Cut from the same cloth

I have been thinking about uniforms lately. Mainly because I’ve been looking for a winter coat that isn’t a quilted puffer jacket and they are surprisingly hard to find. Everyone appears to be wearing one of those jackets, usually in a discreet shade of dark blue or black. It would seem that although adults are rarely called upon to wear a uniform these days, they still have a strong urge to conform. Lack of choice definitely has something to do with it, or maybe we’re just going through dark times and we have the wardrobes to match. Perhaps people feel more comfortable if they don’t stand out too much from the crowd. It’s safer.

Uniforms were still very much in evidence when I was a child, even though I was born 14 years after the Second World War finished. When I look back, I can see that it was still quite a militarised society. After all, it was the era of “short back and sides” haircuts, which my brothers hated. (They later went on to sport flowing locks, but that’s another story.) In fact, the UK introduced compulsory national service in 1947 for young men between the ages of 17 and 21. They had to serve for 18 months, which was increased to two years in 1950 owing to the Korean War.  This enforced army training didn’t end officially until 1960 and in practice went on until 1963. Can you imagine young British men now being called upon to do military service? Or young British women for that matter. There’d be widespread mutiny, which they wouldn’t be able to quash owing to the lack of trained soldiers. Many countries do still have national service – the K-Pop band BTS springs immediately to mind. In fact, I have just learned that in Eritrea women usually serve for 10 years and men for 15. I wonder how they have time for anything else.

I think people were quite keen on a uniform back in the 60s and 70s. I was incredibly proud of my first school uniform and can remember strutting off to school in a gingham dress, grey blazer with yellow piping and a straw boater. There seemed to be a smart uniform for everyone back then, not only for schoolchildren, but also nurses, Guides and Scouts, postmen, shopworkers, the Salvation Army, waitresses and railway staff, to name but a few. I think people liked them because not only were they quite chic, it gave them a sense of belonging. My mother was a member of the Women’s Royal Voluntary Service in the 1960s and I can remember her leaving the house, proudly sporting her loden green uniform with jaunty matching hat. Now, people are lucky to get a fleece with the company name emblazoned across the back. Not really something you’d wear with pride.

So, back to the winter coat. I was looking for what used to be called a “good cloth coat”, but I didn’t want it in black or navy. I was thwarted at every turn. What I have ended up with is a flamboyant fluffy pale pink jacket. My uniform days are behind me. Now I’m free to choose.