British Style Genius - Loud and Proud - The Street Look

The series exploring what makes British fashion and style distinctive concludes with a look at how many of Britain's most iconic fashions have evolved from the street rather than the catwalk. At the heart of this uniquely British tradition likes a talent for appropriating clothes intended for other people - usually the wealthy and privileged - and turning them into very different kinds of style statement. We meet the original Teds, who adopted the flamboyant Edwardian-style suits favoured by post-war Guards officers, while the original Mods show how they patched together influences from American jazz, French arthouse cinema and Italian cafe culture to create a sharper look. There's a look at the hidden subtleties behind the 1970s skinhead style, with its militaristic, boots-meets-Ben Sherman look, and we see how the European sportswear-influenced 1980s street style took its inspiration from the tennis courts and sowed the seeds of a label obsession that still dominates the street look today.