My late father, born 1937, was a Teddy Boy in the 1950s. As a 10/11 year-old kid in the 1970s, I discovered his old rock'n'roll records in a cupboard - Elvis, Buddy Holly, Little Richard, Chuck Berry etc - and played them non stop.
My Dad was a Teddy boy in the 50’s he would have been 88 but sadly passed in 2020, miss him so much, I have a great picture of him looking like a young James Dean.
From Yorkshire ,but been in Australia for 64 years now. Remember it all like yesterday, my big brother who just turned 81 was right into it. He wore the coolest clothes ,went out every night and drove our old man mad.Enjoyed the video ,keep 'em coming.
I was born in 1955, l was a baby being pushed around in my pram when rock n roll arrived in Britain. Watching this video, I can only imagine how the Teddy boy culture with its new music and fashion blew away the dust and gloom of post World War 2 Britain for the youth of those days giving them excitement and an identity different from thier parents, in other words the teenager had been re-invented 🎶🎙🎸
Teds are still around today - I was one 40 + years ago, my Dad was one in the 50's. Saville Row tailors re-imagined the look to celebrate the end of cloth rationing after WW2. The Teddy boy look was first adopted by Guards officers, then working class spivs and cosh boys - you are correct it pre-dated Rock n Roll. The Beatles didn't emulate the look, they were originally Teds themselves.
I remember the Teds as a toddler when i lived in Bradford.And Saturday night really was alright for a fight.The hair style was known as a DA, ducks arse.Fabulous photos and clips.
WW2 deaths nearly 400,000 so many young lads grew up without a dad and angry. Very angry. All they had was music and the picture houses, many of which they vandalised. They became gang members and very close members, closer than family. They were formidable when confronted.
My Dad was a youth worker at the Webbe Youth Club in Bethnal Green in the 1950's. The Webbe was called in the newspapers, the 'club for the unclubbables' because a lot of the members had been thrown out of every other youth club in the area. At that time most youth clubs were run by Church organisations which had strict rules about 'behaviour' and 'morals', all of which were rapidly changing at the time. The Webbe welcomed the rebels, many of whom were teddy boys (and some girls) and gave them a lot more freedom and joy. My Dad died in 2006, but if anyone remembers Sam Bishop from the Webbe Youth Club, I would love to hear from you. Ted or not. Love and peace.
In Quadrophenia , The Mod Jimmy meets his old friend in the baths & is appalled by him singing Be Bop A-Lula by Gene Vincent & counters with You Really Got Me by The Kinks. Mods Vs Rockers ( Teds )
@@mickymiller6130 We became Hells Angels from the late 1960's onwards. But most UK chapters were unofficial honky chapters. Hells Angels London, was the first official chartered chapter. Sanctioned by the US Hells Angels.
@@StrayCatBlues1953 Thank you. As a kid growing up in Canada, I remember reading an article on Mods and Rockers. I went the way of a Mod. Loved the music scene back then. Had so many great memories.
Many of the photos in this film are from around the Elephant & Castle, where the Teddy Boys & Girls originated, with a notorious criminal gang. The first young men to adopt the Edwardian style where posh chaps from across the river, whom the Elephant Boys would encounter on thieving sprees up West. They adopted their social superiors' sartorial style so they could get close enough to pick their pockets. It is not a coincidence that the rock riots - also not mentioned - that broke out around showings of, 'Rock Around The Clock' started at the Trocadero, in the Elephant.
What a great documentary! I was born in 1957, discovering Rock 'n Roll music and the Teddy boy look, so synonymous with it in the early 1970's. Much to the chagrin of my father, I started wearing my hair in the 'Tony Curtis' style with a DA at the back and bought myself a powder blue drape jacket with midnight blue velvet collar, lapels, pocket flaps and buttons, drain pipe trousers et al whilst still a school boy in 1972. He hated the look, echoing many of the anti Teddy boy comments highlighted in the documentary, citing that the Ted's represented the antithesis of the early 'post war society' with their 'loutish' undisciplined behaviour. Although too young to serve during the war, my father had joined the RAF in the early 50's. Arguably, his attitude mearley served to fuel my admiration of the culture. Whilst I was considered something of an 'oddity' by many of my contemporaries who were into 'Glam and/or Prog Rock', or the waning Skinhead scene, the look gave me an individualistic, retro, anti-establishment identity earning me a certain respect as I refused to follow the crowd. I even saved up and bought a '55 Ford Consul (whilst still at school) in which I used to drive around albeit illegally but it just seemed to complete the ensemble I desired. Although I stopped dressing as a 'Ted' many years ago, exchanging my drape jacket and Ford Consul for leather jacket, jeans and a succession of old British bikes (one of which I still have in the garage), I've never stopped loving the music. I discovered Rockabilly in the mid 70's and amassing a reasonable collection of old imported American vinyl that I still enjoy playing; not just on my turntable but by fronting an occasional Rock 'n Roll, Rockabilly, Jive band even though I'm now well into my 60's; indeed, we performed a gig just this Bank Holiday weekend, drawing a good sized audience, a number arriving in period cars. Although none were dressed as Teds, all appeared appreciative of what we delivered. I never cease to be not a little surprised at the wide age range present at the gigs we perform; on this occasion one young lady in her late teens said to me that 'Great Balls of Fire' is her favourite song and would we play it. You bet we did! I would suggest that the whole 50's youth culture scene still remains relevant today, not just as a mere 'curio', but symbolising and arguably celebrating the first time 'youth' was able to express itself without being 'shackled' by the societal expectations and conformity of it's older generation. I perceive this as being very positive and at the risk of sounding just a little cliched; in the words of Chuck Berry's song 'School days'..."Hail, hail Rock 'n Roll, deliver me from the days of old. Long live Rock 'n Roll, the beat of the drums so loud and bold".
You remind me. I remember many barber shops in west London having photos in their salon windows and inside of male film stars and models of the era with their hairstyles to choose from. Born in 1946 I developed a passion for rock n roll (when Bill Haley arrived in London and my mother took me to his great concert at the Kilburn cinema NW London around 1956) together with black & white doowop from about 1971. I have an extensived collection which I brought to SW France and now includes mostly French copy Rock n Roll groups from 1961/1966. Strangely, upon reflection with some exceptions, my preference was everything pre early Beatles I wonder if anyone else had the same experience ?. Sadly for me few appreciate the gendre of music here or even know it exists !
@@gordonspicer Interesting reading your comments as with the exception of proper R 'n B and uptempo Soul (I love listening and performing these), I too far prefer 'pre Beatles' music; indeed, I refuse to perform Beatles covers and don't have a single Beatles record in my collection! Your comments regarding the lack of appreciation of Rockabilly etc. in France has not gone unnoticed to me. I have been a regular visitor to France for over 20 years, being fortunate enough to own properties in both the UK and France. On several occasions, I have performed in France with the main band I front; it has not gone unnoticed that the French in general really don't understand or appreciate Rockabilly, or the 'Swing-jive' music of the late 40's and early/mid 50's. However, there does appear to be an appreciation of 'main-stream' 50's Rock 'n Roll; as you suggest, this having been popularised during the 60's and beyond by the likes of the late Johnny Haliday and others, but in general the French seem to prefer post Beatles music, or that 'stuff' euphemistically termed 'Euro-pop'. As much as I love France and the French people, I do question their musical preferences!
In the 60s fashion changed the Ted's who were really into clothes became mods while the ones in too the music became rockers my brother born in the 40s was a ted/rocker while Iiborn in 195oo was a a mod we'd race each other him on his BSA gold star me on my Vespa GS he'd always win a scooter has no chance against a bike especially a gold star which could hit50 in first gear. But you could wear a suit on a scooter. I had dozens of mirrors, lights etc and a fox tail on an ariel .Scooters were about looks bikes were about speed
To be honest, I always thought that the mods were a sort of natural progression from the teds, in terms of some of the fashions. More of an evolution rather than dying out. Whilst I was never a Ted (being born in the wrong age, for a start) in the late 90s I got my hands on a second hand drape jacket. It was from the 70s and was made fro Terylene, which meant I was always hot in it, even on relatively cool days. But I wore it anyway and it looked good. It was plum-coloured with a subtle sort of vertical pattern stitched into it, with black collar and narrow lapels. But I son got my hands on a load of second hand velvet jackets quite cheaply which looked better (a bit like Jon Pertwee’s Dr Who) which I preferred, and we’re a more comfortable material. It was the late 90s. I was in my late teens/early twenties. I got a lot of abuse in the streets from my peers for dressing this way. I didn’t care.
@@johnnyredux4019 named after the guys in the navy sneaking out to brothels they cut car tyres up to make rubber soles. That's where the name come frome.
I was born in 1944 & witness this whilst at secondary school in the 50's. Looking back we did not know how lucky we were to have such a brilliant home grown culture, unlike the tripe that goes for today's teenagers who appear to me a generation lost .....
@@mjh5437 motly utterly gormless, ignorant, game/mobile phone obsessed and without any grace or social skills. Applies sadly now to France where I am based and radiates from their parents and schooling in my view..
You've basically become the type of grumpy old man that was so common in our parents' and grandparents' generation. Like John Lennon's Aunty Mary mentioned in the video. Amazing how some older people end up hating the young. It's a form of jealousy, looking for someone to blame for the fact you got old. Every generation is different to its predecessors and wants its own thing. I would have thought having seen the kind of incomprehension our generation got from our elders then you might have some insight into that. I suppose one good thing about today's youth is that violence isn't anywhere near as entrenched with them as it was with us.
@@zeddeka Except we weren't self entitled lazy clueless & infantile as they are now in general. We grew up faster. Mentally especially. You had no choice but to do so back then
lol, what makes you think they're gone? those who continued to love the music, despite pop going off in other directions, are still teds today. for many its been a lifelong passion. there are probably more than ever now, too, given that there have been several generations of youngsters raised listening to the music since. there are rock n roll clubs in near every town; regular rock n roll weekender events in the UK and on the continent throughout the year and hundreds of bands, young and old, playing 50s/60s style rock n roll and rockabilly today
Good video. I am glad to see you made a point of all the destruction and bombsites left after the war and the austerity and rationing and how that had an effect on young people's mood. Though things slowly got better the effects were still lingering on in the 1970s and I remember still seeing those same derelict sites in the 1980s. There seems to be a misconception these days that people had it good after the war and this boomer generation took it all and wasted it. Totally untrue. You can't blame people wanting to escape the everyday misery of their lives by going out and finding good music and dancing. Or for that matter going on holidays to places like the Costa del Sol. What Millennials these days can't seem to fathom is that everything that boomers are said to have wasted was made by that boomer generation themselves. There was very little left after the war, and little of the old ways that was worth hanging on to.
These were the exact same conditions in the Bronx, NYC (swaths of destroyed buildings due to landlord's arson, public school funding cutting music and art programs, general economic despair) that created Hip Hop music/culture in the late 1970s.
Reminds me of a joke in Liverpool at the time of the Teds: Man walks in to a barber shop and asks for a "Tony Curtis." The barber shaves all his hair off. The man protests "that's not a Tony Curtis!" to which the barber replies "that's what Tony Curtis looked like in the King and I."
alternative ending is, the man looks in the mirror and screams "Tony Curtis doesn't have his hair cut like that!" to which the barber shrugs and says, "He does if he comes here."
@@JimmyHandtrixx I grew up in Manchester, came to OZ in '66,so I was around 50/60s in UK,I remember my Uncle and His Mates looking so Smart so well Dressed! Armadale.
It's not dead. I can find a gig with teddy boys this weekend here in Bristol. All over the world kids are still playing rock and roll music. Look up the film "los wild ones" made only a few years ago about L.A.Latino kids playing white rockabilly from the deep south
Looking at my high school year book of '65, several fellows had that DA hair style. That was why a rock' n roll band then called themselves the Misfits.
How do drainpipes emulate zoots? They're the polar opposite, the Brits wore skintights while the yanks wore the suit equivalent of MC Hammer's trousers lol 🙃
The Teds did not wear drainpipes. They generally wore high waisters, pleats and a gentle taper to around 14-16 inches at the bottom. They were called drainpipes because they seemed like that compared to dads 18-20 inch bottoms.
I remember my dad complaining about a tailor messing up the jacket of a suit he had made by adding drape to it. The tailor said "when you said you didn't want drape I thought you meant East End drape".
I remember the Teds from childhood……duck’s arses drainpipes and brothel creepers. In our neck of the woods it was mainly coffee shops (our local was the ‘Bongy Bo’) jazz and beatniks…..any videos about them?
Grew up in the '60-'70s. Brit B&W movies a staple on local stations, here in NJ. Hated/loathed hippies. Men in clean-cut suits and clean shaven, drew me in. Women dressed well and presented good form. Brit movies impressed me for adherence to smart clothing. The Beatles shown with hair high piled on head looked good. I like the look of the teddy boys wardrobe choices. Modern day Rockabilly revival really hits it on the head.
A lot of kids liked the club fun, but Teddy’s were also known for getting into fights, etc. Hence, the negative reaction. It wasn’t mere class dismissal. Also, when I was a kid in the late-70s into the 80s, like the Mods, they had a revival. There were guys dressed like Teds from London to Liverpool, along with the other groups. That period was the height of youth culture sub-groups, etc.
They were a sixties thing. An occasional Ted around 59-64 wore them though. The main shoe among Teds was a plain black polished shoe like a brogue. Next most popular was the Chuuga boot. Next was a plain suede shoe and then Brothel Creepers were very rare....and nothing like the later plastic Ted versions.
Teddy Boys, Rockers, Beats, Mods, Metal Heads, Punks, Goths, Grunge... every generation has it's rebellion. Life would get boring if they ever stopped making new generations.
Are you on glue? It's 2024 and I live near Bristol...this weekend I can take you to different rock and roll events where there will be teddy boys....in bristol. Then you get in the 60s rockers still into 50s music. The 70s "revival" mud, showaddywaddy, American graffiti, happy days,Greece, the the late 70s and 80s rockabilly movement, then the 1940s RnB..it's never died...
German youth in the late 30s, that rejected the nazis, were know as Swing Kids. Nazis did what they could to squash this movement. There was a movie about it that showed how life was during this time.
@@aleemahyasmin5982 It is called Swing Kids. Takes place in Germany in '38 or '39 as the nazis were taking power and making the youth become Hitler Jungen ( youth). It is about a short resistance movement to be loyal to what swing music represented in the face of oppression. Worth finding and watching.
The dandy pictured at 3:25 was not a subject of Edward VII. He was a citizen of France named Marie Joseph Robert Anatole, comte de Montesquiou-Fézensac.
Many of the early teds had actually done national service and fought in Korea my brain just missed it he turned 18 just after it was abolished much to the chagrin of our dad who always said it would have been sorted him out
Yep -- making all those savages citizens was the beginning of the end, which we're now living through in slow agonized motion. Only Eric Clapton ever said a word against it, and they made him eat it before you could say "rivers of blood". Thanks for the teach-in.
Jesus Christ you lot never stop do ya. It's a very feminine quality I've noticed how yous are all always whining and complaining like old women at a bus stop, bringing this stuff up when it's totally irrelevant to the conversation and turning everything negative.
A fair enough overview of the British Teddy Boy- however it covers a lot of ground that has previously been documented. A major factor in the demise of the pre Rock n Roll Teddy Boy being National Service. Boys got called up as late teenagers and came out as young men, the aggression and need for kicks being ironed out of them whilst signed up to national service. A lot of boys/ young men came out of the great call up with the makings of a trade; got married and settled down. The flamboyance of the Ted style has weaved its way from Saville Row; East End London/ Jewish tailors, to the 70s McLaren/ Westwood approach. It remains a style that's both garish and the ultimate of cool- dependant of course on your own personal appropriation of the style. It will, however, remain as the first post WW2 youth subculture that screamed 'Bugger Off' to the society and system they were born out of. Rave On. Hari.
Born in 66 became a Ted in 78 been one ever since. I still go out suited and booted on a Saturday night around my home town if I'm not at a gig somewhere, like many other Ted's across Europe.
I was born in 66 & became a Mod in 78 and still have it in my bones BUT fell in love later with rock a bill and as a musician played with a load of rockabilly bands. Actually my first live was Elvis..
They were grand but violent. The suits cost money and the Trawler Boys from East Anglian ports spent their pay on these amazing jackets, drain pipes and brothel creepers.
Weird living in this age, t imagine being so upset by young men who put this much effort in dressing up, with vests and ties. They look so sharp to me.
“Desperate to have a good time”…. My grandmother took my dad from the US to visit his Glaswegian cousins as a kid in 1953. Even as a 10yr old, he was stunned by the rationing and poverty. His cousins were so poor yet they insisted on using their sugar cards to get him sweets. He said the 2 oldest sisters had one bra between them. And whichever one was going out that night or had a date got to wear the bra! I imagine they were going to church halls with Scottish Teddies like shown here. One bra? That is POOR!
I fail to see how Edwardian dress was deemed inappropriate even deviant. Actually they covered their bodies in a classy and dignified way that was unique to their youthful culture . Narcissists cannot accept people as who they are and can't resist making people feel like they just a nobody.
I've got a Giles annual from those days. One of the cartoons dated 6 May 1954 shows police showing up at a Teddy Boys' hangout, where both snooker and dancing (including "The Creep") are going on. The Teds are to a man unabashed by the tough-looking cops, one of whom is holding a newspaper with the banner headline "Scotland Yard Enquiry Into Edwardian Gang Menace". The head Ted reclines totally at ease in a chair, fingering his "chiv" and saying: "Telling me you'd like to give me a damn good 'aircut, then tan the 'ide off me 'ardly comes under the 'eading of psychological corrective training - do it, cop?" I draw no conclusions. Just thought I'd add to the background knowledge of the era, from what was then a contemporary source.
@michellepeoplelikeyoumurde8373 yes we had eradicated tb in the UK. And now illegal immigrants are bringing it back.and now we also have hiv.covid .monkey pox.etc.
British working class trouser tribes, all gone now, finished with the 88_91 rave scene. Teddy boys. Mods. Skinheads, then it goes a bit blurred and fragmented with the 70s with soul boys, rockers, early 80s see the casuals from the football terraces, fila, sergio tachini etc. Finished with the rave scene. No working class main trouser tribe exists now
I wonder. The youth culture of the 1900s-1920s was the Jazz Age/Flapper Generation. They shocked their Victorian/Edwardian elders as much as if not MORE than the '50s generation shocked them, one could argue. The "interwar period" was crazy! Yet once they became "adults" it was their turn to be shocked. Ha ha
My late father, born 1937, was a Teddy Boy in the 1950s. As a 10/11 year-old kid in the 1970s, I discovered his old rock'n'roll records in a cupboard - Elvis, Buddy Holly, Little Richard, Chuck Berry etc - and played them non stop.
Exactly the same for me 👍🇬🇧🇮🇪
@@DSM9 my dad wasn't a teddy boy and hated them in the 50s.and that's why I loved being one in the huge 1970s revival.
my dad was a ted in the 50s from battersea
My Dad was a Teddy boy in the 50’s he would have been 88 but sadly passed in 2020, miss him so much, I have a great picture of him looking like a young James Dean.
I'm very, very sorry for the loss of your Dear Dad. I'm sure he was as dashing and as handsome as can be. My dearest Dad was too! 🌹
come to russia
Slav Hard Bass Dance
From Yorkshire ,but been in Australia for 64 years now. Remember it all like yesterday, my big brother who just turned 81 was right into it. He wore the coolest clothes ,went out every night and drove our old man mad.Enjoyed the video ,keep 'em coming.
Very cool and I sure will!
I was born in 1955, l was a baby being pushed around in my pram when rock n roll arrived in Britain. Watching this video, I can only imagine how the Teddy boy culture with its new music and fashion blew away the dust and gloom of post World War 2 Britain for the youth of those days giving them excitement and an identity different from thier parents, in other words the teenager had been re-invented 🎶🎙🎸
Not re-invented... born.
Teds are still around today - I was one 40 + years ago, my Dad was one in the 50's. Saville Row tailors re-imagined the look to celebrate the end of cloth rationing after WW2. The Teddy boy look was first adopted by Guards officers, then working class spivs and cosh boys - you are correct it pre-dated Rock n Roll. The Beatles didn't emulate the look, they were originally Teds themselves.
I remember the Teds as a toddler when i lived in Bradford.And Saturday night really was alright for a fight.The hair style was known as a DA, ducks arse.Fabulous photos and clips.
WW2 deaths nearly 400,000 so many young lads grew up without a dad and angry. Very angry. All they had was music and the picture houses, many of which they vandalised. They became gang members and very close members, closer than family. They were formidable when confronted.
Reminiscent of formidable Clockwork Orange Malcolm McDowell types.
And just look what those sons of nazis did when they grew up, Baader/Meinhoff😂😂
There needs to be more documentary films made about this. No one talks about this aspect.
@@juniorjames7076 Agreed, J.J. 👍
My Dad was a youth worker at the Webbe Youth Club in Bethnal Green in the 1950's.
The Webbe was called in the newspapers, the 'club for the unclubbables' because a lot of the members had been thrown out of every other youth club in the area. At that time most youth clubs were run by Church organisations which had strict rules about 'behaviour' and 'morals', all of which were rapidly changing at the time.
The Webbe welcomed the rebels, many of whom were teddy boys (and some girls) and gave them a lot more freedom and joy.
My Dad died in 2006, but if anyone remembers Sam Bishop from the Webbe Youth Club, I would love to hear from you. Ted or not.
Love and peace.
interesting stuff.. thanks for sharing!
In Quadrophenia , The Mod Jimmy meets his old friend in the baths & is appalled by him singing Be Bop A-Lula by Gene Vincent & counters with You Really Got Me by The Kinks. Mods Vs Rockers ( Teds )
Great movie and one of my favorites
I thought the Rockers were motorcycle gangs. The British version of Hell's Angels.
Rockers were not Teds, i was a rocker in the late 1960's.
@@mickymiller6130 We became Hells Angels from the late 1960's onwards. But most UK chapters were unofficial honky chapters. Hells Angels London, was the first official chartered chapter. Sanctioned by the US Hells Angels.
@@StrayCatBlues1953 Thank you. As a kid growing up in Canada, I remember reading an article on Mods and Rockers. I went the way of a Mod. Loved the music scene back then. Had so many great memories.
They looked gorgeous in the Edwardian suits.
Born in 1948 I grew up in those times. Thank you for showing this
Great little doc, thank you xx My dad was an original Ted, he looked gorgeous in his fancy gear
You’re welcome
Many of the photos in this film are from around the Elephant & Castle, where the Teddy Boys & Girls originated, with a notorious criminal gang. The first young men to adopt the Edwardian style where posh chaps from across the river, whom the Elephant Boys would encounter on thieving sprees up West. They adopted their social superiors' sartorial style so they could get close enough to pick their pockets. It is not a coincidence that the rock riots - also not mentioned - that broke out around showings of, 'Rock Around The Clock' started at the Trocadero, in the Elephant.
Some of those pictures are down the Lambeth walk
What a great documentary! I was born in 1957, discovering Rock 'n Roll music and the Teddy boy look, so synonymous with it in the early 1970's. Much to the chagrin of my father, I started wearing my hair in the 'Tony Curtis' style with a DA at the back and bought myself a powder blue drape jacket with midnight blue velvet collar, lapels, pocket flaps and buttons, drain pipe trousers et al whilst still a school boy in 1972. He hated the look, echoing many of the anti Teddy boy comments highlighted in the documentary, citing that the Ted's represented the antithesis of the early 'post war society' with their 'loutish' undisciplined behaviour. Although too young to serve during the war, my father had joined the RAF in the early 50's. Arguably, his attitude mearley served to fuel my admiration of the culture. Whilst I was considered something of an 'oddity' by many of my contemporaries who were into 'Glam and/or Prog Rock', or the waning Skinhead scene, the look gave me an individualistic, retro, anti-establishment identity earning me a certain respect as I refused to follow the crowd. I even saved up and bought a '55 Ford Consul (whilst still at school) in which I used to drive around albeit illegally but it just seemed to complete the ensemble I desired. Although I stopped dressing as a 'Ted' many years ago, exchanging my drape jacket and Ford Consul for leather jacket, jeans and a succession of old British bikes (one of which I still have in the garage), I've never stopped loving the music. I discovered Rockabilly in the mid 70's and amassing a reasonable collection of old imported American vinyl that I still enjoy playing; not just on my turntable but by fronting an occasional Rock 'n Roll, Rockabilly, Jive band even though I'm now well into my 60's; indeed, we performed a gig just this Bank Holiday weekend, drawing a good sized audience, a number arriving in period cars. Although none were dressed as Teds, all appeared appreciative of what we delivered. I never cease to be not a little surprised at the wide age range present at the gigs we perform; on this occasion one young lady in her late teens said to me that 'Great Balls of Fire' is her favourite song and would we play it. You bet we did! I would suggest that the whole 50's youth culture scene still remains relevant today, not just as a mere 'curio', but symbolising and arguably celebrating the first time 'youth' was able to express itself without being 'shackled' by the societal expectations and conformity of it's older generation. I perceive this as being very positive and at the risk of sounding just a little cliched; in the words of Chuck Berry's song 'School days'..."Hail, hail Rock 'n Roll, deliver me from the days of old. Long live Rock 'n Roll, the beat of the drums so loud and bold".
✌️🎶
You remind me. I remember many barber shops in west London having photos in their salon windows and inside of male film stars and models of the era with their hairstyles to choose from. Born in 1946 I developed a passion for rock n roll (when Bill Haley arrived in London and my mother took me to his great concert at the Kilburn cinema NW London around 1956) together with black & white doowop from about 1971. I have an extensived collection which I brought to SW France and now includes mostly French copy Rock n Roll groups from 1961/1966. Strangely, upon reflection with some exceptions, my preference was everything pre early Beatles I wonder if anyone else had the same experience ?. Sadly for me few appreciate the gendre of music here or even know it exists !
@@gordonspicer Interesting reading your comments as with the exception of proper R 'n B and uptempo Soul (I love listening and performing these), I too far prefer 'pre Beatles' music; indeed, I refuse to perform Beatles covers and don't have a single Beatles record in my collection! Your comments regarding the lack of appreciation of Rockabilly etc. in France has not gone unnoticed to me. I have been a regular visitor to France for over 20 years, being fortunate enough to own properties in both the UK and France. On several occasions, I have performed in France with the main band I front; it has not gone unnoticed that the French in general really don't understand or appreciate Rockabilly, or the 'Swing-jive' music of the late 40's and early/mid 50's. However, there does appear to be an appreciation of 'main-stream' 50's Rock 'n Roll; as you suggest, this having been popularised during the 60's and beyond by the likes of the late Johnny Haliday and others, but in general the French seem to prefer post Beatles music, or that 'stuff' euphemistically termed 'Euro-pop'. As much as I love France and the French people, I do question their musical preferences!
They weren't riots apart from Notting Hill They were just fights
In the 60s fashion changed the Ted's who were really into clothes became mods while the ones in too the music became rockers my brother born in the 40s was a ted/rocker while Iiborn in 195oo was a a mod we'd race each other him on his BSA gold star me on my Vespa GS he'd always win a scooter has no chance against a bike especially a gold star which could hit50 in first gear. But you could wear a suit on a scooter. I had dozens of mirrors, lights etc and a fox tail on an ariel .Scooters were about looks bikes were about speed
To be honest, I always thought that the mods were a sort of natural progression from the teds, in terms of some of the fashions. More of an evolution rather than dying out.
Whilst I was never a Ted (being born in the wrong age, for a start) in the late 90s I got my hands on a second hand drape jacket. It was from the 70s and was made fro Terylene, which meant I was always hot in it, even on relatively cool days. But I wore it anyway and it looked good. It was plum-coloured with a subtle sort of vertical pattern stitched into it, with black collar and narrow lapels. But I son got my hands on a load of second hand velvet jackets quite cheaply which looked better (a bit like Jon Pertwee’s Dr Who) which I preferred, and we’re a more comfortable material. It was the late 90s. I was in my late teens/early twenties. I got a lot of abuse in the streets from my peers for dressing this way. I didn’t care.
"Brothel creepers"....what a name for a pair of shoes!!
@@johnnyredux4019 named after the guys in the navy sneaking out to brothels they cut car tyres up to make rubber soles. That's where the name come frome.
Fascinating! A lot of dots were connected for me after watching this video.
Glad to hear! 🙏
As a punk in the late 70s we nicked the creepers , Drapes etc
Very much enjoyed this, very well done, look forward to others.
🙏thank you
Fantastic film. Our parents/grandparent’s legacy
Excellent! Thank you
You’re welcome
I was born in 1944 & witness this whilst at secondary school in the 50's. Looking back we did not know how lucky we were to have such a brilliant home grown culture, unlike the tripe that goes for today's teenagers who appear to me a generation lost .....
Todays teenagers are a pitiful mess.
@@mjh5437 motly utterly gormless, ignorant, game/mobile phone obsessed and without any grace or social skills. Applies sadly now to France where I am based and radiates from their parents and schooling in my view..
@@mjh5437and people said exactly the same about our generation back then.
You've basically become the type of grumpy old man that was so common in our parents' and grandparents' generation. Like John Lennon's Aunty Mary mentioned in the video. Amazing how some older people end up hating the young. It's a form of jealousy, looking for someone to blame for the fact you got old. Every generation is different to its predecessors and wants its own thing. I would have thought having seen the kind of incomprehension our generation got from our elders then you might have some insight into that. I suppose one good thing about today's youth is that violence isn't anywhere near as entrenched with them as it was with us.
@@zeddeka Except we weren't self entitled lazy clueless & infantile as they are now in general. We grew up faster. Mentally especially. You had no choice but to do so back then
Hello from Florida, Love your videos!
Awe thank you 🙏 appreciate that greatly!!
Glad to see this acknowledges the existence of Teds PRE rock and roll.People often overlook that period
Excellent doc looking forward to more of this series
Thank you so much 🙏 will be working on the next subculture.
lol, what makes you think they're gone? those who continued to love the music, despite pop going off in other directions, are still teds today. for many its been a lifelong passion. there are probably more than ever now, too, given that there have been several generations of youngsters raised listening to the music since. there are rock n roll clubs in near every town; regular rock n roll weekender events in the UK and on the continent throughout the year and hundreds of bands, young and old, playing 50s/60s style rock n roll and rockabilly today
Good video. I am glad to see you made a point of all the destruction and bombsites left after the war and the austerity and rationing and how that had an effect on young people's mood. Though things slowly got better the effects were still lingering on in the 1970s and I remember still seeing those same derelict sites in the 1980s. There seems to be a misconception these days that people had it good after the war and this boomer generation took it all and wasted it. Totally untrue. You can't blame people wanting to escape the everyday misery of their lives by going out and finding good music and dancing. Or for that matter going on holidays to places like the Costa del Sol. What Millennials these days can't seem to fathom is that everything that boomers are said to have wasted was made by that boomer generation themselves. There was very little left after the war, and little of the old ways that was worth hanging on to.
These were the exact same conditions in the Bronx, NYC (swaths of destroyed buildings due to landlord's arson, public school funding cutting music and art programs, general economic despair) that created Hip Hop music/culture in the late 1970s.
Love this! Many thanks!
Born 55 so not a Ted but have always despised older people hating on the young like they were never young themselves
Fascinating, broadly similar to the evolution of the first wave of mod a few years later.
Reminds me of a joke in Liverpool at the time of the Teds:
Man walks in to a barber shop and asks for a "Tony Curtis." The barber shaves all his hair off. The man protests "that's not a Tony Curtis!" to which the barber replies "that's what Tony Curtis looked like in the King and I."
Yul Brynner?
@@errolmichaelphillips7763 That's the joke.
alternative ending is, the man looks in the mirror and screams "Tony Curtis doesn't have his hair cut like that!" to which the barber shrugs and says, "He does if he comes here."
@@ianharrison3662 Well.....I heard Black barbershops were really hurting financially during the Afro era!
G'day to you! I am 74, my Uncle Ray was a Ted, I always remember how smart he used to look, always neat and tidy Looking! Armadale West Aust.
was there any Teds in WA? maybe some ex pats in late 60s early 70s like the skinheads??
@@JimmyHandtrixx I grew up in Manchester, came to OZ in '66,so I was around 50/60s in UK,I remember my Uncle and His Mates looking so Smart so well Dressed! Armadale.
very interesting, brought back memories great vid
Glad you enjoyed it and thank you 🙏
It's not dead. I can find a gig with teddy boys this weekend here in Bristol. All over the world kids are still playing rock and roll music. Look up the film "los wild ones" made only a few years ago about L.A.Latino kids playing white rockabilly from the deep south
Very well put together
Thank you 🙏
Professional Video. Thanks.
@@You4Me4Always you’re very welcome 🙏
Looking at my high school year book of '65, several fellows had that DA hair style. That was why a rock' n roll band then called themselves the Misfits.
7:23 Macca! Holding them grudges. 😂
Many thanks for your excellent and informative video on the Teds! (For example the false media blame for the Notting Hill Riots)
You’re welcome 🙏
I saw That'll Be The Day. It is a good picture and David Essex also does a good job in it.
Cool
The " sequel " Stardust is good as well 👌
@@davidellis5141 yes it is. IMO the character of JR Ewing had its roots in the film played by Larry Hagman.
unlike the follow up movie
Thanks! Great doco
Glad you liked it! You’re welcome.
How do drainpipes emulate zoots? They're the polar opposite, the Brits wore skintights while the yanks wore the suit equivalent of MC Hammer's trousers lol 🙃
The Teds did not wear drainpipes. They generally wore high waisters, pleats and a gentle taper to around 14-16 inches at the bottom. They were called drainpipes because they seemed like that compared to dads 18-20 inch bottoms.
I remember my dad complaining about a tailor messing up the jacket of a suit he had made by adding drape to it. The tailor said "when you said you didn't want drape I thought you meant East End drape".
They moved to Canvey Island. Rock and Roll clubs and Teddy boys still exist there.
Thanks for a balanced view of the period. And we aint dead yet.
I remember the Teds from childhood……duck’s arses drainpipes and brothel creepers. In our neck of the woods it was mainly coffee shops (our local was the ‘Bongy Bo’) jazz and beatniks…..any videos about them?
Grew up in the '60-'70s. Brit B&W movies a staple on local stations, here in NJ. Hated/loathed hippies. Men in clean-cut suits and clean shaven, drew me in. Women dressed well and presented good form. Brit movies impressed me for adherence to smart clothing.
The Beatles shown with hair high piled on head looked good.
I like the look of the teddy boys wardrobe choices.
Modern day Rockabilly revival really hits it on the head.
In the US, we had the beatnics, and Greenwich (the Village), and in the mid 60's, hippies
A lot of kids liked the club fun, but Teddy’s were also known for getting into fights, etc. Hence, the negative reaction. It wasn’t mere class dismissal.
Also, when I was a kid in the late-70s into the 80s, like the Mods, they had a revival. There were guys dressed like Teds from London to Liverpool, along with the other groups. That period was the height of youth culture sub-groups, etc.
THANKS for the memories. Great days, great music. Great friends. The Holy trinity ! Cool man, cool Chick..
Sadly today the young don't speak,they text.
winkle pickers (pointed toe shoes) were very popular
Yes in the sixtiesthey were but us Ted's wore beetle crushers .
@@roycampbell5605 Brothel Creepers you mean?
@mjh5437 that's what I wore.
They were a sixties thing. An occasional Ted around 59-64 wore them though. The main shoe among Teds was a plain black polished shoe like a brogue. Next most popular was the Chuuga boot. Next was a plain suede shoe and then Brothel Creepers were very rare....and nothing like the later plastic Ted versions.
@@cooldaddy2877 “Chuuga Boot”?…Do you mean Chukka Boots? The suede ones most people call Desert Boots nowadays?
Teddy Boys, Rockers, Beats, Mods, Metal Heads, Punks, Goths, Grunge... every generation has it's rebellion. Life would get boring if they ever stopped making new generations.
Film maker Ken Russell took some of those Teddy girl photos.
I was friends with his son at school,he`s a former actor/stuntman and martial arts film archivist now.
13.50 into the vid 50s Flash was a well know DJ,RIP Keith.
very well done, daddy O
looking forward to the mod video. im not a mod, but i pretended to be one for two or three years in college 🤣
Compared to how teens dress today they were quite smart.
WONDERFUL
Interesting stuff...x😊
Glad you enjoyed it..thanks 🙏
Very good work there sir. Excellent film.
Thank you 🙏
I love the music from this period . My father was not a Ted . He was a biker he rode a Norton tourer . He called the bike the monster.
6:39 '' *I think its jolly exciting* '' 😂
I'll be honesty, I walk into a grocery store nowadays and see people in their pajamas. I think god i need to be wearing a suit
Teds versus Mods. What a time to be young!
What make of guitar is George holding @ 7:16?
Are you on glue? It's 2024 and I live near Bristol...this weekend I can take you to different rock and roll events where there will be teddy boys....in bristol. Then you get in the 60s rockers still into 50s music. The 70s "revival" mud, showaddywaddy, American graffiti, happy days,Greece, the the late 70s and 80s rockabilly movement, then the 1940s RnB..it's never died...
The
Edwardian
Drape
Society
🤔
❤
Like deployed 👍
😊👍
German youth in the late 30s, that rejected the nazis, were know as Swing Kids. Nazis did what they could to squash this movement. There was a movie about it that showed how life was during this time.
What is the name of the movie? I would like to watch it.
@@aleemahyasmin5982 It is called Swing Kids. Takes place in Germany in '38 or '39 as the nazis were taking power and making the youth become Hitler Jungen ( youth). It is about a short resistance movement to be loyal to what swing music represented in the face of oppression. Worth finding and watching.
The dandy pictured at 3:25 was not a subject of Edward VII. He was a citizen of France named Marie Joseph Robert Anatole, comte de Montesquiou-Fézensac.
It never died, it’s still going strong.
Many of the early teds had actually done national service and fought in Korea my brain just missed it he turned 18 just after it was abolished much to the chagrin of our dad who always said it would have been sorted him out
Those Teddy Boys looked just fine, nicely dressed.
I do wonder if our Hippie movement ever made it to
the UK?
it did
@@willevans429 Good! I must find out more about that and shall.
PEACE, man 😊
During the war Spivs.
Bon Dimanche!
Born in 57 1973 16year old skinhead great days
Yep -- making all those savages citizens was the beginning of the end, which we're now living through in slow agonized motion. Only Eric Clapton ever said a word against it, and they made him eat it before you could say "rivers of blood".
Thanks for the teach-in.
Jesus Christ you lot never stop do ya. It's a very feminine quality I've noticed how yous are all always whining and complaining like old women at a bus stop, bringing this stuff up when it's totally irrelevant to the conversation and turning everything negative.
I wonder if the fashion started with deceased estates, when the clothes of the then dying-off Edwardian generation ended up in thrift shops
A fair enough overview of the British Teddy Boy- however it covers a lot of ground that has previously been documented. A major factor in the demise of the pre Rock n Roll Teddy Boy being National Service. Boys got called up as late teenagers and came out as young men, the aggression and need for kicks being ironed out of them whilst signed up to national service. A lot of boys/ young men came out of the great call up with the makings of a trade; got married and settled down.
The flamboyance of the Ted style has weaved its way from Saville Row; East End London/ Jewish tailors, to the 70s McLaren/ Westwood approach. It remains a style that's both garish and the ultimate of cool- dependant of course on your own personal appropriation of the style. It will, however, remain as the first post WW2 youth subculture that screamed 'Bugger Off' to the society and system they were born out of.
Rave On.
Hari.
Born in 66 became a Ted in 78 been one ever since. I still go out suited and booted on a Saturday night around my home town if I'm not at a gig somewhere, like many other Ted's across Europe.
I was born in 66 & became a Mod in 78 and still have it in my bones BUT fell in love later with rock a bill and as a musician played with a load of rockabilly bands. Actually my first live was Elvis..
Karl is this some kind of record ?
They were grand but violent. The suits cost money and the Trawler Boys from East Anglian ports spent their pay on these amazing jackets, drain pipes and brothel creepers.
Weird living in this age, t imagine being so upset by young men who put this much effort in dressing up, with vests and ties. They look so sharp to me.
“Desperate to have a good time”…. My grandmother took my dad from the US to visit his Glaswegian cousins as a kid in 1953. Even as a 10yr old, he was stunned by the rationing and poverty. His cousins were so poor yet they insisted on using their sugar cards to get him sweets. He said the 2 oldest sisters had one bra between them. And whichever one was going out that night or had a date got to wear the bra! I imagine they were going to church halls with Scottish Teddies like shown here. One bra? That is POOR!
14:45 is the guy 2nd from the left a 1985 punk rocker who time slipped to hang with the Teddys? He looks to be not of this time.
I talking about violence it a comes from fear one way or an other
Cliff Richard - Rock and Roll ? Expect a visit from UK Trading Standards. 😂😂
I fail to see how Edwardian dress was deemed inappropriate even deviant. Actually they covered their bodies in a classy and dignified way that was unique to their youthful culture . Narcissists cannot accept people as who they are and can't resist making people feel like they just a nobody.
I've got a Giles annual from those days. One of the cartoons dated 6 May 1954 shows police showing up at a Teddy Boys' hangout, where both snooker and dancing (including "The Creep") are going on. The Teds are to a man unabashed by the tough-looking cops, one of whom is holding a newspaper with the banner headline "Scotland Yard Enquiry Into Edwardian Gang Menace". The head Ted reclines totally at ease in a chair, fingering his "chiv" and saying: "Telling me you'd like to give me a damn good 'aircut, then tan the 'ide off me 'ardly comes under the 'eading of psychological corrective training - do it, cop?"
I draw no conclusions. Just thought I'd add to the background knowledge of the era, from what was then a contemporary source.
Love that..thanks for sharing!
I remember when I was a kid in the 60s there was always copies of Giles in my Dentist and Doctors waiting rooms.
You missed Portsmouth, teds survived in droves until the early 70s albeit far more into Elvis than rock n roll, indeed they were an Elvis cult
Rock n roll is still alive
I'm impressed that John told Mimi to shut up😂
Darn teenagers mouthing off since the beginning of time. lol
Inspirational lol@@freewheelingideas
Im 74 i always thought that the beatnicks were the first subculture
What about flappers, a subculture from1920s ????🏴✌️
Those were the days.
Yes the days of T B and Polio
@michellepeoplelikeyoumurde8373 yes we had eradicated tb in the UK. And now illegal immigrants are bringing it back.and now we also have hiv.covid .monkey pox.etc.
@@michellepeoplelikeyoumurde8373 There`s more TB in East London now than anywhere else in Europe due to mass immigration actually.
Paul's grandfather 13:30?
British working class trouser tribes, all gone now, finished with the 88_91 rave scene. Teddy boys. Mods. Skinheads, then it goes a bit blurred and fragmented with the 70s with soul boys, rockers, early 80s see the casuals from the football terraces, fila, sergio tachini etc. Finished with the rave scene. No working class main trouser tribe exists now
History rhymes, Starmer’s thugs, condemned not understood.
Careful ! Britain 2024 , you don't want to be arrested for inciting rioting!
I wonder. The youth culture of the 1900s-1920s was the Jazz Age/Flapper Generation. They shocked their Victorian/Edwardian elders as much as if not MORE than the '50s generation shocked them, one could argue. The "interwar period" was crazy! Yet once they became "adults" it was their turn to be shocked. Ha ha
What is going on @1:11? It's like a city below a city.
Well it's obviously the result of bombing, it was probably an underground train station.
Bomb damage from the Blitz. Craters formed, buildings collapsed into cellars, sewers we’re exposed. It was a mess.
Possibly, it's a tube station entrance
I think it's from when Bank tube station was bombed
I think it's Bank tube station