What was the fascination with Pierrot in the 80s?

[Allnewtometoo]

I remember thus being on everything, there was bedding, wallpaper, note books, clothing, bags. Why was it so popular?? Where did it come from? Was there something on TV?

Littleworth had 6 different catalogues, all were identical inside the front cover. John Moores, Littlewoods, Brian Mills and I think Janet Frazer were 4 of them, can't remember the others. GUS had a similar collection of mail order catalogues and were the great rivals of the Moores empire!
I had a summer job working in the mail order division when I was much younger!

We had Eternal Beau, I wish I hadn't given it away after my mum died.

My mum had Janet Frazer catalogue and I was never tempted by pierrot stuff but was impressed when a friend had the 'Wings of Love' picture on her landing wall. (Absolutely awful! But I loved it then.)

My cousin had the L'Enfant (bloke with baby) picture from Athena as a wall clock. I know it's called that because of a feature on Network 7 (remember that?).

Also this has made me think of 'Reasons to be Miserable' by half man half biscuit, which has the lyric 'And there’s the person who collects all things Pierrot and loves Siamese cats and thinks they’re sophisticated ‘cos they eat Fry’s Chocolate Cream, and they’d do anything to spend the night with that fella off the Turkish Delight advert who’s full of Eastern monosodium glutamate, and they always have a portrait of a sad clown on the wall and they go to charity shops and tend to become slightly orgasmic at the thought of vampire lust'.

Made me laugh then and makes me really nostalgic now.

Littlewoods not Littleworth!

I had this bed set.. I loved it.

I had a large picture of one on my wall, it wasn't from a catalogue, probably from Athena. Not sure how they came about.

I also collected Avon perfume bottles. They are long gone now, I now collect houseplants.

I didn't have Pierrot but did have a red and white bedroom. Red and white duvet set and curtains with white melamine furniture with red handles. I also had big Athena posters on the wall and lit a lot of joss sticks until my mum stopped me stinking the house out with the patchouli scented ones.

My entire room was forever friends. I had forever friends bedding, curtains, lamp, stationery.

I had sons so it was A Team bedding, MFI black furniture with red handles.

I've a little Avon tortoise-shaped bottle somewhere in my roofspace!

I misread the title and couldn’t work out why I didn’t remember having a fictional Belgian detective on my duvet cover.

Thnx for the links - felt v much like a trip down memory lane

Or just a trip - can’t decide 😂

Just a fad, much like unicorns in recent times.

I had a Pierrot figure. I was in my 2nd year at uni.

My mother had all the catalogues at one time or another!! She called them 'club books' and she'd lend them to friends and neighbours and get commission until they clocked on they could just get their own copy!!!

She'd Grattans, John Noble, Kays, Great Universal, Freemans, Empire Stores, Marshall Ward, Janet Frazer, John Moores, even Damart rofl! (not all at once!!) I think Kays was her favourite.

I was thinking of Monchichis, I loved them. I just googled chicaboo and it's the same thing. I grew up in Ireland, they were definitely Monchichis here and very popular. Strange to have two names!!

Do you remember the "a good man is hard to find" also from Athena.

I loved athena and purple Ronnie cards from there.

My mum was an agent for several catalogues. I was often sent around the neighbours to collect their payments and we looked forward to the white arrow delivery van.

So many eighties collectibles tucked away in sideboards or gathering dust somewhere. Lilliput Lane cottages and Wade Whimsies.

I had a lacquered Japanese parasol from the Reject Shop in a corner of my bedroom. My mum decided I liked Hollie Hobbie and bought me a bed set but I don't remember ever expressing any enthusiasm for this.

That's a blast from the past 'country diary of an Edwardian lady' how the hell did you remember that!? I'm impressed!

Anyone remember this??

Edited- picture failed. It's a Athena poster of a couple leaning on a car called 'The outsiders'. So familiar and nostalgic

I did like Whimsies though. I had millions. And my mum would always give me Avon perfumes. The owl one was my favourite.

Apparently Pierrot was due to the rise of Manga!

”Mira Fujita was the daughter of a calligrapher. After studying at art school in Japan, she began doing illustrations for a girl’s magazine. Her work stood out because the characters seemed willful rather than meek.

With the growth of manga over traditional storytelling in Japan, Fujita moved to Europe. There her style was considered novel and mysterious.

A Parisian poster company commissioned Fujita to do a series of images of clowns and Harlequins. These were extraordinarily popular and soon sold as prints and on various household goods. A large number of teenage girls in the 1980s had a Pierrot poster on their wall as a result!”

rachel-nightingale.info/2019/pierrot-in-popular-culture/

I honestly thought this thread was going to be about Bowie, New Romantics and Lindsay Kemp…

I had Eternal Beau and my mum collected Royal Albert country roses

And also had a kitchen full of that blue and white Chinese design plates/pans/cups/everything...can't remember what that was called