1. Content

2. Publication history

3. Chap events
    Chap protests 

4. Chap publications

5. References

6. External links

The Chap is a British humorous men's lifestyle magazine published quarterly. It was founded in 1999 by Gustav Temple and Vic Darkwood, and is still edited by Temple.

The magazine proposes that men everywhere return to a more gentlemanly way of life by rejecting modern vulgarity and careless, shabby or faddish dress sense through the restoration of the lifestyle, habits, manners and traditional fashion sense of a mid-20th century (or earlier) British chap. Thus it advises men to wear traditional British suits and other similar well-tailored clothing, especially those cut from tweed; to keep their trousers sharply pressed; to be impeccably groomed; to wear quality handmade shoes, brightly polished; and a return to the wearing of hats.

The Chap has a comic and eccentric twist on this. Tongue firmly in cheek, it espouses its own unique lifestyle philosophy called anarcho-dandyism^[1] and has its own 10-point manifesto, The Chap Manifesto,^[2] which mandates that a chap is to smoke a pipe, is to doff his hat when good manners require, is never to wear what it calls pantaloons de Nîmes, and to sport a moustache (never a beard), among others.

Content

While The Chap appreciates British culture and loves tradition, it is strongly rooted in the Situationist strand of anarchism with more than the occasional nod to Dada.^[3] It is also indebted to the avant-garde as well as comedy greats such as the Monty Pythons, Peter Cook, Spike Milligan and Viv Stanshall.

The Chap is predominantly a mixture of articles on clothing, footwear and headwear; on sport (mainly cricket and horse racing); on moustache grooming; on polite manners and traditional British etiquette; and on pipes and tobacco, all written in an anachronistic late-Victorian to mid-20th Century British style, interspersed with humorous jokes. For instance, the "Am I Chap" section sees people sending in photos of themselves dressed in vintage attire, to which the magazine's editors almost always comment on derisively in a very withering, but humorous, fashion.

The Chap is a bit like a club – there are lots of cosy in-jokes and references, though we also like to display affectionate disdain for some of the readers who send in their photos dressed as “Chaps”, merely to remind everyone that we actually believe in dressing properly or not at all. I recently conducted a reader survey and one of the questions was “Should we get rid of ‘Am I Chap?’” The response was unanimously against, in other words, despite the criticism, readers love that column.

The magazine has often been very satirical or whimsical, with content such as a series chronicling "A Year in Catford" and "Amusing Monograph as to the Various Pleasures and Diversions Afforded by One's Valet".^[7][8]

Notable contributors to The Chap include Michael "Atters" Attree who conducts interviews with those known for their gentlemanly or dandyish ways, and Miss Martindale, a prominent spokesperson of Aristasia, who from 2003 to 2005 wrote the Ladies' Column.

Publication history

The magazine is printed in B5 format, and originally was published in that format as well. In May 2009, the magazine nearly closed due to financial issues arising from moving from B5 to the larger A4 format format. To keep going The Chap asked its readership and subscribers to donate funds. Additionally, Viz Magazine financially supported the magazine. It returned to B5 to reduce printing costs.^[9]

The Chap was published bi-monthly from 1999 to May 2017.

From issue #92 published in May 2017, the magazine has been published quarterly, has double the number of pages, and has been graphically redesigned. On this "relaunch" the editor said:

Chap events

The magazine has also conducted a number of balls called the Grand Anarcho-Dandyist Balls.^[12]

Chap protests

The magazine has also organised several serious and semi-serious protests, all conducted in the unique tongue-in-cheek Chap style. These include:

• in 2003, the Chap Uprising – against what they see as modern living's vulgarity in general;^[7]
• in 2004, the Victoria & Albert Museum Protest – a protest "against the pointless intrusion by contemporary art pieces into public areas";^[13]
• in 2004, Civilise the City – a walk through central London whose aim was "to draw attention to the appalling lack of gentlemanly services available on Britain's high streets";^[14]
• in 2006, the Tate Modern Protest – against modern art installations;^[15] and
• in 2012, the Siege of Savile Row – against the proposed opening of an Abercrombie and Fitch store at the centre of traditional English gentleman's tailoring, Savile Row.^[16][17]

Chap publications

In addition to the magazine, a number of books have been published by The Chap over the years: these include How To Be Chap^[18] and books both on cooking and drinking for "chaps".

References

External links

• Official website
• The Chap Olympiad official website
  • [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/expatpicturegalleries/11735928/The-11th-annual-Chap-Olympiad-in-pictures.html The 11th annual Chap Olympiad (2015) in pictures] from The Daily Telegraph
  • BBC News coverage of the Chap Olympiad 2006
• [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/theres-a-good-chap-91467.html There's a good Chap] from The Independent from 2003
• The Vulgarian Invasions - interview with Gustav Temple from AM Magazine
• [https://sabotagetimes.com/life/well-trousered-sir-gustav-temple-talks-all-things-chap Well Trousered, Sir: Gustav Temple Talks All Things Chap] from the Sabotage Times
• {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010005453/http://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/steampunk-rockers-the-trend-for-tweed-6739715.html |date= |title=Article on The Chap and steampunk from the Evening Standard}}

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