Suits

[Keith at Tregenna]

Always said at home: the local CID, could fit you up quicker than Burtons. K

[Ivan Cloherty]

in fleetwood ihad my suits from burtons the fishing lads got thear suits from massys on dock sreet had pleats on the back dekkie suits thay wear called you wont reccal them unlles you wear a fsherman

Same in Hull William, suits with pleated backs in all colours, (they also had near bell bottom trousers) the pleats allowed them to fight easier without ripping the jacket!! in reality it was a trend set off by the late 40's movies when it seemed to be the norm for gangsters and mob men. As most fisherman jumped aboard at the locks wearing their suits and had a few hours river passage it allowed them to prepare the ship for sea without getting changed as all that bending and heaving would rip a normal jacket, the bell bottoms were folded around the leg to stop the seaboots chafing, the only thing they changed when they jumped aboard was their shoes for seaboots

[Louis the fly]

"The full monty" was a suit with waistcoat named after Montigue Burton. He was a Lithuanian Jew who started the tailor shop chain.

[leratty]

Louis, in the 60's we only wore Levis or Wrangler jeans. A suit was a suit in same & formal in white with suede Chelsea boots. My first real suit after that was a so called tailor made one from one of that famous UK tailor shops Burtons mentioned above. I do remember the buttons were covered in the same fabric as the suit.

[Louis the fly]

Hi Rich, I think the fashion of wearing suits on leave only applied to Liverpool seamen. Another thing was we never drank pints, always halves but we got through the same amount.

[Ivan Cloherty]

I think the fashion of wearing suits on leave only applied to Liverpool seamen.[/I]

Now what kind of a statement is that, so all the guys in London, Hull, Glasgow, Newcastle etc etc etc etc etc etc never wore suits whilst on leave, have photos of my old man(a bosun) wearing suits in all parts of the world, as did I, if you went into the MN Club in Hull you would find all ranks smartly dressed. My old dad would never have disrepected my mother when they went out by not wearing a suit and he wasn't from Liverpool

[John Gill]

Perhaps Louis was merely referring to Liverpool crew members' sartorial elegance in respect of the acquisition of certain bolts of cloth that were smuggled out of the Huskisson and finding their way to Manny's Bespoke Tailoring off Scottie Road, thereby making affordable some decent 'go ashores' which otherwise would have been denied us low paid impoverished Scousers.

[cappy]

#26 remember one stage wearing wranglers and Canadian heavy red tartan shirt ...much admired by all but always wore suit when loking for decent bird ......but wranglrs and jean jacket in the shields honkys......not forgetting my b a boots and leather jerkin.......come to think of it didn't know I had so much gear......cappy

[Ivan Cloherty]

#27, John, never found it necessary to 'inch' anything in my life, even bought a suit from Burtons when I was on £6 per month, then there was the Fifty Shilling Tailors (Burton's competitors in every town), so if I could afford a suit on those wages it wasn't necessary for anyone to 'inch' any thing from the holds. Most of the poor people I knew/know are very honest and still have their pride. Just wonder why so many think it's okay and are proud to have acquired stuff from the holds, it didn't belong to them just because they'd sailed on the ship. If you were travelling to Hong Kong or Singapore you could buy a bolt of British suit cloth for next to nothing so no need for anyone to 'inch' anything. Just my thoughts, but each to his own.

[cappy]

#29 never took a wee I say wee bit of fish of a trawler ivan think hard now.....regards cappy