Or worse still a clip on / pre-tied bow tie with a wing collar shirt. :ouch:

Ha! You can tell mine's real - badly tied and getting a bit frayed in the middle :O
Recollect airline CEO, a long way from here, walking louchly into the bar with tie undone and local manageress in tow. One of the chaps expressed his feelings by offering peanuts :E

Yes, I was present at that historic event

THS, Hydromet, thank you gentlemen for confirming that the ladies do indeed sport their medals though not necessarily always the miniatures at civilian dress do's . Like TTN I don't recall ever seeing ladies in evening dresses so attired, but they obviously do if so encouraged (by the other ladies attending perhaps).

As TTN states, times change, and with men and women operating side by side with equal roles and status these days any ideas of one rule for one and another rule for the other should be swiftly stepped on. If I, like TTN, am prepared to face amused looks from the younger generation then it is beholden on them to proudly display their far more impressive arrays.

Perhaps my attitude is patronising. It isn't supposed to be but if so I apologise. Perhaps as a mere man I do not understand any practical problems involved, such as spearing an expensive dress with the pin of a medal brooch. Perhaps I ought to get out more and then I would see plenty of miniatures being worn by plenty of ladies, but if not then I for one say what's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander!

Wear your medals for us please ladies or mine for one will go back in its drawer, and then think of the amusement you will be denied! If any ladies wish to break cover then please let us know your thoughts about this apparent inequity, if indeed it exists at all.

I am for men and women, as equals, wearing the miniatures of the medals to which they are entitled, and entitled too to wear them with pride. Me, I don't have any anyway.

Medals don't maketh the man Wander :)

Bsweeper and Tankertrashnav, sorry for the delay in responding. Concur with both your posts. To be honest, what the hell do I know? Spent all my time serving trying to keep up with tech documents and flying regulations. Only after the aircrew, tactics and procedures manuals.

In my experience those that have 'em don't brag about 'em. But, times change and no doubt there are those that want to show off something.

And yes, I have a few and they stay in the drawer unless i'm in uniform. Which these days isn't often. :)


Bob C

I'm still serving but rarely wear uniform because of where I work. I've been invited to an (Army) Mess dinner next week and debating whether to wear DJ and miniatures or my 'increadibly shrinking Mess Kit' which has been in storage for a while. In both cases I'll wear miniatures as that would be - like a reunion - be entirely appropriate. A little while back my wife and I attended a charity ball and I wore, naturally, a DJ but there were one or two in mess kit (TA I think) which was a little incongruous. Oh, and apart from Jubilee medals that was it; I did feel like playing Top Trumps with them...

And from another Wykehamist you may not be aware that the word manners has changed in meaning. At the time of the motto being written manners meant education and learning. Educated men were also more courteous and considerate, and so the meaning changed to the one we use today :8

And the counterpoint would be what? Those that don't have them brag about them? ;)

I've got one of those, though oddly its arguably due to me being fitter now than when I originally brought it. Two alterations down and I'm out of excess across the chest.

About 30 years ago, I was in need of some culture and bl**dy couth and so went with Mrs W to see "It ain't half hot mum" at the Futurist Theatre in Scarborough. The front row had been booked by officers from what appeared to be a local TA, and about 10 of them were there wearing full mess kit with medals. Windsor Davis marched onto stage at the start of the performance and glanced down. He instantly stood to attention, gave one of the salutes that only he could give, and asked for "Permission to carry on, Colonel?" For the rest of the evening he brought these members of the audience into the play and treated them as if they were the military audience for his concert party, adlibbing with them to his hearts content - he even got the rest of the cast to join in.


While the TA should not have been wearing mess kit and medals to a public performance, the whole effect contributed to a memorable night watching a very funny piece of comedy theatre. Sometimes, it may not be "correct" to wear medals or uniform to a function, but if the occasion calls for it then why not? No-one gets hurt!

"....incredibly shrinking mess kit....."


"I've got one of those, though oddly its arguably due to me being fitter now than when I originally brought it. Two alterations down and I'm out of excess across the chest."


I graduated from Henlow being incredibly fit with a 30" waist and had uniform to fit perfectly. Sadly, over the years, my girth expanded (sports injury stopped the running) and the gap between the buttons of my mess kit jacket slowly increased over the years. This came to a head with a VSO visit to Station and the calling of a Dining in Night which carried a three line whip. This in its self was not a problem until the Stn Cdr stipulated that dress was to be No 5 with waistcoats and not cummerbunds. My waistcoat was one of the old bib type without a material back and was held together by elastic straps ... on the night I put on the waistcoat, donned the jacket and discovered that where my own incredibly shrinking jacket stopped at the front failed to reach to where the backless waistcoat front ended and there was a pair of vertical white shirt stripes showing at the front.


My only solution was to wear a cummerbund, claim ignorance, and accept the bill for a bottle of port. A new No 5 soon followed - somewhat larger than my old one!

NL - sorry if I implied that they did. Merely a visible expression of the thanks of a grateful nation.....................what did I just write. Oh well, if you have them enjoy them! Those that mark heroism and bravery then from me at least, "Thank you"

Wander, you misconstrued my meaning, I was trying to put across that because you do not have any medals means nothing, You have far more to be proud of than simply wearing a bit of ribbon..

NL - clearly my week for "misunderstanding" - there is much in my life I am proud of, "ribbons" or no. As too are many others of theirs. Now back to that bl@@dy hedge...................

I cracked this years ago.

Tied one properly and decently, slid the adjusting buckle to maximum length, took it off over my head and then put a couple of stitches though the back of the knot.

I now put it on and off over my head and slide the buckle to fit!

Its properly tied and looks like it, but I don't have the bother.

WD- were the TA guys there as part of a "Civic" party? I attended a few things around Huntingdon in a civic party led by the Mayor, and often attended by Mrs "grey underwear". Mess kit was "expected" to demonstrate the links between the community and the RAF

One knows when one is getting old, when 3 or 4 bow ties have been worn out - by proper tying (sic) of course ..........:(

You know that you are REALLY old when you can remember tying the single-ended bow tie worn with the stiff-fronted shirt

I usually lurk, but since one of them was probably me, I should explain. Annual regimental dinner at an hostelry nearby and we dropped into our club (quite close to yours ;)) for a sharpener first.A mixture of serving and retired officers of all sorts of vintage. The order of dress is specified, for all, as evening dress (or a couple of peculiar regimental variations thereon) with minatures. We do not distinguish between serving and retired by wearing uniform on this occasion, as it has long been a principle of 'the family' that, whilst one may leave the Army, one never leaves the Regiment.

Obviously some of the older officers have much more impressive 'racks' than we at the still serving end!