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T-shirt tales

Matt Jukes

25 Sep 2022 • 5 min read

My wardrobes have been seriously creaking under the weight of my abundance of t-shirts so I decided to do a bit of an audit today and try and made a little space. The final count was 78 currently on-site - another nine I think are out for laundry. This seems like a lot. I only put 22 in the donate/get rid of pile so Marie Kondo I am not. I suspect I need to grit my teeth and get a bit more cut throat.

Anyway - seeing them all like this brought back some nice memories so I thought I'd document them a bit.

Flash (DC superhero) t-shirt — Purchased in a Walmart in Arizona on my TrekAmerica road-trip after the worst night of my life camping in Monument Valley - I bought all clean clothes and toiletries and washed in the toilets as I felt so grubby!

Fuck Boris t-shirt by Ben Eine — Wore this on the last in-person Notbinary Christmas do - forget I was wearing it on the train home to Bristol though (alcohol was a factor) and got into a massive row about it with a bunch of drunk blokes in First Class - staff had to move me to another carriage. Still reckon I could have taken them (I couldn't!)

T-shirt saying 'Stay Focused' in out of focus text — Got stopped crossing the street in Vancouver by some random bloke as he and his girlfriend were laughing so hard at the t-shirt and they wanted a pic.

Statue of Liberty in graffiti t-shirt from Beyond the Streets exhibition — Brooklyn, NYC 2019 - stayed at the TWA hotel at JFK - as seen in Catch Me if You Can - which is amazing but not exactly convenient for anywhere but JFK. Was there for this exhibition - Beyond the Streets - but trip was caught short as I had to rush back to hotel to hit send on a bid as nobody else had the password. Amazing exhibition though and I went back the next day.

Mal from Firefly t-shirt saying 'I Shoot First' — Always reminds me of going to the premier of Serenity at the Edinburgh Film Festival with Sara and Al. All the cast and Joss Whedon were there and it was very cool. This tee actually came later.

LA Lakers t-shirt in yellow/gold — Went to New Zealand for a week to speak at a couple of events - organised by the lovely Delib folk - on the way back I'd already been up for 20 hours before we got to LA and somebody had spilled a drink on me so I bought this t-shirt during the layover to change into as it was the only one big enough. I am not a Lakers fan but I like having a splash of colour in my collection!

Andy Warhol self portrait t-shirt — Warhol t-shirt from MoMA in San Francisco - somebody accused me of being vain by having my self portrait on my tee in London - still laugh about it every time I wear this!

A friend from uni (which was a long time ago) started this company a couple of years ago and I bought a LOT in the early days - this is my fave though.

Jean-Michel Basquiat t-shirt from 2017 Barbican exhibition — This is from the Jean-Michel Basquiat exhibition at the Barbican - it was a brilliant exhibition but it also marks the end of a difficult time. I was struggling at mySociety, had been diagnosed with diabetes and was generally struggling. I tried three or four times to get to the show and in the end it wasn't until I quit mySociety that I managed to make myself go and then things started to turn around.

Multi coloured lines of spray paint t-shirt from Wyndham Walls — Recent tee from Wyndham Walls in Miami this Spring. Probably one of my favourite places I've ever visited.

1980s FILA s-shirt — Part of my fancy dress costume from Christmas 2018 - I went as Mike D from the Beasties circa Fight for Your Right. Ended up so drunk I couldn't work the lift at CitizenM and ended up just going up and down until a staff member saved me and got me to my room!

The team at Jisc did this for me when I went back in 2009 - remains a treasured possession. My first spell at Jisc was - alongside ONS - the best time of my career for a bunch of reasons.

St Pauls Carnival 50th Anniversary t-shirt by Inkie — Honestly I remember very little of getting this t-shirt. it was the same day as the England QF at the World Cup and it was a beautiful day. I remember going to Carnival early for a bit, meeting some friends for the game, drinking wine and then waking up the next day wearing this t-shirt and not the tee I went out in :D

AFC Richmond - Roy Kent. Up the Greyhounds!

Dismaland by Banksy t-shirt in drab green — Just a reminder of a brilliant event undertaken with good friends at the height of Banksy hype! Was a great icebreaker in Portland as well weirdly - the only time I've ever worn it out and about (I've never been slim enough since!)

Ok, Ok, What's Next? (West Wing) t-shirt — Until very, very recently the only podcast I had ever listened to was West Wing Weekly and this is their merch. I just re-watched WW (again). Sometimes you just need a bit of fantasy to block out the reality.

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