Teens on vintage form at retro show

Putting their most stylish foot forward, teacher Janine Swarbrick and students Lewis Pugh, Matthew Barnet, Liam Cavanagh and Emma Motley, of Thomas Whitham Sixth Form, raised more than £350 for Age UK.

A Trip Down Memory Lane - a sellout show of vintage fashion, music, and arts - looked to BBC film Pride as its muse.

“Our town has such a capacity for supporting the arts,” said Janine. “The buzz created was something really special, with so many people relishing the nostalgia created in our celebration of British culture.”

The night kicked off at Koko’s Kestrel Suite, Burnley, with a vintage fair selling treasures like classic boardgames and New Romantic pirate shirts while Liam and Lewis set the mood with performances of original poetry.

Among the fashion throwbacks were: boys sporting 1950s’ pomade hair and straight-cut jeans; girls wrapped in 70s’ leotards, fishnets and fur; Chloe Craig sweeping the stage in a white floor-length gown, dancing to Kate Bush’s Wuthering Heights; and Kieran Stuart channelling a young Morrissey in Levi’s 501s.

A rendition of Don’t Look Back in Anger - with the cast dressed in 90’s Britpop fashion, complete with vintage Gazelles - lulled the evening to a meaningful conclusion.

“We cherished the chance to lead the way on something that bridged all generational gaps,” Janine said, “and brought us all together.”