Teddy Boys: Post-War Britain & the First Youth Revolution - book

Teddy Boys: Post-War Britain and the First Youth Revolution • book by Max Décharné

Draped jackets, suede creepers, immaculate quiffs and an attitude that shook post-war Britain: Teddy Boys: Post-War Britain and the First Youth Revolution by Max Décharné tells the story of the country's first great youth counterculture. Emerging from the austerity of the years after the Second World War, working-class teenagers created a distinctive identity through their clothes, language, music and street culture. The Teds were impossible to ignore, and their arrival marked a dramatic break with the drab world their parents had known.

Musician and author Max Décharné traces the Teddy Boys from the Edwardian origins of their fashion to the moral panic surrounding teenage delinquency, drunkenness and disorder. Along the way, he explores the arrival of American rock ’n’ roll, the impact of Elvis Presley, the rise of British rock ’n’ roll stars such as Billy Fury, and the turbulent social tensions that culminated in events including the Notting Hill race riots. The book places Teddy Boy culture within a wider story of class, identity, rebellion and a changing Britain.

This 336-page paperback is essential reading for Teddy Boy enthusiasts, rock 'n' roll fans, vintage fashion devotees and anyone fascinated by the roots of British youth culture. Praised as “Enormously enjoyable” in The Sunday Times and by music writer Jon Savage in the New Statesman, it offers an engaging account of the teenagers who helped change the look, sound and attitude of Britain. A compelling addition to any rock ’n’ roll library.