//Audrey Watson’s great grand-neice Carlie models the spot-print two-piece bought in 1971 from Mr Freedom’s branch at 20 Kensington Church Street in west London. All photos: Helen Smith//

//Sooty & Sweep print Mr Freedom shirt also acquired by Watson on one of her shopping trips to London in the early 70s//

The emergence of good condition Mr Freedom designs with strong provenance is rare these days, so I’m delighted to showcase these unusual and original garments from the seminal early 70s London boutique operated by Trevor Myles, John Paul and Tommy Roberts.

They were acquired in the early 70s from the second Mr Freedom outlet in Kensington by the ultra-stylish British collector Audrey Watson, now 87 and a lifelong devotee of quirky and interesting clothing who has reluctantly begun the process of divesting herself of her fashion archive.

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Tags: Audrey Watson, Bob Hall, Diana Crawshaw, Freddie Laughton, Helen Smith, John Paul, Look-in, Mr Freedom, Trevor myles

“It was a spectacular coup de théâtre – Kansai’s models came on moving. They leapt, ran, whirled like dervishes, danced, flung out their arms so that the brilliant colours meshed and merged into a kaleidoscopic cartoon of colour. Kansai himself, black-clothed and masked, moved across the stage like a Samurai warrior, tearing off layers and layers of clothes, stripping down the beautiful, pyramidal outer garments, right down to the vests and body paint. Kansai’s clothes épatent les couturiers.”

Harpers & Queen, July 1971

As fuzzy as they are, the two precious video clips at the end of this post convey the game-changing nature of  Kansai Yamamoto’s theatrical introduction of avant-garde Japanese fashion design to these shores at the dawn of the 70s.

They also reveal the extent to which the late David Bowie subsequently drew on Yamamoto’s flamboyance and daring when presenting Ziggy Stardust on stage.

Several of the designs were worn by Bowie in performance during live promotion, in particular of the Aladdin Sane album, and he also adopted the sleight-of-hand layered costume reveals, the emphatic postures of the models and even the flame-red hair colouring as seen on the huge wig worn in the first excerpt below.

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Tags: Aladdin Sane, Boston 151, British Vogue, Chris Snow, Diana Crawshaw, Joe Strummer, John Paul, Kansai Yamamoto, Kate Moss, Michael Chow, Mr Freedom, Nick Knight, Oooh Fashion!, Paradise Garage, Sex Pistols, Showstudio, Terence Donovan, The Great Gear Trading Company, The Strand, Tom Salter, Tommy Roberts, Trevor myles, Ziggy Stardust

//Roberts, right, tries on a military greatcoat at I Was Lord Kitchener’s Valet//

Look out for an appearance by Tommy Roberts – subject of my new book – in the 1967 documentary Three Swings On A Pendulum, currently available for viewing (in the UK at least) on BBC iPlayer.

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Tags: Arnold Wesker, BBC, Ben Olins, Biba, Carnaby Street, Charlie Simpson, Gear, Geraldine Chaplin, Granny Takes A trip, I Was Lord Kitchener's Valet, John Paul, John Pearse, King's Road, Lewis Nkosi, Male W1, Olivier Todd, Oz, Portobello Road, Robert Hughes, Three Swings On A Pendulum

Thanks to photographer David Reed for this portrait of Tommy Roberts and John  Paul in much satin finery in the office hallway above their Mr Freedom boutique at 20 Kensington Church Street in 1971.

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Tags: 1971, David Reed, John Paul, Kensington Church Street, Mr Freedom, Nova, Radio Times, Sunday Times Magazine

This feature on five owners of interesting automobiles comes from a time long before the banalities of Top Gear.

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Tags: Club, Jeff Beck, John Paul, Leonard Whiting, Michael Roberts, Mr Freedom, October 1971, Paradise Garage, Tommy Roberts, Trevor myles