"I hope I die before I get old"

Apologies in advance to all my mod friends......

It's that time of year again.  August Bank Holiday.  The annual mod weekender in Brighton.  A chance to wear the best of your wardrobe & forget about everything for a couple of days.  Isn't it?

I've been going to mod & scooter rallies for many a moon.....from my first ever scooter run to Torquay in 1983 (all greens, jeans and scary men), much classier affairs in Hayling Island (the Solent Club, the one chippy and running away from casuals), Isle of Wight (back in the days when it was more mods than scooterists and they'd turn you away from a venue if you had trainers on) in the 90s .......to Brighton these days.

I'd get so excited months before the weekends came around....from planning my outfits meticulously, making sure I hadn't worn the same thing for some time incase anyone noticed (they never did!) to packing up my little tartan suitcase and duffel bag.  Living in the sticks, it was sometimes a rare chance to see everyone you didn't see often......Sheri & Nicky from Bedford, Sue from Watford etc. etc.  It really was the best of times back then.

I still get excited about the Brighton weekend now....but perhaps not for the same reasons.  I love to see my friends down there but I think the thrill of waiting to see what everyone is wearing & taking photos of the scooters etc. has gone.  What the outside world must think when they see 60 year old men with Paul Weller haircuts, donning parkas with target patches and "Mods" written on the back in tippex, god only knows.  If you're one of the said 60 year old men, no apologies from me.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with being a mod when you're 60 but the term "growing old gracefully" comes to mind.

This year in Brighton, I found there were a huge amount of people in what I term "fancy dress" outfits - white boots, inappropriate mini dresses and false eyelashes.  No wonder people laugh about the mod scene and bring up Austin Power at any opportunity.  It was tragic that so many women had so obviously been "dressed up for the night" by their friends or partners.  To the girls who wore dark glasses all night at Modesty, to the chavs with potty mouths in colour block M&S dresses & to the white wedge boot brigade, I'm talking about you.  Be yourselves, don't try and be all mod or 60s just to fit in....it's ridiculous.  And to the sweaty, overweight, bald speed-taking, letcherous 55 year olds....don't.  That is all.

Rant over.  I will always love Brighton and I will probably always end up going down over the August Bank Holiday....but I'm praying the fancy dress shops will be shut next year.  By the way...this is how it should be done.