Teddy Boy

The Teddy boy youth culture first emerged in Britain (starting in London, but rapidly spreading across the country) during the early 1950s, and soon after became strongly associated with American rock and roll music of the period.

It was typified by young men wearing clothes inspired by those of the Edwardian period which Savile Row tailors had tried to re-introduce after World War II: "Edward" being shortened to Ted after a Daily Express headline in 1953 first coined the term 'Teddy boy', which stuck.

Clothing consisted of long drape jackets, usually in dark shades sometimes with velvet trim, high waisted 'drainpipe' trousers, chunky brogues and later large crepe-soled shoes, often suede (sometimes nicknamed 'brothel creepers'). A high-necked loose 'Mr B' collar on a white shirt (as worn by jazz musician Billy Eckstine) was set off with a narrow 'Slim Jim' tie and floral brocade waistcoat. In the main these clothes were tailor made at great expense through many weekly instalments. Preferred hairstyles included long, strongly moulded greased-up hair with a quiff combed back to form a 'DA' (duck's arse) at the rear of the head.

'Teddy girls' adopted a style similar to the lads', with drapes complete with pencil skirts, they added their own touches, such as straw boaters, cameo brooches, espadrilles and coolie hats, but later adopted the American fashions of toreador pants and voluminous circle skirts, wearing their hair in ponytails. Film director Ken Russell took a series of photos of such girls in late 1954 and early 1955 around the East End of London, and in Notting Hill ^*.

As with some other youth culture movements, groups of 'Teds' sometimes formed gangs and enjoyed notoriety following violent clashes with rival gangs, seized upon and often exaggerated by the popular press. The most notable was the infamous Notting Hill riot of 1958, in which Teddy boys were conspicuous within the racist white mobs who roamed the area attacking black people and their property ^*. As with most other youth cults, however, most were attracted by the clothes and music rather than violence.

In the 1960s, many Teddy boys became 'Rockers'. Conversely, many Rockers passed themselves off as Teddy boys by throwing on a drape coat to gain entry into a dance hall where leather jackets were banned. During the 1970s, rockabilly music enjoyed a renewed period of popularity and saw a resurgence of interest in 'Teddy boy' fashions spearheaded by Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren, but often in much louder pastel colours. Paradoxically, in the late 1970s the new generation of Teds became the arch-enemies of the Westwood and McLaren-inspired punk rockers.

The Teddy Boys made it acceptable to care about what one looked like all the time and dress purely for show, instead of just having one's work or school clothes or Sunday best. This trend arose as the disposable income of young people grew during the post-war years. The Teddy Boys were the first youth group in England to differentiate themselves as teenagers and thus helping to create a market solely targeting the new 'teenage' genre.

External links

Harold Hill: A People's History - New Suits & New Songs
www.teddyboy.co.uk - Site containing interesting Teddy Boy information including a recording of the BBC News for 12th September 1956 about Teddy Boy arrests, copies of a number of 1950s newspaper pages about Teddy Boys, and some 1950s photos of Teddy Boys.
www.teddygirl.co.uk - Site containing a Photo essay on Teddy Girl fashion by Ken Russell.
General description of Teddy Boy culture
1950s teenage fashion, including Teddy Boy look
Bombsite Boudiccas (Claims to be the only known professional photo-documentation of early 1950s Teddy Girls.)

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