic abuse survivors and change makers.

 

The Queen has been involved in spreading awareness of domestic and sexual violence for over a decade, and the film is also set to see her hosting roundtables with teenagers and celebrating International Women’s Day at Buckingham Palace, while it will explore why perpetrators abuse, asking how we can stop the cycle of abuse.

 

The film has been produced and directed by Angela Byrne and Kerene Barefield, with Barefield saying when it was first announced: "It has been a privilege to have been entrusted to produce this film and observe firsthand Her Majesty The Queen's work in the field of domestic abuse.

 

"Our aim was to not only highlight the devastation caused by domestic abuse in the UK, but also give a voice and re-empower the victims.

 

"The Queen is not alone in trying to 'obliterate' this curse, and we have been honoured to work with charities and services who work on the frontline to support survivors, rehabilitate victims and campaign for change.

 

"If we understand what it looks like, together we will be able to tackle domestic abuse and make a difference."

 

This isn't the only royal documentary set to air on ITV this year. In fact, today (Wednesday 30th October), a documentary called Prince William: We Can End Homelessness is set to air, which will focus on Homewards, Prince William's five-year programme that aims to show it is possible to end homelessness, starting with six locations across the UK.

 

Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors will air on ITV1 and ITVX at 9pm on Monday 11th November.

Nigel Cabourn: Legendary Creator of Vintage Collections

Nigel Cabourn / VIDEO: - Reveal his secret and his age | GlamUk

Nigel Cabourn is a British fashion designer known for his outerwear and vintage inspired clothing. He studied at Northumbria University between 1967 and 1971 and his studio and business is still based in the North East of England.

The collections are influenced by military clothing and vintage clothing, using fabrics such as Harris Tweed & Ventile.

The Army Gym is the Japanese shop for the Nigel Cabourn brands. In August 2008, Nigel Cabourn Marketing Ltd., was set up as a joint venture with Abahouse Holdings Co. Ltd., the joint owner of Outer Limits Co. Ltd., that makes the Nigel Cabourn ‘Main Line’ collection.

I don’t class myself as a ‘fashion designer’ as I don’t follow fashion. Everything I design comes from either a moment in history, an inspirational person or a vintage garment.For over 35 years I’ve been avidly collecting vintage military, sports, expedition and work wear clothing and books and have amassed thousands of pieces from all corners of the globe. I’m absolutely fascinated and excited by the fabric and details in these functional, comfortable and above all durable garments, which have on the whole, been created not by fashion designers but by technicians and scientists.For me product comes first. The fabrics and trims, the manufacturers we work with are all carefully chosen so we produce the best garments we can. At the end of the day my aim with each collection or collaboration is to create timeless styles that have the quality to last, get better with age and wear and that are still relevant in years to come. Clothing that people can wear for a lifetime then pass down to their children. – Nigel Cabourn

http://www.cabourn.com/about

Vintage performers

SEPTEMBER 21, 2012 by: Carola Long

https://www.ft.com/content/42bddcce-fe6d-11e1-8028-00144feabdc0

Does that parka on the catwalk look familiar? Is that military jacket a dead ringer for the one in Bridge Over the River Kwai? It’s no secret that many of the designs shown during fashion week will have been inspired by – or even copied from – vintage looks.

Now, menswear brands will get another source of retrospective inspiration courtesy of new book Vintage Menswear: A Collection from the Vintage Showroom. It’s a compendium of images and descriptions of clothing collected by Douglas Gunn and Roy Luckett, who run the Vintage Showroom, a service used by numerous designer and high street brands. Designers make appointments to visit the west London archive of historic menswear from around the world, or rent or buy clothes from the collection. The owners will also hunt down specific pieces – or do what co-owner Gunn calls inspiration work: “looking into a company’s history or buying up archive pieces”.

Though few brands will publicly admit to using the service, Gunn says, “If you are a menswear designer, chances are you have visited the Vintage Showroom or the website.”

“Certain designers and companies rely heavily on vintage pieces, sometimes from their own archives,” says Robert Leach, lecturer at Central Saint Martin’s College and the University of Westminster. “Think of companies like Burberry or Belstaff, with their long histories of trademark details that can be drawn on for inspiration.”

Indeed, pieces in the book – such as a 1930s striped boxing blazer, a 1950s mountain rucksack that wouldn’t look out of place in today’s Urban Outfitters, or a 1920s canvas parka that could have been plucked from Gap’s shelves – show how little menswear has changed.

The most the Vintage Showroom has spent on one item is £20,000 – on a submarine coat made in the 1930s for HMS Ursula. “The captain of the boat went to Barbour to get them to design a two-piece wax cotton suit,” says Gunn. “We spoke to Barbour but they didn’t want to sell theirs, and we spent a lot of time tracking one down.”

Nigel Cabourn, whose menswear line is based around British heritage clothing with a practical focus (for instance, the Everest parka, £2,200, in his current range is inspired by the one worn by Sir Edmund Hillary to scale Everest), is one of the few designers who will discuss his work with the Vintage Showroom. Indeed, he says he finds it invaluable. “For me it’s no secret because my brand is based around vintage designs, but some brands don’t want to expose how they got their ideas,” he says. “I quite often recognise the originals that inspired them.”

Cabourn says his designs are sometimes “very similar to historic pieces”, explaining that “actual clothing can tell you more [about a period] than a photo or film ... colour, fabric, weight, etc.”

Gunn says he has noticed that more brands are looking to build up their archives with early advertising books or fabrics in a bid to cultivate that all-important aura of heritage. After all, in the fashion industry, the past isn’t really a foreign country, and they don’t do things so differently there.

‘Vintage Menswear: a Collection from the Vintage Showroom’ by Josh Sims, Douglas Gunn, Roy Luckett (Laurence King, £30)

Revealed: King charging millions for NHS to use his land / King and Prince William’s estates ‘making millions from charities and public services’

King and Prince William’s estates ‘making millions from charities and public services’

 

Duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster likely to make at least £50m from leasing land to services such as NHS and schools, according to investigation

 

Richard Palmer

Sat 2 Nov 2024 19.50 GMT

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/nov/02/king-and-prince-william-estates-millions-charities-public-services-nhs-leasing-land

 

King Charles and Prince William’s property empires are taking millions of pounds from cash-strapped charities and public services including the NHS, state schools and prisons, according to a new investigation.

 

The reports claim the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, which are exempt from business taxes and used to fund the royals’ lifestyles and philanthropic work, are set to make at least £50m from leasing land to public services. The two duchies hold a total of more than 5,400 leases.

 

One 15-year deal will see Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS hospital trust in London pay £11.4m to store its fleet of electric ambulances in a warehouse owned by the Duchy of Lancaster, the monarch’s 750-year-old estate.

 

The king will also make at least £28m from windfarms because the Duchy of Lancaster retains a feudal right to charge for cables crossing the foreshore, according to an investigation by Channel 4’s Dispatches and the Sunday Times.

 

William’s Duchy of Cornwall, the hereditary estate of the heir to the throne, has signed a £37m deal to lease Dartmoor prison for 25 years to the Ministry of Justice, which is liable for all repairs despite paying £1.5m a head for a jail empty of prisoners because of high levels of radon gas.

 

His estate also owns Camelford House, a 1960s tower block on the banks of the Thames, which has brought in at least £22m since 2005 from rents paid by charities and other tenants. Two cancer charities, Marie Curie and Macmillan – of which the king is a longstanding patron – have both recently moved out to smaller premises.

 

The Duchy of Cornwall has charged the Royal Navy more than £1m to build and use jetties and moor warships. It also charges the army to train on Dartmoor but the Ministry of Defence refused a Freedom of Information Act request asking how much it costs. The duchy also made more than £600,000 from the construction of a fire station and stands to get nearly £600,000 from rental agreements with six state schools.

 

In spite of the king and Prince William’s speeches and interventions on environmental issues, many residential properties let out by the royal estates are in breach of basic government energy efficiency standards.

 

The investigation found 14% of homes leased by the Duchy of Cornwall and 13% by the Duchy of Lancaster have an energy performance rating of F or G. Since 2020, it has been against the law for landlords to rent out properties that are rated below an E under the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards regulations.

 

The Duchy of Lancaster said: “Over 87% of all duchy-let properties are rated E or above. The remainder are either awaiting scheduled improvement works or are exempted under UK legislation.”

 

The royal estates also have deals with mining and quarrying companies.

 

The investigation has prompted calls for a parliamentary investigation and for the two empires to be folded into the crown estate, which sends its profits to the government. The king and Prince William pay income tax on profits from the estates after business expenses have been deducted, but both now refuse to say how much.

 

 Critics say the estates, the income from which have been used by successive governments to keep the headline cost of the monarchy to the taxpayer down, enjoy a commercial advantage over rivals because they are exempt from corporation tax and capital gains tax.

 

Baroness Margaret Hodge, a former chair of the Commons public accounts committee, said the duchies should at least pay corporation tax. “This would be a brilliant time for the monarch to say, I’m going to be open, and I want to be treated as fairly as anybody,” she said.

 

Both duchies said they were commercial operations that complied with statutory requirements to disclose information. They also emphasised their efforts to become greener.

 

The Duchy of Lancaster said: “His majesty the king voluntarily pays tax on all income received from the duchy.”

King severs financial support for 'stubborn' Prince Andrew