The South West Film and Television Archive (SWFTA) is the regional film archive for the South West of England. Established in 1993, SWFTA's core collection comprises of the combined programme libraries of Westward Television and TSW (Television South West). The archive also cares for a significant number of donated film collections, both amateur and professional, dating back to the early 1900s.
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Boots and Minis
Girls embody the spirit of everyday wear in the sixties and boots and miniskirts as fashion items are discussed.
From the collection of:
Overview
Girls on the street in boots are interviewed about their fashion and whether people like them or not, or whether boots spoil a good leg! The miniskirt became the symbolic piece of fashion in the 1960s sparking a passionate rebellion and all hemlines rose to the occasion. Nancy Sinatra's 1966 song These Boots Are Made For Walkin’ included Nancy wearing American shoe designer Beth Levine’s boots and encouraged boot-wearing around the world.
Comic book writers and science fiction TV and film producers had already been depicting boots and minis in futuristic and fantasy worlds including Professor Marsten, the Harvard Professor who in 1942 invented Wonder Woman. Designers such as Mary Quant who ran the King’s Road boutique Bazaar put London on the map as one of the fashion capitals of the world exporting miniskirt design. John Bates designing as Jean Varon created the iconic look for Emma Peel played by Diana Rigg in The Avengers and helped introduce new fabrics including plastic. André Courrèges introduced go-go boots to go with his miniskirts. Boot and minis made the 1960s swing and both remain an ever-present fashion staple.
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