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Subcultures: The Teddy Boys

Subcultures: The Teddy Boys

NOTE: This entry is geared towards non-native speakers and Americans, to give them a brief (and very broad) overview of the subcultures that were around in the 70s/80s that I reference. But even if you know who Teds are, you’re welcome to take a trip down memory lane…

The original Teddy Boys (Teds) were the first British subculture to emerge (in the early 1950s) as a response to the austerity of post-war Britain. They modelled their style on Edwardian fashion and embraced rock and roll when it filtered to the UK from the US in the mid 1950s.

While the originals wore mostly black, the second generation of Teds, the ones of the 1970s and early 80s, probably influenced to an extent by glam rock, were a lot more flamboyant. This is how I remember Teds, and this is what they would typically wear:

The drape coat could be any colour of the spectrum – pinks, yellows, greens. The crepes (also called brothel creepers, but I knew of them only as crepes) were usually blue, as in

And to keep your hair in its immaculate place, you needed,

But Teds didn’t style their hair like Harry. Instead they would have a DA (“Duck’s Arse”):

Teds with a girlfriend would jive with their partner; singles would do the bop. Here’s an example, performed quite spectacularly by a middle-aged Ted:

And here’s a quite good montage of the Teddy Boy movement:

The “Teds vs. Punks” grudge fighting ran through the press, but it was the mid-70s sensationalist equivalent of today’s “Man Gets Stabbed By 15 Different People On His Way To Sainsbury’s.”

In the 1970s, Teds worked their way into mainstream British popular culture, such as the character of Vince Prince, who regularly appeared on the popular Russ Abbot Show.

In addition to comedy shows, 50s American rock and roll culture permeated 70s Britain. Elvis died, of course, and brought to the forefront a huge wave of rock and roll nostalgia.

But there were British groups/singers making the charts, such as Showaddywaddy, Matchbox, Alvin Stardust, and Shakin’ Stevens. There were TV shows, such as Happy Days. And there were a slew of films, such as The Wanderers, American Grafitti, and American Hot Wax. And, of course Grease. Even John Lennon released Rock and Roll, an homage to hits from the 1950s/60s in 1975.

I was really into 1950s rock and roll for a couple of years, and I had friends who were Teds. Britain had some great subcultures that sprung up in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. But, to be honest, I think that rock and roll culture was an essentially American thing, and the “yanks” just did it a whole lot better.

Driving your date to the drive-in movies or the drive-in hamburger joint in a ’57 Chevy and listening to Chuck Berry on the jukebox seemed so much more rock and roll than catching a bus to the local Wimpy to eat a hamburger with a knife and fork while listening to Cliff Richard.

Feel free to disagree with me in the comments.