Talent has a habit of popping up in the most unlikely of circumstances.
From a dairy farm in Fraserburgh emerged one of the most innovative international fashion designers of the late twentieth century, William Elphinstone Gibb, better known as Bill.
The family joke was that Bill was always more interested in drawing women’s dresses than milking cows.
Fortunately, his talent was spotted early, and he was awarded a scholarship to attend the Royal College of Art in London.
He left before completing his degree course to start his own business and blaze his own trail, a trail which would include dressing glitterati such as included 1960s supermodel Twiggy, actress Elizabeth Taylor and Bianca Jagger.
Here he is in 1967 as a student, already beginning to make his name.
He’s dressing the model Wende Dicker in a Thai silk evening dress with matching lace and silk ribbon at the Hansom Cab Inn in Earl’s Court.
The humble, gentle man never forgot his Broch roots, and brought his style to north-east catwalks more than once.
Bill Gibb’s Unforgettable show in Cults
Fifty years ago this month, November 27, 1972, he laid on an unforgettable show in the Royal Darroch Hotel in Cults, Aberdeen.
Where other designers were emphasising simple and structured forms, Bill created a flowing Boho chic look still popular today.
This design epitomises Gibb’s love of diaphanous layering, complete with platform shoes, of course, de rigueur in 1972.
Here he is at the Cults show dressing one of his models, Priscilla.
This gown was made of white Italian jersey with generous flowing sleeves.
It had a fake fur-trimmed waistcoat and a large cat motif on the skirt.
Horizontally striped black-and-white tights are worn below it to complete the zany look.
Bill himself was a natty dresser, seen here sporting black-and-white tweed Oxford bags, a pinky orange shirt and a black-and-red tank top.
Cults had never seen anything like Bill Gibb
Bill was never afraid to mix things up.
How about these football-stripe tights and platform clogs set against a flowing dress with a naval motif?
Cults had never seen anything like it.
No fabric, colour or texture was out of bounds to Bill, and he loved to put startling combinations together.
Here pink Italian satin and leather trimmings are used on the jacket and overblouse. Black Lurex moves with the model Cathy to reveal gold and silver inverted pleats in the skirt.
Here Bill uses extreme layers and trimmings for dramatic effect.
It’s a pity these aren’t in colour—were you there, and did you take your own photos?
We’d love to see them.
Members of Bill’s family were there that night including (left to right) grandmother Evelyn Reid, mother Jessie Gibb, grandfather William Reid, father George Gibb and sister Pat Davidson.
Would it be fair to say that the men look a little shell-shocked?
The models that night, seen behind the family, sported names like Kellie, Carina, Ika, Priscilla and Kathy.
Bill’s publicist, business partner and friend Kate Franklin was also there.
Timeless work
Bill’s work remains timeless and this 1970 outfit would be bang on trend today, all in shades of brown—a voile shirt, thick-knit sleeveless pullover, tartan worsted skirt with checkered tweed inset, patterned tights.
It’s worn by young actress Lesley Paterson, photographed by Patrick Lichfield in 1970 for Vogue magazine.
Bill died in 1988 of bowel cancer aged 44.
His creations now sell for hundreds, if not thousands in the vintage market, and neither the Fraserburgh loon, nor his creations, will be forgotten by the fashion world for years to come.
Conversation