After becoming a national fashion icon with his snug waistcoats, Gareth Southgate has decided to take his signature look on tour – on an adventure mission with Bear Grylls.
In a sneak peek of upcoming episode Bear’s Mission with Gareth Southgate, the England manager flaunts what looks remarkably like a green camouflage version of his wardrobe favourite, albeit with a bit of extra padding.
In fact, some might call it a light gilet or sleeveless jumper. But they’d be mistaken: this is Gareth Southgate, so it’s definitely a waistcoat, okay?
Let us have this one.
Whatever you think, Southgate does consider it a waistcoat. As he shows off his sartorial choice to Grylls in the clip, Southgate remembers the first time he decided to put on the iconic item of clothing
“I put the waistcoat on and I said to my son, ‘Do you think I can get away with wearing this?’" he recalls. "He said, ‘Yeah, it’ll be fine. Nobody will notice!’”
Watch the trailer below.
Fortunately, there’s not a lot of chance people will notice the Three Lions leader’s clothing this time with all the action he’ll be up to. During his trip to the wilds of Dartmoor – the rugged terrain used by the Royal Marine Commandos for their gruelling training missions – Southgate will jump out of a helicopter, hang on a high wire 90 foot above a rocky gorge and take on a front-facing abseil down a cliff.
He'll even find enough time for an impromptu penalty shoot-out will Grylls and enjoy a heart-to-heart about the lowest point in his life: his penalty miss in the Euro ‘96 finals.
Bear’s Mission with Gareth Southgate airs on ITV at 9pm on Thursday 20 December
