A vintage tie bought in a charity shop for 99p has gone on show at the Museum of London Docklands as part of an exhibition about fashion in the capital.
The kipper-style tie, named after its exaggerated wide design, is now part of the museum's show Fashion City: How Jewish Londoners shaped global style.
It was spotted by 65-year-old bargain hunter Janneke der Wal who bought it from an Age UK shop in Southampton then contacted the museum when she realised it was by famed designer Michael Fish.She said: "I'm not in the habit of buying ties at all, but I saw it out ofthe corner of my eye and there was just something about it: the vibrant colours and the width. It reminded me of the Seventies.
“I had absolutely no use for it, but thought perhaps it would come in handy if there ever was a fancy dress party.”“Once home, I noticed the Mr. Fish label, which sounded kinda zany, so decided to search the internet to see if I could find out a little more about it. I didn't get very far, but far enough to realise that maybe a museum might be interested in it. This is when I decided to contact the Museum of London.
“I love charity shops- if you do find something to wear, then it's a win win situation: the charity shop gets a little money, you get something "new" to wear and the item has not gone to landfill. It just goes to show, you never know what you might find- I'm thrilled to see the tie is now part of this fantastic exhibition!”London-born Fish was one the biggest designers in UK menswear in the 1960s and 1970s making clothes for the likes of Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger.He dressed Sean Connery for his first role as James Bond and David Bowie famously wore a Mr Fish dress on the cover of his 1970 album The Man Who Sold the World. Dr Lucie Whitmore, curator of Fashion City, said objects could come to the museum "through many different avenues".The exhibition tells the story of how some of the biggest names in UK fashion could trace their roots back to East End tailors and on to West End success.
Famous names featured include Moss Bros, whose founders started out as secondhand clothing dealers, and David Sassoon who dressed Princess Diana dozens of timesThe exhibition runs until April.
