Interview with David Piper, The Last Tuesday Society. By Imogen Fox - THE GUARDIAN
Monday October 23, 2006

What are you wearing today?

A "Piper suit". It's my own invention, an all-in-one but a very smart suit at the same time. It's by my tailor, the Order of the Rosie Cross. The cravat is from a vintage shop in Yorkshire. The shoes are from an African shop in Dalston, and the spats are vintage Austin Reed. My bag was my grandfather's - there are some great heirlooms in my family from turn-of-the-century Russia.

Describe your style.

Forward-thinking 1930s rake.

Where do you shop?

Vintage places. A couple in London, but generally it's better and cheaper outside. Around Manchester there are some great places - in Hebden Bridge and places on the outskirts of Salford that no one knows about.

Do you always grease your hair back?

Yes, unless it's just been cut. I wear old-fashioned pomade - Sweet Georgia Brown or Murrays Hairglo - which I buy in Afro hair shops.

Is the moustache the centrepiece of your look?

Yes. Once I grew the moustache five years ago, there was no going back. I'm terrified of shaving it off.

What is your grooming routine?

It's my favourite time of the day. I take a long time in the shower, then spend up to 20 minutes trimming my moustache. I have my best ideas staring blankly at myself in the mirror. Getting ready takes a minimum of 40 minutes. I'd rather do it properly and be late for an appointment.

Describe an occasion when you looked your best.

I host a party every Tuesday at the Cafe Royal called the Rakehell's Revels. Everybody dresses up, but at Halloween it gets ridiculous. For one I wore a floor-length Victorian wool cloak fastened with two brass lion's heads and a chain, a Brooklyn Jewish-style coat, tight black silk trousers, a white silk scarf and these amazing snakeskin boots with a 3½in heel.

Do you dress this way to watch telly?

I always dress up: I don't own jeans, T-shirts or trainers. I don't like polyester. Given the choice, I would always choose to wear cotton, silk or wool.

Who are your style icons?

David Niven - he's got the English naturalness. Grace and elegance sort of fall on him. Wyndham Lewis is another; even when he was touring the Barbary Coast and Africa he used to wear wide-brimmed thick felt hat and a wool suit. He was a bit of a quiet, withdrawn dandy.

Does your appearance allow you to behave in a certain way?

I can be very badly behaved. I can bite someone on the bottom at a party and then snap back into acting the gentleman.

Do you have any tattoos?

I have one on my arm that means nothing and lots of things. It's a big, powerful, empty symbol. Victorian aristocrats often had tatoos of really odd things - Oscar Wilde's mother had snakes encircling her wrists.

Are you vain?

I think so, but I'm not sure I take it as pejoratively as most people mean it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1928899,00.html


http://www.thelasttuesdaysociety.org
http://www.woowoowagon.com
http://www.guardian.co.uk