Withnail's Coat

[Edward]

Apparently there was an auction of some kind in 2000 of Withnail stuff, including the coat which was bought by Chris Evans for £5,000:
https://www.richard-e-grant.com/archives/withnail-for-waterford-auction-results/

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Yip. I can only imagine what Withnail would have thought of Evans. Imagine, but not repeat here for decency's sake. What he called Monty would only have been the start of it.

The moths quotient here seems to vary from place to place. I had a tweed coat my dad wore in 1960 in perfect condition after all these years. I had it with me on a stand in a two story house built in 1880 and within one season it started to turn to powder as the moths devoured it. But I never actually saw a moth the entire time.

Carpet beetles can be a problem too - hard to spot, but the little beggars get everywhere, and do much more damage than moths.

I notice that Galer is now quoting on her website a price of £2,500 with a "£1,500 starting price, each bespoke coat will vary". Ouch.

EEps. Beautiful and will doubtless last a lifetime, but still a big outlay, especially if you do have moth issues, which I've long struggled with.

I see Magnoli also does one now. Not sure about accuracy, though looks quite a nice coat in its own right.

 

[MisterCairo]

There was also a story, which I think I posted here, that Chris Evans, that obnoxious British tv presenter, had bought the coat and then destroyed it when he crashed his motorcycle or something. I doubt, given the low budget of the film, that there was more than one coat; it's not like they had to keep the coat pristine, or age it for various scenes, or have coats for stuntmen to use, all of which are reasons for having multiple costumes; so I'd be willing to bet there was only one coat. I've found that film and tv production people rarely remember correctly what they did for a film, certainly not with the clarity or precision that fans expect; for production people it's just a job, they do it, they get paid, they go home or on to the next film.

Considering though that Andrea Galer is not and was not a costume designer for film on a full time basis, and given her love for that project, I suspect she has a better than average recollection of it.

Also, she was there. You were not.

 

[MisterCairo]

I'm sure I read an interview with Grant not that long ago where he said he had the coat at his home.

Almost certainly one from the production. One coat at the time would not have cost much at all.

 

[MisterCairo]

Yip. I can only imagine what Withnail would have thought of Evans. Imagine, but not repeat here for decency's sake. What he called Monty would only have been the start of it.



Carpet beetles can be a problem too - hard to spot, but the little beggars get everywhere, and do much more damage than moths.



EEps. Beautiful and will doubtless last a lifetime, but still a big outlay, especially if you do have moth issues, which I've long struggled with.

I see Magnoli also does one now. Not sure about accuracy, though looks quite a nice coat in its own right.

"Not sure about the accuracy"?

https://www.magnoliclothiers.com/withnail-overcoat-overcoats-p-1047.html

He did not have a photocopy of a scan of a fax of a photo of the coat when he had that designed in Thailand.

Looks like an Australian's nightmare...

 

[Edward]

"Not sure about the accuracy"?

https://www.magnoliclothiers.com/withnail-overcoat-overcoats-p-1047.html

He did not have a photocopy of a scan of a fax of a photo of the coat when he had that designed in Thailand.

Looks like an Australian's nightmare...

It's very much in the 'inspired by' category, I think we can fairly say. Not one of their more screen-accurate options. I do rather like the 'Newt' overcoat, though I would probably order it in a less accurate, longer body-length.

 

[MisterCairo]

I thought it was "traitor," a la Jean Genet. Could be wrong. I've a tendency to creatively misapprehend things.

I confess to actually liking this term. No idea in what context it could be used, but creativity is within us all!