Only if it's the bride or her mother!

In principle, mess dress should only be worn to non-military events when the equivalent civilian dress is tails. There aren't that many of those, are there? But mark the principle. If it really is a splendid occasion, you might consider mess dress. But what if it's something like the annual tennis club dance? Wayne and Darren may well decide that black tie is a good idea, but might not mess dress be rather OTT? As for medals with black tie, only on very heavily militarily influenced occasions, I think.

But what do I know? I'm an old fart and haven't even worn black tie for about three decades.

Surely that would only be true of white-tie civilian functions? The mess dress equivalent being No 5A with the exceptionally uncomfortable white waistcoat, stiff-fronted shirt and white tie?

So glad that I rarely need to wear a tie of any description these days! The last time I attended a black tie with miniatures event, someone tried to tell me that I shouldn't have worn the premier tanker squadron's red-and-black tie. I suspect my response included curt reference to fornication and travel!

Blimey, my memory must be getting dim - I thought that we used to wear a black (single ended!) bow tie with a stiff shirt and wing collar - but it is light years in the past

We did - but it's now white, I gather.

That will be progress then - cost saving measure (no black dye!).

I'll get my coat

Unfortunately Officers' greatcoats stopped being issued in around 1970.....

My issue blue gaberdine flasher's raincoat thing, which was about as comfortable as tarpaulin and which weighed a ton, was stolen by some low-life at RAFC in 1973 - somehow I managed the next 30 years without needing to replace it.....:\

One of lifes great misteries Beagle, I always wondered who lost his raincoat in the first place and started the theiving chain.

People kept turning proper greatcoats into "British Warm"s. Awful things.

What's the difference between a greatcoat and a British Warm?

(...sounds like the cue for a joke...)

Wander00 - couldn't agree more. The RAF just didn't "get" British warms and when there was a fad for turning greatcoats into British warms in the 70's I foolishly had mine done - what an absolute waste of a perfectly good greatcoat. Also the RAF insisted that the rank be retained on the epaulettes - totally missing the point that they should be able to be worn in civvies or uniform. I think I wore mine twice. Years later (by now a civilian) I acquired a proper army British warm which I wore for years until it mysteriously started to shrink in the wardrobe :(

Liked the "flasher's" gaberdine raincoat though. Proper raincoat that was :ok:

Go in your No5's...............then at least you won't look out of place when you're asked to dish out the 'Choc Ices' in the interval!:ok:

About 20 years ago I picked up a Greatcoat and a set of RE City No 5s from a grizzled old FltLt flt eng who retired from Mt Wise. Until last year have probably only worn the coat 2-3 times a year, but its worth it. We get very, very cold winters where I am now and I love going into our compound, collar turned up, segs precariously clicking on the ice and a dusting of snow on my SD hat. A german civilian wryly commented that 'we used to have coats like that, but we wore them with, err, jack boots'.

All the more reason to proudly wear an RAF Great coat just to remind the locals who prevailed in WWII!

Coat, British Warm (Officers). Private purchase from approved tailors, for use in barracks. Greatcoat (Officers Pattern) for use on formal parades and in the field. Major difference between the two, leather instead of Regimental buttons, Greatcoat has a belt at the rear and a British Warm is lined. No rank on British Warm. Greatcoat has a 2" collar that can be turned up against the weather and the lapels can be buttoned up to the chin. British Warm is made from cashmere, Greatcoat is made from heavy wool serge. Converted greatcoats are just that, a converted greatcoat and they look like it. A British Warm is a British Warm.

British-warm
 

Available from;

British Warm

Very dapper.

Now, where does one obtain a squadron cravat?

Are you serious? RAF uniforms across the board are not known for their style and you're going to where one In public out of choice??!!

Then again, if you realised how naff it looked, you wouldn't really fit into the RAF......... So go ahead, wear it!

Make your mind up chicken leg - should he where it or wear it?

Actually I had a job where a British Warm was perfect. We would fly to Germany Civair in the depths of winter and wore it as a civilian overcoat. We would then spend hours standing out on freezing cold dispersals with the BW as uniform and Canadian army overboots to keep the tozzies warm.

The only thing we never cracked was the gloves - British Army Cold, wet. True to name they were both cold and wet.

The British Warm is indeed a very useful overcoat! I can definitely agree that it is an ideal overcoat for colder temperatures. With regard to its tradition, it should always be made of a heavy (at least 34 oz per yard) Melton cloth and never of cashmere.

In case you want a new one you will most likely have to consult a tailor or provider of military apparel. However, every once in a while you will find a fantastic, original British Warm in London's top notch second hand stores.