Friday, 26th March 2010
In 1967’s The Graduate there are two moments when you can see Benjamin Braddock, played by a young Dustin Hoffman, making the decisions that serve to turn him from a goofy, awkward, suburban weirdo of a boy, into a still goofy, still awkward, but heroic and magnificent weirdo of a man.
Wednesday, 24th February 2010
How did a jeans ad become the most famous boxer ad ever? Robert Elms, style journalist, author and broadcaster, looks back at that iconic launderette moment.
Before the boy in the launderette nobody wore boxers. Back in the 1980s, baggy Y-fronts and skimpy briefs, probably in inflammable manmade fibres, were the male underwear order of the day. Then one day this fabulous ad appeared on our TVs and changed all that.
Levi’s were famous for making iconic commercials, but the one which really captured the public imagination, when it appeared back in 1985, not only gave a great boost to classic denim but also changed forever what guys wore beneath their jeans. The scenario was simple: a great looking young male model with a brooding early Elvis/James Dean style wanders into a 50s washateria and then proceeds to sensually but casually disrobe down to his underwear, to the dismay of some and the excitement of others, before washing his new Levi’s and watching them spin round in just his shorts.
Monday, 11th January 2010
Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law are sporting some Sunspel items in their publicity shots for the recently released Sherlock Holmes movie, and we can tell you they both look decidedly dapper.The clothes were our navy Riviera polo, plain white boxers, classic tee in navy, and fine striped t-shirt in grey.
The pair are currently promoting Guy Ritchie’s radical take on the classic story – radical not least for Holmes and Watson’s sartorial style, a far cry from the old deerstalker and cape. Here Watson is all sharp tailoring while Holmes adopts a more eccentric, romantic look. Good stuff.
Photo credit: Just Jared
Thursday, 1st October 2009
You might be surprised at the places Sunspel has been. We kept Tony cool in the Sopranos. We’ve wrapped ourselves around Johnny Depp, and around Daniel Craig. In fact Sunspel has been seen on some of the most delightful male acting talent of recent decades.
It started years ago at the National Theatre and the RSC at Strafford, very probably for a combination of reasons. One, Sunspel gives an instant classic look. In other words, underwear that wouldn’t be out of place in another era (in Edwardian times, say). Two, you get quality.
Nick Kamen in the 1985 Levi's "Launderette" television commercial
Lindy Heming is a distinguished costume designer who has come to us on numerous occasions. In her words:
‘There have been many characters I’ve dressed in Sunspel vests, t-shirtsand underwear, because they’re classic, timeless and beautifully made.’
(Thanks Lindy. We couldn’t have put it better ourselves.)
Sunspel spent a brief period doing rather more commercial work in TV ads (it was Sunspel boxers Nick Kamen wore so fetchingly in the iconic ‘launderette’ ad for Levi’s), before moving into the movies…
An early appearance was in the film ‘84 Charing Cross Road’, in which Anthony Hopkins plays a bookseller who builds a friendship with Anne Bancroft (she of ‘The Graduate’ fame) purely through letters. Not what you’d call an action movie, but something of a quiet classic.
The pace stepped up when Johnny Depp wore Sunspel in a mainly World War II period piece called ‘The Man Who Cried’. He looked pretty damn good even if the film wasn’t a huge success.
Friday, 31st October 2008
Daniel Craig’s second Bond outing takes him to Bolivia where he’s pitted against Dominic Greene, a corrupt world-renowned developer of green technology and all-round global villain. The action is relentless and dazzling, and Craig is once again mesmerising.
Sunspel again provided clothing for Daniel Craig for use both in front of the camera and behind it on set. We made long staple superfine Egyptian cotton t-shirts and our now legendary Q75 open weave polo shirt. This was first introduced in the 1950s as a cool alternative to pique for the Italian Riviera. Once again, the combination of classic retro styling, comfort and sheer quality make this something you just want to wear.
Thursday, 24th July 2008
Christian Bale as Batman and Michael Caine as Alfred in 'The Dark Knight'
The darkest, most compelling version of Batman yet witnessed on screen, with a career-defining performance by Heath Ledger as the genuinely unnerving Joker.
Thursday, 16th November 2006
Daniel Craig triumphantly assumes the Bond mantle in a hard-hitting, pumped up take on the franchise. Craig plays Bond on his first mission as 007, climaxing in Montenegro where he faces a ruthless financier in a high-stakes poker game at the Casino Royale.
Sunspel worked closely with Lindy Hemming, the film’s costume designer, to produce a range of clothes for Daniel Craig and Sebastien Foucan (who plays Mollaka in the early part of the film).
“There have been so many different characters in films and in theatre that I have dressed in Sunspel vests, t-shirts and underwear because they are classic, timeless and beautifully made,’ says Lindy. ‘This time, dressing Daniel Craig as the new James Bond, I thought that it would be a perfect collaboration of quality and Britishness to ask Sunspel to create all his t-shirts, polo shirts and underwear, which they duly did so excellently. He looks very sexy and happy in their clothing.”
The film’s costume design team came up to the factory in Long Eaton for the styling and development process and worked with our own design and sampling teams on original Sunspel fabrics and shapes, along with fittings and styling for Daniel Craig. All t-shirts and polo shirts were made specially for Daniel and Sebastien from a selection of three unique, distinct fabrications – Egyptian long staple superfine cotton t-shirts, Q75 open weave cotton polo shirts, and heritage string vest fabrications. All were from the Sunspel archives and all were restyled in contemporary designs for a bespoke short production run.
Daniel Craig’s portrayal of James Bond was immediately acclaimed as powerful and compelling, and there’s no doubt he looked effortlessly cool and quintessentially English in his Sunspel t-shirts and polos.
View the official Casino Royale web site.
Friday, 18th January 2002
A shooting party at a large English country house is the setting for a highly charged tale of secrets, lies, deceit, betrayal, revenge, bitterness, hatred, money and love – and that’s all before the murder. A wonderful ensemble cast make this a fascinating, nuanced achievement.
Saturday, 2nd September 2000
Christina Ricci and Johnny Depp
A young girl, separated from her loving father, is forced to go to England, where she takes on the name Suzie, and finds that although she is misunderstood and teased, she has one gift: she can sing. The movie follows Suzie as she moves to Paris and joins a dancing troupe, meets flirt and showgirl Lola, and falls in love with the gypsy Cesar, all against the chaotic backdrop of the outbreak of World War II.
Friday, 13th February 1987
When a New York script-reader (Anne Bancroft) sees an ad in the Saturday Review of Literature for a bookstore in London that does mail order, she begins a very special correspondence and friendship with Frank Doel (Anthony Hopkins), the bookseller who works at Marks & Co., 84 Charing Cross Road.
