Top image: Ari, Nina and Pam, Brixton Academy (1992) by Derek Ridgers

Christmas is barreling towards us like a derailed freight train and your headspace feels about as cool and collected as a turkey at 200 celsius. We feel you. But allow us to step in and save you some vital hours in the Christmas shopping rush (sharpen those elbows) via our Xmas wish lists lovingly curated by some of our favourite people.

From peacocking club kids to fetishist Soho through the raucous skinhead movement, think of a British subcultural movement post-1970s and, more often than not, Derek Ridgers‘ seminal photographs will front the image in your mind.

“Towards the end of 1976, punk happened and the audience became as photogenic as the bands, in some cases more so,” Ridgers told us. “So I swung my camera away from the stage and started to photograph the punks too.” Getting in the mix with crowds at clubs like Billy’s, The Roxy and Taboo in the 70s and 80s, Ridgers captured fleeting moments of youthful energy, effervescence and escapism. These images have since been name-checked by everyone from designers to musicians, photographers and artists.

Selecting his ideal Christmas gifts, here Ridgers puts together a very covetable selection of cultural gems and home comforts. Think Anne Pigalle’s erotic paintings, Underground brothel creepers and a hand-made knife – for cooking purposes, obviously.

Anything from the Creed Taylor International back catalogue
“I’m probably the worst person to ask to write any sort of a gift guide because, at my age, the obvious question to ask is – if you haven’t got it by now, why not? I was an obsessive vinyl record collector for many years but it got to the stage, in the late 90s, where there just wasn’t very much that I wanted that I didn’t already have.  

Having said that, I loved virtually everything ever released by the great jazz label Creed Taylor International and there are plenty of those I don’t own yet. Every release came in a really beautifully photographed, heavy duty cardboard, gatefold sleeve. Maybe it’s just baby-boomer nostalgia but this stuff sounds so different on vinyl.

The label itself is long dead but a lot of the covers were shot by the late, great Pete Turner.”

An Owen Bush hand-made knife
“I’ve never been a particularly violent man but ever since I saw the silent BBC documentary about Owen Bush, I’ve hankered after one of his hand-made knives. Apparently they frown on people using them to settle arguments but they’re dual purpose – you can use them in the kitchen as well.”

Mr Perfect soap by The Somerset Toiletry Co.
“A female friend recently bought me some Mr Perfect soap from the Somerset Toiletry Company. I wasn’t quite sure what she was trying to say. Was it a compliment or exactly the opposite? Either way, it’s so strongly scented that you can now smell me coming from several streets away.”

Redken for men silver charge shampoo
“A male groomer gave me a bottle of this on a shoot. It’s wonderful. My previously grey and lifeless hair is now grey and lifeless but with a slight purple tinge. Be careful though, don’t leave it on too long. Otherwise you’ll come out of the bathroom looking like Barbara Cartland.”

A handmade kofia 
“Of course, if things do go a bit tits up in that department, you can always cover it up with a Norman Parkinson style kofia. I’ve always hankered after one. The only English people who ever seem to wear them are either artists or out of work actors. And this is very much the look I’m going for.”

Mat de Misaine duffle coat
“I ran into a group of skinheads in an East End pub once and they told me that they knew I was a leftie as soon as I walked in. Apparently it was the “glasses, beard and duffel coat” that gave me away. Mind you, compared to them, Nigel Farage would have seemed like a liberal, so I took it as a compliment. 

But I’ve always loved a duffle coat. The heavier and more shapeless the better. It’ll make you feel like you’re Gregory Peck in The Guns Of Navarone.”

Anne Pigalle painting
If money were no object, I would love one of Anne Pigalle’s tiny erotic paintings. Her style sits somewhere between Willem de Kooning and Ronnie Kray. Anne is a real one-off. I first met her when I shot her for The Face magazine, around 1981. She still flies the flag for the arty Soho bohemia of the past. She’s about the only surviving member.”

A pair of fine silver leather Underground brothel creepers
“Talking of Soho, whenever I walk past the Underground shop in Berwick Street, Soho, I gaze longingly at their wonderful brothel creepers. I’d love a pair, particularly in fine silver leather. Although I could never actually wear them. My family would think I’d gone mad. 

Even the name ‘brothel creepers’ makes it sound like one’s life would instantly become more interesting. Sadly I don’t think there are any brothels left in Soho nowadays. Are there? I’m asking for a friend?”

‘To Dear Harry Boy’ by Sue Smallwood
“Ever since I was in my mid-teens I’ve collected postcards and every one of them comes with an untold story. To Dear Harry Boy by designer Sue Smallwood is the story is of a British cable joiner working his way around the subcontinent, through a series of postcards sent to his young son.  It’s an amazing document from the past that would have now been lost forever had it not been for this book.” 

Nikon F camera
“I already have several, almost mint examples of the Nikon F camera but IMHO one can never have too many. You still can pick very good examples, in used camera stores, for less than £200.

It’s such a beautiful object. Iconic is a much overused word these days but it certainly fits this camera.  When it first came out in 1959 it was the finest and most technologically advanced 35mm camera ever made. It was the camera most closely identified with the recording of the Vietnam War. Fortunately, since it was built like a tank.    

Anyone can pose with a little Leica but you’ll need real neck muscles with a couple of these babies around your neck. But… you’ll look like a real photographer.”

Derek’s book In the Eighties: Portraits From Another Time is available now here.