The show notes at Richard James promised a roller coaster ride — inspired by a proper Boy’s Own Adventure story, the little-known tale of how a bunch of 19th century British engineers voyaged to Chile to build the groundbreaking Trans-Andean line.
It was the kind of origin myth that might be expected from exploration-loving designers like Nigel Cabourn or Christopher Raeburn, rather than Richard James — although it’s worth remembering that once, many years ago, he embarked on an adventure of his own; one focused on tailoring instead of engineering, and on bringing a new lease of life to a Savile Row which seemed, at the time, to be tottering stubbornly on its last legs.
