Red trousers. When did these become fashionable for elderly gentlemen?

[TheTecknician]

I don't mean bright red crimplene flares that my Mum sported back in 1975. I mean the off-maroon corduroy and chino strides that have become alarmingly de rigeur over the last few months. They have now supplanted the beige (or pale blue) zippered jacket as the must-have fashion attire for the over-80s.

My old man pegged it three and a half years ago at the age of 88. He wouldn't have been seen dead in any shade of red or beige!

My FIL wore salmon pink trousers and he wasn’t posh, I think they were bought in Spain and originally red , lightweight cotton but faded over the years, bagged at the knees and shiny round the arse area. He wore them until the zip broke and I refused to renew it. He tried sweetening me up with flowers but No way was I going anywhere near them.

Earlier than Portilo, earlier than Cotton Traders. I'm in my 50s and red/bright cords/moleskins/chinos have been the casual wear of choice of the UMC for as long as dh or I can remember (we are late 40s/early 50s). Not worn by “ordinary country folk”, more the folk who have holiday and weekend homes in weekly commuting distance from London. Generally worn with Viyella grid check shirts, brogues or hunter wellies and Barbour jackets. Often spotted in Cheltenham/Cirencester and other market towns in the shires. On Christmas Eve Cirencester seems to hold some kind of unofficial convention of red trouser wearing.

The last pair of reds I saw was yesterday at a branch of Booth's. I also saw a pair of bottle green cords there. Must be something about that particular supermarket.

This has been a thing for years and years but I only noticed it when I first went to Oxford.

It's always been a thing. I did a lot of sailing /yachting I swear I grew up thinking red trousers were normal attire for men of a certain age

the younger ones now mainly wear them for an "ironic" red trousers themed night out but I reckon they will be wearing them without irony before long...

Awww you beat me to it, @Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g ! Love John Finnemore!

I wonder if it actually does go back further than the fifteenth century? It could be a marker for the upper-classes.

Not specific to Tories - our ex Mayor of Bristol made red trousers his thing, was never seen in anything else - think he thought it made him quite the caution

Worn by a lovely gent in my area known as Brigadier Surname.

His wife runs local WI and tennis club. He's on committee for sailing club.

This. I wonder if its caught on so middle class are copying. I always thought it looked stupid. Usually worn in a relatively scruffy way right?

I live in the North so don't see it much...

😂 Definitely a county set thing, been around in the countryside for donkeys years.

A neighbour of ours wears these. Our nickname for him is 'gentleman farmer'

I remember this from yesteryear. Just hooting with laughter again.

It's been around forever! Occasionally you see it in town on someone under the age of 60. But a country thing.

It's also a thing in the Netherlands; the older Dutch gent loves a burgundy or red trouser.

I like it because most men dress badly or dully. Red trousers are at least interesting to look at.

I believe it may have started in Stockbridge, Edinburgh 😂

Oh dear, what does it mean if a woman were to wear the red corduroy trousers and live in the one of the shires ? 😳

A picture is worth a thousand words!

Redlegs..... Telegraph/GB News watching types.

Off maroon or beige has been about for years, usually men of above average income it seems.

There are far worse things some men wear.

Never seen it. Certainly not here

Yup, tended to be worn by chaps called Giles or Rupert IME 😂

Love a red trouser chat. A colleague of mine turned up to work in them and was mercilessly teased for the day. Tory type, claimed he had no idea they were a thing, just liked the look of them.

Thank you OP for this thread and bring Look at my Fucking Red Trousers back into my life. Joyous.

Micheal Portillo's trousers are brightly coloured but not the same as the English country set look. MP has Spanish roots and probably favours the coloured chinos look of older European gentleman. The red/soft pink or mustard coloured ones tend to be cord. And very often worn in. In olden days they were probably handed down like old tweed jackets were.