It'd be dandy if I was crowned best dressed

Published on 05/08/2010 16:26

AS fashion models go, they don't come more unlikely than Michael Munro-Dunn.

Yet the 64-year-old from Stockbridge has been unexpectedly plunged into the limelight after being spotted by a style scout while out walking in the city centre.

Mr Munro-Dunn has now, much to his surprise, been shortlisted as one of 12 finalists in Esquire magazine's search for Britain's Best Dressed Real Man.

He said: "One morning I was walking down Castle Street, minding my own business, going for a cup of coffee and a read of the paper, and this chap came running up behind me and said 'Excuse me, sir'. He was draped in cameras and said he was from Esquire magazine and they were travelling round the country looking for the best dressed men.

"I knew nothing about Esquire magazine at all and he said 'Would you mind if I took a few photographs?'.

"I said 'I don't mind, but I'm not going to stand and pose,' and of course half an hour later that's what I was doing. All these people were stopping and looking - I thought dear, dear, this is not me."

He forgot all about the incident until last month, when he received a telephone call from the lifestyle mag.

He had beaten hundreds of entrants from around the UK to be shortlisted by judges, who said they were looking for men with "flair, individuality, an understanding of the basic rules of menswear, a sense of how to put a look together, and who could take an outfit and make it their own".

His photograph appears in the September edition of the magazine, and he is in the running to win prizes including 30,000 of designer clothes from Harrods, a designer watch, and a slot on the cover of the October issue.

He might be surprised by the attention, but Mr Munro-Dunn does admit that he takes great care over his appearance and is happy to fly the flag for snappy dressing

He said: "Since I retired and came home from India I'm absolutely appalled at just how scruffy we've all become and I feel that I need to try and maintain standards.

"I come from an old Army family and I remember my father saying 'Standards, my dear boy, standards'."

HERE'S HOW IT's MUNRO-DUNN

1. Be yourself, don't follow the herd: "People should look to be individual and not follow the high street track. A lot of people follow the high street fashions thinking that's the way it is, and it's really not."

2. Don't be afraid to splash out on clothes and shoes that will last: "People's spending power today does vary tremendously and good stuff is not cheap, but all the latest fashions are designed to last for one season and then it gets thrown away. Good style never goes out of fashion."

3. And finally: "Blokes - for God's sake, put that bloody tie back on."