A Brief History of Savile Row*

Savile Row occupies a quiet corner of Mayfair in central London near Bond Street and is famous the world over as the home of men's bespoke tailoring.

Many of the greatest, most famous men in history have patronised the many tailors that occupy this street; men such as Winston Churchill, Lord Nelson and Napoleon III.

In Japanese, men's suiting is called "sebiro (sey-b-row)" presumably a shortening and Japonification of the street name.

Savile Row was created with the development of the Burlington Estate in 1695 and, as with other area roads such as Cork St, the name has connections to Lord Burlington himself, in this case, that of Lady Dorothy Savile, his wife.

Initially, The Row was occupied by military officers and their wives; William Pitt the Youger was an early resident. During the 1800s the gentry began to fixate on stylish dressing - Beau Brummell 1778-1840, epitomised the well-dressed gentleman. He patronised the tailors congregated on the Burlington Estate, notably around Cork Street, and by 1803 some were occupying premises in Savile Row.

• The offices of The Beatles’ Apple Corps were at 3 Savile Row; The Beatles, Badfinger, Mary Hopkin and others recorded in the Apple Studios in the basement
• The Beatles’ final, live performance was on the roof, on 30 January, 1969 – that “Rooftop Concert” concludes the documentary film Let It Be
• №7 Savile Row was the London address of Phileas Fogg, protagonist in Jules Verne’s classic adventure novel Around the World in 80 Days
• The Row is mentioned in Annie in the song You’re NeverFully Dressed Without A Smile. The line is, “Who cares what they’re wearing on Main Street or Savile Row?”
• The Row is also mentioned in the song The Jet Set Junta by The Monochrome Set, a satire of the Falklands War:

“Broom, broom, goes the armoured Cadillac through Montevideo
Rat-a-tat goes the sub-machine gun to restore the status quo
Snip, snip, go the tailor’s scissors on the suit in Saville Row”

• The Japanese band GLAY has a song titled Savile Row～サヴィル ロウ3番地～ (№3 Savile Row) about traveling to London. The title presumably was decided on because the writer, the band’s leader Takuro, is a well known Beatles fanatic.
• Savile Row is mentioned in The Kinks song End of the Season.
• Savile Row is mentioned in Elton John’s 2006 song Tinderbox.
• Saville Row appears in the Monopoly Here and Now edition, a mis-spelling of the correct name.
• The Row is mentioned in the television series The West Wing following the death of character Leo McGarry. Staff members share fond memories of Leo in the episode ‘Requiem’, during which it is remarked that Leo’s suits must have cost something equal to the national space budget. Charlie informs the group that Leo’s suits all came from Savile Row. In a much earlier episode of the series, the Russian ambassador also remarks on the fine quality of Leo’s wardrobe, and notes that he must be having all of his suits custom made.
• The Row is mentioned in the James Bond movie Dr. No. Ian Fleming  patronised a number of tailors on the Row.
• The Row is mentioned in the episode 05x10 of the sitcom Frasier.
• The Row is referenced in the 2001 film “The Tailor of Panama”.

*Courtesy of Wikipedia

• Orders and Returns
• Our Products
• Terms & Conditions
• Company Information
• Contact Us
• Press