Menswear Style Podcast
The Menswear Style Podcast is a leading men’s fashion and menswear podcast exploring men’s style, clothing, grooming, lifestyle and the business behind some of the world’s most exciting fashion brands. Hosted by Peter Brooker, each episode features conversations with menswear designers, fashion entrepreneurs, innovative brand founders and industry experts from across the global fashion and apparel industry. Discover the stories behind established and emerging clothing brands, from the first idea and challenges of launching a fashion start-up to building a successful international business. Guests share their experiences and insights across fashion design, sustainability, manufacturing, marketing, branding, eCommerce, retail, social media and business growth. Whether you’re interested in men’s fashion and style, discovering new menswear brands, starting your own clothing label, or learning how successful fashion businesses are built, the Menswear Style Podcast takes you behind the scenes of the modern menswear industry. New conversations with the people shaping the future of menswear, men’s style and fashion.
Menswear Style Podcast
Dean Gomilsek-Cole, Head of Design of Turnbull & Asser & Matt Spaiser of The Suits of James Bond
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
In this episode we speak to Dean Gomilsek-Cole, the Head of Design over at Turnbull & Asser. We discuss the history of the brand and its involvement with the James Bond franchise. We also speak to Matt Spaiser in the US about his blog The Suits of James Bond. He gives us the low down on his favourite 007 suits and his opinion on the new Tom Ford Bond collection.
Whilst we have your attention, be sure to sign up to our daily MenswearStyle newsletter here. We promise to only send you the good stuff.
Hello, and welcome to the Men's Work Style podcast. My name's Pete Cooker. And on today's episode, we're going to be talking to the head of design over at Turnberg and Atta, Steve Domestic Cole. Turnbull and Atta, one of the oldest shirt makers in the UK. They've got a rich history, and they've even kitted out skirts for James Bond himself. So we're going to be talking to him. What do you think about that, Rog? Of course you do. We're going to keep it James Bond theme this week. So we're going to have a word with Matt Space over in New York. He's the author of The Suits of James Bond, one of the best blogs out there at the moment. Everything to do with the tailoring, the cuts of the James Bond suits is going to be fantastic. So what do you think of that, Roger?
SPEAKER_03When one is in Egypt. One should go to the R.
SPEAKER_05I could not agree with you more, sir, Roger. We're also going to have a word with our fashion editor at Menswear Star, Andre Letterbodier. A woman. Yes, Roger, a woman. What are your thoughts on Andre Roger? We will get to Andre later on. We'll also be chopping in on Ben Heath over at 21stcenturyJet.com. Have you got any thoughts on Ben George?
SPEAKER_02He always did have an inflatable opinion of himself.
SPEAKER_05Well, maybe we should just crack on the shirt. So London shirtmaker Temple Linata was established in 1885 and has been supplying illustrious figures, both real and fictional, over its history. From the Winston Churchill to the aforementioned James Bond. Its men's shirts are made in England to the highest standards using Italian fabric and mother of pearl buttons. So without any further ado. So on the line now we have Dean Gomilsi Cole, he's head of design over at Turnbullanassa. Hi Dean, how are you? Hi, how are you? I'm very well, thank you. Um thanks for taking the time out to speak to us today. Uh so Dean, I read in an article recently that you are the the peacocks of Jermaine Street. Is that true?
SPEAKER_04Um I don't I don't think it's a it's a claim that we made up. I think it was a moniker that was given to us quite a few decades ago. Um I think uh I mean I would like to think that we still hold that accolade, but I think it's up to our customers to bestow that upon us. Um I mean from my perspective I think we're one of the few British brands to still offer those eccentric and flamboyant pieces that create like a I call them like an aesthetic pick-me-up for the most sombre of outfits on you know these grey, rainy London days. Um so yeah, I would like to think that we still we still uh own that moniker of the peacocks of geometry, yeah.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, and rightly so. Um Dean, uh tell me a little bit, please, about your background. I understand you did a little bit of work at Timberland. How did you manage to translate the skills you learnt over in that company and take them into Turnbernassa?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I think it I think it's interesting if you look at my background, it's very diverse. So at first glance, you know, the the two brands, you know, Timberland and Thermalinasa can't seem like further apart. But the the reality is um both companies were were looking to um protect their heritage, but at the same time, you know, struggling on how to evolve their ideas and and take them forward for a contemporary twenty-first century consumer. Um so with with Timberland, they'd obviously were uh a footwear business very famous for the yellow boot that was developed in nineteen seventy-three, but they were struggling to get past that. Um with uh Terminassa, obviously they uh they were uh raw warrant holder shirt makers, but they wanted to create more of a uh a collection feel and in fact in their 130 year history they'd never had a designer. Um so it was uh it was a a a lot of pressure on both counts um to to be honest. So I guess what I learned from um from working with with Timberland was the ability to be respectful of a brand's heritage, but actually um I guess exploit that the archives, the the products that they had in the past, but kind of evolve them. So I didn't want to plagiarize ideas that had already been designed and existed, but I wanted to make sure they were relevant for a uh 21st century consumer. Um so that's the kind of the red thread between those two brands that's not um straight away clear from from looking at uh you know my my background.
SPEAKER_05Interesting, yeah. Uh Dean, uh tell me a little bit about this season's range and and how it's gonna differ from the last season's collection, please.
SPEAKER_04Well, this season I if we if we talk about um autumn winter sixteen, which is a season we're about to go into. I mean each each season I I start creating the collection um as a story. So it's almost like I call it like an aesthetic script. So I enjoy writing, so I bring that into the whole creative process. So we have um I I kind of create a story for the season, it's sometimes set in a certain time period, or there's um certain influences. It comes a lot from from whatever I'm I'm reading at the time to be honest. Um this season the um the collection's entitled The Artist and the Architect, um, and it's loosely based around a few books that I was reading. Um there's George Orwell's 1984, there's another book um by Anne Rand called The Fountainhead, which is from the 1930s, and then another curious one to add to the mix is Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. So it's it's really interesting for me, and I think it's something that we've established over the past, you know, m three years that I've been with the brand. The idea of um us becoming storytellers, um very much part of the DNA of the brand, but I bring that to kind of um creative reality by putting it into the the clothing that we create. Um so the idea for for this season, I mean what what you kind of recognized before from the the autumn winter fifteen collection, we we put a lot of these references in quite literal form because we create our own fabrics. We work with um a lot of great uh British mills in silk weaving and printing and uh uh making of uh wool fabrics. Um so I'm able to to create these really unique colours and patterns in everything that we do. So um with this theme, the idea of the the artist and the architect is the juxtaposition between this quite monochromatic creative order of the architect and then this kind of creative disorder of the artist. Um so it gives me almost like free reign to to play with, you know, patterns in black and white, and then on the flip side I can absolutely open up the colour palette and as I call it dial up the peacock and and play with everything. Um so yeah, within the collection you'll see you'll see the little hidden references to certain architectural points around London, um and also in some of the designs you'll see famous artists hidden within the weaving. So I like the idea of um people seeing a pattern at first glance and then when they look again they see like this hidden beauty within within the ideas.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, so in a way, is that is that a microcosm really of what your customer, your demographic is, someone that comes in and is looking for that something special, something bespoke, tailored really for them.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I think so. I mean uh with what we do, we do uh creating our own fabrics for a start is quite unique for a for a brand of our size, and um with the kind of limited runs that we create, it's it's very rare that you'll you'll see someone else wearing uh one of our creations as you're walking down the street. And I think our consumers like that sense of exclusivity and and uniqueness. It's uh um a lot of our products become talking points, they become collectible items. So I think it really does um kind of reflect what our consumer is looking for. And although these some of these are ready-to-wear pieces rather than bespoke, some of the pieces say for on the neckties, for example, we might only make um eleven or twelve pieces of some of the more flamboyant designs. And when you consider we have five possible outlets through online in our stores that you know take a few of these pieces, there might only be two or three pieces available in London or New York. So they're very uh they're very unique.
SPEAKER_05I see. Dean, I've got to talk to you about James Bond. I'm gagging to talk to you about James Bond. Um I bet it's the question that you get asked at every cocktail party, but if you could indulge me, uh please tell us a little bit about the relationship between Turnbolinassa and Bond, the heritage, how it all started, who calls who, etc. Mind just uh telling us a little bit about the process, please?
SPEAKER_04No, no problem. It's something I mean we have a lot of of people that associate, you know, Turnbolinassa with with Bond, and it's a it's a great way for people to get introduced to the to the brand, so I never tire of um you know going through the the background. So basically our relationship with the the Bond franchise began way back in 1962, before either of us was born, um with a film called uh Doctor No, and the the director, Terence Young, had been a customer of Termalinassa, and he was looking uh for a way to turn the the young Sean Connery into Ian Fleming's kind of image of Bond. Um and actually in the Bond uh novels um Fleming actually mentions that you know Bond would buy his West Indian Sea Island cotton shirts from German Street. So what we what we did is, you know, we um Sean Connery came in with uh with Terence Young and we picked out these kind of p well not we because obviously I wasn't around then, but the we picked out these pale blue and white um sh Sea Island cotton shirts um that were were made for Sean Connery. We've got some famous imagery in our book and online of of that fitting session. And um the the shirts were kind of given this signature detail, which was a what we call the three button cocktail cuff. It was actually inspired um Terence Young, the director, had actually seen it being made for another of his his friends and another TNA customer, David Niven. And it was almost like it looks like a double cuff but without the cuffling, so it actually buttons and then it turns back on itself. It's quite an interesting it's become a signature cuff um for for TNA since that film, since it was seen in that film. Um so you know, we continue to work on many of the Bond films through the decades, um, working with Lindy Hemming, who was the um the costume designer for for most of the Bond films. Um but um our relationship ended with Bond um after dressing Daniel Craig and Casino Royale. So although we're we're kind of uh associated with the glory days of of Bond as opposed to the kind of the the more um you know the the more recent um developments where I I think it's uh Tom Ford is now um taking over for for most of that.
SPEAKER_05And sorry to interrupt. Uh who um makes those decisions? Whose call is it? Who's who's basically just turning around to each other and saying, look, no, we've had enough, it's time to move on?
SPEAKER_04I think it all came down to the the the way uh terminal as a very old school business and the way that we work with any of our uh customers, whether it's um a guy walking in off the street or it's a film producer, we treat everyone with the same level of respect. And the reality was whenever we work with um a film company, we're we're not in in the bit the business to to as a charity. So if someone comes to us and says, We will put you in your film, but you have to give us everything free of charge, uh we would just quite blatantly say, No, that's not how we work. We manufacture the best shirts in the world in England and we don't need to do that, and we need to pay the people that are making the shirts. I mean, to be honest, we never really um advertised the fact that we were in any of those films. It's only through word of mouth and and you know some of the imagery that people have become aware of our relationship. We've always been quite humble as a brand, and I think now um w we're seeing cinema changing to a level where product placement is almost taking over a a lot of the um, you know, the it's taking a lot of the enjoyment out of a film. It's like people are actually noticing, you know, what car, what watch, etc. And I think to be honest, Bond uh Bond films are kind of renowned for that, so you kind of now you almost ignore it because you know it's it's gonna happen. But I think for us with the Bond franchise it it came down to yeah, us not wanting to give people things for free and even like uh pay towards being as part of the film. It's like our our products stand up on their own and we you know we don't wanna we don't want to go down that kind of avenue. But on the flip side, coming coming out of our you know, recognition of working with um things like Bond, we we've worked on uh a hell of a lot of um films and we continue to. I mean quite recently we worked on I guess it's like a modern spin or you know, a different point of view of the kind of um Bond hero type film with the Kingsman um film that we um we worked on with another uh costume designer, Ariane Phillips. Um so that was another um case where Matthew Vaughn, his father was a a TNA customer and he kind of grown up seeing um our our products as a as a child and actually brought in some of his father's vintage pieces to take inspiration to create the the um the costumes for the film. So yeah, so we're we're still very much involved with cinema. In fact uh it is one aspect of the the job that's very enjoyable. We seem to be a go-to brand for people looking for, you know, authentic, well made pieces when they're trying to create these characters. So I guess inadvertently that's had an influence on me and how I build my collections. It's almost like each collection is has the potential to become a film. But that's probably a long way in the future.
SPEAKER_05Dean, how are they gonna bring back Colin Firth for the sequel? I mean he got he got a bit of a pasting in the first one. I I don't know if he's really in any fit state.
SPEAKER_04Oh I think I I think that's pretty straightforward. I think it's gonna be like um like an Obi-Wan type situation with with Star Wars, I would have thought. So it'd be more flashback. Yeah, I d I don't think we're gonna see a Colin Firth clone cyborg or anything in in the film. And to be honest, I I haven't seen the script, I don't know anything about it at this stage, but I would imagine that's that's what happens with a lot of films. Obviously, if if characters characters are brought back from the dead, it's usually for like flashback type sequences. So I'd a m I would imagine if if he's uh in the film that would be that would be the way that we uh we'd we'd see him coming to life.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I can see that working. Um So Dean, tell me, what are your mates like? The people you hang around with, how often do they come in, ask for discount? What's what's the rub?
SPEAKER_04Oh well, I mean they tr everyone everyone tries that all the time. I'm actually I've got two younger brothers and a you know, a father who are the same, and I just say, no, you're like anybody else. Come on now.
SPEAKER_05Look, James Bond doesn't get it for free, yeah. If James Bond doesn't get it for free, then no one does, alright? Not in my place.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I mean I tell them, I mean, I can't I can't afford to buy half the stuff that I'm designing. It's um you know, it's one of those situations where you know i y you're like everyone. I I'm not we're not uh we can't, you know, give things away. I think obviously as an employee of the business, I get a certain amount of uh of discount and we get a uniform allowance, which is great because it gives me the opportunity to um you know to to get products. But on the flip side, I also you know really like what we you know what we're designing, what we're producing, so I'm willing to part with my own money to to to buy it. So uh that's kind of how I fend those guys off that are always trying to look look for look for a freebie.
SPEAKER_05Dean Gamel sick cole there over at Turnbullonasta, and if you want to check out all the shirts and all the fantastic tires, accessories, head over to turnasta.co.uk. How's that for you, Roger?
SPEAKER_03Illuminating.
SPEAKER_05Fantastic. And now it's time for a word with Ben Heath over at 21st Century Gent. So on the phone now we have Ben from 21stcenturygen.com. Hello, Ben. Hi. How are you doing? Good, thanks. Excellent, good to speak to. Uh this week we're talking Bond, James Bond. Do you have a favourite bond? To the theme, June.
SPEAKER_00Uh my favourite bond. Um, it's always a tough one because you I I'm a sucker for the old classics. So, you know, Sean Connery, I think, although he was Scottish, which is obviously, you know, considering the politics of one day, is he is he really the Englishman with a gun? Um I I but I do I do like the old bonds. I couldn't put a a finger on it, but I would say anything with John Connery is always a always a uh a good film.
SPEAKER_05Okay, good chat. And what about maybe your favourite outfit out of the bond? Do you have a particular scene or a suit that you can remember?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I mean, actually what was quite refreshing is in Spectre when um Daniel Daniel Craig wore the turtleneck in the in the Alps scene, you know. I think James Bond is always wearing a suit. And there are only so many ways you can dress up a suit, double-breasted, single-breasted. So it's quite refreshing to see him in kind of you know a um a roll neck on on the uh the the slopes of the Alps, killing thousands of bad guys just going 100 miles an hour on a pair of skis. So it's um I I do like that. I also do like the classic double-breasted coats that um you know people like um Roger Roger Moore used to wear. So yeah, I think it goes throughout the ages by you know, he always dresses well.
SPEAKER_05I think when yet whenever you see Bond didn't like the naval suit because he was a naval officer, wasn't he? So when Pierce rocks up in that naval suit, just absolutely and uh when Sean does it in, I think he only lived twice where he's uh he goes down to the embassy uh not the embassy, but the headquarters and he goes, promotion to become a board show, and he just gets out and he's in the navel suit.
SPEAKER_00He's like, ah Sean the absolute classic. And also um he he always do you know what was quite good when he wore the um kimonos and stuff in um what was that film? When he was obviously in Japan in Tokyo, it was Sean Connery.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, that's uh Yodi Little.
SPEAKER_00Yes, it is, yeah. When he also dressed up as a Japanese person, which was um absolutely hilarious to watch. It's like a really badly I think did Thunder, I think Thunderbirds or Team America completely and utterly mocked that at some point. It must have been Team America. Oh of course they did. But um, you know, I I think the the the best thing about Bond is that it's the only series of films that I can't pick a favourite because each one does genuinely have something at that key moment, what he wears, what he says, storyline location. You know, there's always something in each film that you kind of can't help but love. Um yeah, apart from Casino Royale, which is probably I don't know, and also Quantum of Solist. Quantum astolist. Well, Casino Royale is not too bad. Quantum of Solist though, I felt was slightly lost. It was kind of uh a stop gap between um Casino Royale and obviously um Skyfall. Didn't really have much to it, and it was kind of just a bit of a you know, it was a bit of a strange film to make, and I feel like it could have been made better.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, it's all I mean the Quantum Assolus ultimately is considered a little bit of a mess due to the rising strike and the hurried script, but yeah, of course.
SPEAKER_00But then again, you know, you can have series like 24 that completely embrace that and still manage to pull out a blockbuster. So I don't know. I'm gonna being picky here, but I couldn't pick my favourite, but my least favourite would be Quantum Assolut.
SPEAKER_05Interesting. Well we'll uh perhaps put that to the vote. Do you agree with Ben? Answers on a postcard. That's okay. Great. Cheers, Ben, catch up with you next week. Cool, thank you. Thanks, Ben. Ben Heathair at 21stcenturygen.com.
SPEAKER_03What a helpful chat.
SPEAKER_05I agree, Roger. I agree. Now, as promised, we're diving over the pond and having a word with Matt Space. Matt Spader is a graphic designer located in New York, and he is the author of the Suits of James Bond. You can find him at thesuitsofjamesbond.com. So without any further ado, uh On the line now we have Matt Spader. Matt Space is uh the writer from The Suits of James Bond, one of the best blogs on the internet. Hello, Matt, how are you doing? Good.
SPEAKER_01How are you, Peter?
SPEAKER_05I'm very well. Thanks for taking the time out to talk to me. Of course. Matt, I should confess, as a writer, I don't actually read that many blogs. A lot of people don't. Amazingly, I probably only have about two or three blogs that I turn to regularly. Uh yours being one of them. I think the way that you describe the suits, uh not only are they really accurate and detailed, but that you could there's a a level of affection there. Not only for the tailoring, but for the James Bond films themselves. So Congratulations. Uh I think you're rightful. Um can you tell me a little bit about the blog, how you got into it, and where it all started for you?
SPEAKER_01I started because I I wanted to I wanted to just to share my ideas about cloud. And I just I use Bond as a platform. I've always admired Bond's clothing. I've always used Bond as someone to look to for how to dress. And I and I think I I guess I learned a lot about clothing just from watching Bond, and that took me somewhere else, and I I um just started reading books. But then I I've always gone back to Bond for the clothes because he just sets such a good example most of the time. So I just I've used I just wanted to use Bond as a platform to share uh just to share my ideas about clothes. And I've put my own ideas in there and then I just but I use Bond as as proof.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I mean it sounds like you when I read the blog that you back up every argument with proof. It'll either be a screenshot or a comparison to another suit. So it's not just something that how long does it take to put a blog together, for example?
SPEAKER_01It really can take anywhere from half an hour to to three or four hours for some articles. Um some articles involve more research, some don't really involve any research. Some of them there are some things that I knew I can just think a lot about, but uh I mean some are some there are some topics that I'll I'll go to other sources beyond Bond. Um I'll quote some books in my library and finding some of the things that I need, uh some backup on. Sometimes that takes more time.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Um well I mean the when I read the blogs, they always look so detailed. It I just think that you're there trawling through lots of data and books and going through all the films and doing all the research. And I think in Jesus Age Christ, how does this guy find the time to put this amount of knowledge into just which is a blog, which is you know disposable writing at best? There wasn't really a question there, I just it was kind of a backward compliment. So can you um maybe just for for the listeners and for me as well, give us the chronological order of where it started with the shirt. So I know that Turnbull and Asser started with the shirts for Dr. No and Sean Connery, and then it kind of changed hands through the years. So do you mind just giving us the backdrop?
SPEAKER_01Sure. Now uh so Turnbull and Asser, they were there at the beginning. Uh Frank Foster also claims that he uh made shirts for Sean Connery for Dr. No. Um I I don't know if that's true or not, but it it's certainly possible. I believe he made um shirts for other actors in that movie, such as Anthony Dawson. I'm sure he made uh Anthony Dawson's uh shirts because he has a different kind of cocktail cuff on his shirts compared to what Sean Connery was wearing. Um then Goldfinger, Turbo and Asser did not work on that film. Uh it could have been Frank Foster there. Frank Foster also made George Lazenby's shirts in honor Matchy Secret Service. Turbo and Asser came back for Diamonds Are Forever, and then all of Roger Moore's films, Frank Foster created the uh all of the shirts, almost all of the shirts for Roger Moore. Um Timothy Dalton, who knows who made his shirts. Um then for for um with Piers Brasin um and Goldeneye, he yeah, he used a shirt maker called Sulka, and then Turnbull and Asser came back again for Tomorrow Never Dies and the World's Not Enough. And then see, in the next two films, in Die Another Day and Casino Royale, Brione, who made Bond's uh suits in those films, made most of the shirts except for for the dress shirts, which Turnbull and Asser still made for you know for black tie. And then the last three films, since uh Quantum of Solace, Tom Ford has made uh the suits, the shirts, ties, and a lot of the casual wear. How do you think he's got such a monopoly on it all? I think he ought he uh I don't know if they're paying him anything. I think he might be paying them. I it's it's the it's it's the marketing for Tom Ford. Tom Ford has his his uh his his whole line has I think achieved so much fame in the past uh eight years because of all James Bond and all the celebrity endorsements. He's all over the Academy Award ceremonies and other award ceremonies. You can just you'll see his uh his clothes everywhere.
SPEAKER_05I mean, I I had a word with the people down at TurnberNassa um and they're very keen to point out that they haven't turned their back on Bond. Uh, you know, they were very proud to have Bond as part of their heritage. Uh, but they did say at some point we are a brand that can stand up on their own um and we don't need to pay a film to be in a film. You know, we don't need to pay a production company to advertise our products.
SPEAKER_01They certainly do not. They make one of the best. I'm wearing a Trumbalasser shirt right now. Oh wow, brilliant.
SPEAKER_05It's a shame um that's a shame we can't show our uh listeners, but that's uh that that's very apt for the interview. Um so I mean, in your blogs I read a little bit about what your opinions on Tom Ford, uh, and you think some of the suits are a little bit s snug, maybe, for Daniel Craig. Yes. Uh do you mind elaborating on that?
SPEAKER_01So I don't blame Tom Ford for that. I blame the costume designer. Tom Ford proved in Quantum of Solace that he could he could create excellent suits and excellent shirts and ties for Bond. I I I don't have a problem with him. It's I think it it's the costume designer that it's she's the one who uh who wanted the the uh the you know the this uh tight fit. Is that Lindy Hemming? No, no. She uh no, it's it's it's uh it's a French costume designer um n named uh Jannie Tamim.
SPEAKER_06Right.
SPEAKER_01And you know, yeah, because Lindy Hemming, um she stopped her last film was uh Casino Royale. So she her films we're we're we're all brioni. And then after she left, um Tom Ford was brought in.
SPEAKER_05Okay, excellent. Okay, so um so basically what do you think they're trying to make him more masculine by giving him tied to suits? Is that the idea?
SPEAKER_01I don't know. I think it's more of just to be trendy. I don't think he looks any more masculine in these uh small suits.
SPEAKER_05Right, okay. I mean it's a little bit of a hard parallel because I guess we're trying to compare him to like different eras of Bond. So you're not just comparing him to different shapes, you're differing eras of suit making as well. Sure. Um I I want to talk about the white dinner jacket, because it's such a a centerpiece for Bond, isn't it? It gets talked about probably more than any other suit, would you agree?
SPEAKER_01I think a lot I think any of his black tie, uh the midnight blue dinner jackets, the black, I think they're all um they're all equally talked about. I mean the yeah, the the ivory dinner jacket, it it had had I mean, since we hadn't seen it in over uh it was a 30-year gap from a view to a kill when Bond last wore it. And people really stopped talking about it. I think people thought it was it was just outdated, it was it was it was too colonial, and and now now uh Daniel Craig finally brought it back after 30 years. And did you like it? Did you approve of the jacket that Craig wore? No, not not exactly. Um because it just it it it was too uh fashionable, too it it lost, I think, the elegance of the traditional ivory dinner jacket that was featured in all of the previous uh all of all of Bond's previous ivory ginner jackets. This one, the the um Grograin lapel facings, which which were out of place, and two buttons, which which no dinner jacket uh no single breasted dinner jacket should have. That and I I think and a single vent in the rear, all that just I think it all ruined that you know the opportunity of having um you know a classic ivory dinner jacket again.
SPEAKER_05I mean, for me, the the best ivory dinner jacket was simply Connery coming out of the wetsuit in the opening sequence of Goldfinger. It's a fantastic scene. And then puts the carnation in the breast part. I mean, it's just pure cinema, isn't it?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. I I think that dinner jacket is a little too full cut for my tastes. It's it's it's quite a has quite a full cut. Whereas like Roger Moore's dinner jacket in in Octopussy is a very similar dinner jacket with with uh peaked lapels. And I think it's I think that one actually has a more elegant um cut to it. From you know the that that one well yeah, that that was made by by uh Doug Hayward.
SPEAKER_05Right, okay. And what about the the the white dinner jacket in the man, the golden gun? For me it looked like it was almost of its time, the 70s, the lapels were huge, the the oversized Dicky Bow tie. Um did that kind of clash for you?
SPEAKER_01No, I I love that one. I think Yeah, well, I think the lapels aren't that big. And I think on a uh on a double-breasted jacket, a double-breasted jacket looks great with when it has fairly sizable lapels. Okay, so you can get away with it. I think I think that one is okay. It's it's easier to pull off uh wide lapels on a double-breasted jacket than on a single-breasted jacket.
SPEAKER_05Uh-huh. Okay, that's interesting. Uh moving on from the dinner jacket, uh, what would you say is your favorite Bond suit and scene? Uh, as in like you think, oh my god, he looks the nails in this scene.
SPEAKER_01Well, um, I mean, there are a lot of them. I think I I mean like I I love George Lazenby's um his three-piece herringbone uh suit that he wears to the office in Arnhem Magic C Secret Service. Oh, yeah. The scene itself isn't uh it's not uh it's not some super cool scene, but I think uh his suit is fantastic, and that suit looks still looks amazing today. That suit will never uh I don't I think that will always look good. It will never be out of uh style.
SPEAKER_05That's the suit, isn't it, where he's kind of going through the drawer, getting the garot watch out, testing all of the gadgets. Exactly. And he's just handed his notice in, and I think he then goes back in and it's Money Penny that saved the day, basically. It's such a sweet scene. It's such a I love that scene, yeah. Uh I think that perhaps the the sentiment of the scene overtook the suit for me, so I'll have to go back and have a look at the suit.
SPEAKER_01For sure. No, it's it's a brilliant suit. And I I like that he takes the jacket off, so you you can you get a good look at at everything underneath it. So you really get a good look at that suit. And uh it's just I I think that suit will always look great. It it'll look great anywhere. Just such a good, great suit.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Um I'm trying to think for me, the f for my personal favourite scene of Bond looking the absolute mustard was when Paris Carver comes to see Pierce Brosnan in his hotel in uh Tomorrow Never Dies, and he's just there with a a cut glass tumbler drinking a scotch, she comes in and he tells her to go back, you know, tell him that you learnt nothing, and he's just there in that white crisp shirt, uh the braces on, just oozes sex, doesn't he? I think just that kind of look, just looks the nails in that scene.
SPEAKER_01Oh yes. Yeah, and that that I mean the whole dinner suit uh in the with the the uh double-breasted waistcoat that it has, it's that that's a fantastic uh piece. It's a it's a bit too um it's rather flashy for James Bond. It's it's uh but it's I think it's a it's one of my favorite uh black tie outfits of the entire series.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, uh I I've got a penchant for that, so yeah. That's for me one of the best. Moving slightly away from James Bond, Matt. Uh do you have like when you're talking to people and you're in a situation when you're eyeballing somebody's suit, do you ever kind of get distracted from what people are telling you and can you just think, oh, there's a bit of a faux pas there, oh there's a pet peeve of mine, he shouldn't be wearing that with that.
SPEAKER_01If it's an ordinary suit and not put together well, I I don't really pay any attention to that. Right. It's just I don't think that because that's just typical. And it there's not there's nothing to draw my attention from that. So whereabouts are you based then, Matt? I live in in uh New York City.
SPEAKER_05New York, okay, great. And uh have people in New York heard of like Savile Row and Turnbalanassa and these sort of rich English heritage brands?
SPEAKER_01I don't think a lot of people have. I know some a lot I mean, some people do, people who are very much into clothing, um, they they're familiar. But I don't think most people in New York uh know about they don't think much about English clothes. When they they think about Italian clothes mostly in in in America. I see.
SPEAKER_05So we're we're playing second fiddle to the Italians once again. They're fine.
SPEAKER_01I think that yeah, I think well, especially since the 1980s. In the 1980s, Italian fashion took over, and anyone who's been around since then thinks of Italian clothes as the top. They don't they don't put any thought into English clothing. Especially because it's it's just not very prominent in um in America, apart from the very high-end shops. Right, okay.
SPEAKER_05Well, uh, we'll have to do something about that, Matt. I mean, if we haven't got Bond to tell them what to wear, then we're we're backed, basically, aren't we? Um just lastly, Matt, uh, I need to ask you this. Uh your favorite James Bond, your favorite film, and why?
SPEAKER_01Well, oh, I mean my favorite Bond actor? Yeah. Your favorite actor and your favorite film. Well, Roger Moore is my favorite Bond actor, uh, despite his uh flared trousers. But I think I think he I I just I just find him so enjoyable to watch. And I think he's very well dressed despite the the fashions of the time. But but my favorite Bond film is the one that that yeah, is the one George Lasby stars in, Onimagic Sea Secret Service.
SPEAKER_05Excellent.
SPEAKER_01It's certainly up there.
SPEAKER_05It's certainly up to the other thing.
SPEAKER_01That one is it's my favorite because I think just it has such a solid story. Um the the you know, all the music by John Barry is fantastic, and and all of uh Demi Major's suits look so good.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, it's a it's a good show, it's a good combination. I mean, it's such a shame he didn't go on and do the diamonds or forever. Continue that storyline on the the vengeance for Blofeld, but that's uh I agree. That's uh that's a a podcast for another day, Matt. Well, Matt, thanks again for your time. Um I I hope to speak to you again soon. I hope you keep up the blog. Please keep it coming. The latest one uh about the capsule of Bond suits was uh was amazing again. I think that was just released today. So um please keep up the good work. And once again, if you want to catch Matt Spacer, it's thesuitsofjamebond.com. I believe. And uh you can find him there, and that's where he posts all the blogs. Follow him on Facebook, he's he certainly knows his onions. Thanks again, Matt. Have yourself a good day. Thank you for uh thank yeah, thank you for interviewing me. No trouble at all. Cheers, mate. Matt Spacer there, at thesuitsofjamesbond.com is where you find Matt. Okay, so I think we have time for one more. Do we have time for one more, do you think, Rog?
SPEAKER_02Absolutely. There's no sense in going off half-cought. Well, quite.
SPEAKER_05It's over to you, Andrebodier. Back on the line, we have Andre Letterbodier.
SPEAKER_07Ah, well done, Peter.
SPEAKER_05Thank you, Andre.
SPEAKER_07This is getting you're spot on now. I love it.
SPEAKER_05Oh, tell me about it. Well, you know. Um It's been great. It's been what a couple of weeks. It's great to have you back. How have you been?
SPEAKER_07I've been really well, thank you.
SPEAKER_05Have you managed to catch some sun? What sun?
SPEAKER_07Um, yeah, Summer has decided not to really show its face in London. So keep hoping, here's hoping.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, definitely. Well, uh, you might have heard there that we've just been on the wires to uh a couple of tailors that have had their names synonymous with the James Bond heritage. So are you a James Bond fan?
SPEAKER_07Absolutely.
SPEAKER_05Is there a James Bond in particular that you like the most?
SPEAKER_07I'm going to actually um eliminate Sean Connery from the running in this because I always feel that everyone goes for Sean Connery, you know, mainly because you know he's a best. But I really like Daniel Craig.
SPEAKER_05Oh, okay. Tell me why.
SPEAKER_07I thought that he, you know, and after the real kind of camp and just pun universe that was the Pierce Brosnan era, I thought that he brought a real kind of grittiness and a bit of realness to the character. He was almost believable and more believable than the hyper polished James Bond that we've seen before. I liked it. It was different.
SPEAKER_05I think if I mean many people say that even Roger Moore has said that Daniel Craig is probably his favourite because he looks like a killer. And if you had all of them in the same room, like duking it out, then you'd probably put your money on Daniel Craig getting a few sweet uppercuts in there and some nice judo chops. Uh but I don't think Roger will be really in the running when it comes to the fighting element.
SPEAKER_07No, neither would Timothy Dalton. I hate to do it. Sorry to all the Timothy Dalton fans out there, but my money would be on Daniel.
SPEAKER_05So God, you'll be uh the Timothy Dalton fan page will be screaming at their uh their laptops and their iPods right now. It's just a personal opinion. Lambassing you. Well, um, regarding the the suits um associated with the brand, so is there anything I mean firstly yourself, do you wear any suits? Do you have anything in the wardrobe that resembles very fine tailoring?
SPEAKER_07Um I do have a couple of tailored blazers, um, because I personally have quite broad shoulders. Um I appreciate a bit of fine tailoring. Um it is something that I have kind of gone to as actual tailor to get fitted to my body, because I do think that's the best way forward when it comes to especially like emphasizing or de-emphasizing particular body parts.
SPEAKER_05Okay. Um so tell me about how you tell me about the process. What did you ask for in your blazer and what we what parts were you trying to accentuate?
SPEAKER_07Um I think if you do have any sort of issues with um your proportions on your microhalf, then getting the shoulder right is the first step. Um I think if you have a shoulder, unless you're going for a fashion look, a real editorial look, um, getting the shoulder to actually fit is half of the worry and also getting the length right. Um, those are the two things that were just complete no-brainer's because I don't mind a slightly, you know, slightly oversized laser on the length, but the shoulders have to be spot on.
SPEAKER_05So, Andre, tell me, from a woman's perspective, is there any kind of suit uh that a man should wear to impress a woman? You know, is it like a naval officer suit or a good mohair suit, uh the white dinner jacket, for example, or is it something that you have in your mind's eye that you fancy a guy wearing?
SPEAKER_07Um I think certainly with suiting, it is 100% about the fit. Um, I'm not a massive fan of wacky suits. So anything that's kind of really out there, um, unless it's appropriate to the occasion, I don't tend to kind of gravitate towards. I like a kind of conservative suit, but the deal breaker is if it fits badly. Um, I think that's something that any man should pay attention to, no matter what the fabrication, um, what the style is, you know, if it doesn't make you look better, the suit has failed.
SPEAKER_05And what is worse, an undersized suit or an oversized suit, something baggy or something too tight?
SPEAKER_07I think a baggy suit is worse, actually. An undersized suit looks a little uncomfortable, I'm not going to lie. But, you know, certain designers, you know, Italian designers, they favor quite a slim cut, which, you know, not everyone can certainly pull off, but an oversized suit where it's really pooling at the ankles or the cuffs are too long and it's really coming around the knuckles. Um, I think that just drowns a frame. And, you know, the purpose of the suit, it's I always liken it to a ladies' corset. It's meant to give you a shape and it's meant to give you the best shape that you could possibly have. So, you know, through kind of clever cuts, it'll be able to de-emphasize a waist or to broaden a shoulder or just, you know, bring the eye to different places. Um, it's a little bit of a magician's element, actually. A suit.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Do I have one uh haymaker of a suit in the wardrobe and just go for it? Or do I have maybe about four or five different ones, but potentially not that great suits?
SPEAKER_07Um, I would definitely say get the best suit that you can afford. Um, and it all depends really on what your lifestyle is. If you have to wear a suit every day, then it, you know, it suits you to have pun not intended. Um it suits you to have quite a few options, really. Um, so a couple of kind of not great suits would probably suit you better. But and here's a massive caveat find a good tailor. Even if you get a bunch of off the rack suits that are at a lower price point, invest in a good tailor who can make a Look more visible. Actually look more high-end. Um I think that's that's actually it takes a little bit of legwork, definitely, but it will pay off in the end.
SPEAKER_05That's a good advice actually, yeah, because I've got a suit that is pretty entry level, but I knew what I was getting myself in for and I had buyers remorse the minute I walked out of the shop. But then just going that extra fur along and almost giving it a service like you would do a car, you know, putting some alloys on it. I should really just go to a tailor and get it nipped, you know, to kind of give it that nice little finishing touch.
SPEAKER_07Absolutely. And someone who knows what they're really doing, they're not going to charge an arm and a leg. Um, and also you can really make sure that your shirt is of high quality that you're wearing underneath it, your shoes are perfect, your belt is good, your cufflinks are good. Um, you know, those little tiny little touches that can really um upgrade a suit as well.
SPEAKER_05Oh, cheers Andre. I think I've learned something here today. We all have.
SPEAKER_07Oh, thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_05No, not at all. Uh you take care of yourself and I'll uh catch up with you in a fortnight.
SPEAKER_07Thank you, bye-no!
SPEAKER_05Bye-bye. Andre Letterbodier there. Well, thank you for joining us for this week's episode. I hope you enjoyed it. The next episode will definitely feature that interview I did with Joshua Kane, and we'll also have a word with Oliver Proudlock, and we'll talk about his brand, Serge Denimes, so look out for that. So in the meantime, do check out the website www.menswearstyle.co.uk, where all the blogs, the interviews, the fashion tips are going on. Follow us at menswearstyle on Twitter and the same on Instagram as well. So until then. Any last words, Rog? How do you kill five hours in Rio if you don't sample just as a little aside from the from the interview, I actually was lucky enough to go to the premiere of that film. Okay, cool. Okay, uh just give me your take on this, right? So I'm in the cinema on my own. Um, you know, I as in I didn't go with anyone, it was a packed cinema. Um and I see this I'm I'm in the aisle seat and I see this really nice girl walk past me. And I kind of give it I give it the look, as in she's gone down, so she's gone over my shoulder, and I've said, Wow, what a cracking set of legs. Um as she's double backed, she's forgotten something, she's ran back up the aisle. She turns around, I'm like, Oh, it's Claudia Schiffer. Oh, that makes sense, yeah, because um obviously she's the wife of Matthew Borden. Yeah. So I then explain this anecdote to my girlfriend later in the pub, exactly as I've told you. And I got the most I got the biggest heap of shit for it that uh you'd ever believe. So she goes, So you're just oogling up women's legs left, right, and centre. I say, Yeah, but it's fine, because it's Claudia Schiffer. She's one of the hottest girls in the world. Surely I've got I've got a licence to look at her legs. But then she goes, Well, you didn't know it was Claudia Schiffer, so you're still I was like, Oh for Jesus age Christ, but but yeah, it's uh it was a it was a lovely moment and a and a story that I've completely forgotten until you just mentioned that film.
SPEAKER_04Well, you know what? I would if I was in the same situation, I would not have even mentioned that to my to my wife, because I know it would just open up a whole can of worms and you'd never be right in the right, so I can see where she's coming from.
SPEAKER_05I think it's because I'm so wild whenever I see anyone famous, I have to tell everyone that I know that I've seen someone. And so because I bumped it. Oh god, Jesus age Christ, lesson, learn. Um okay, sorry.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, sure, of course.
SPEAKER_05Of course, no problem.
.jpg)