Though James Bond may be best known for his more formal attire, sport shirts are an indispensable part of his wardrobe. This article focuses on his long-sleeve sport shirts, which he often wears much differently from the short-sleeve variety in a wider variety of ways. Long-sleeve sport shirts are some of the most versatile items a man can have. But what differentiates a sport shirt from a formal shirt (also known as a dress shirt in the US)?
This article will be focusing on sport shirts that aren’t shirt-jackets or polos, which are sporty garments but would otherwise be worn differently from sport shirts. This is not a complete guide to every long-sleeve sport shirt that Bond wears in the series.
Fabric
There’s no fine line between a formal shirt — per the British name; what is called a dress shirt in US — and a sport shirt, but it mostly has to do with the cloth.
The more texture a fabric has the sportier the shirt is. Oxford is the quintessential sport shirting, with its notable basketweave. Pinpoint oxford and royal oxford are dressier variations on Oxford, with finer weaves and a smoother finish that make them better for wearing with a suit. Most sports shirtings are seasonal, and oxford is a heavier cloth that is better in cooler weather, though it can still breathe well.
James Bond wears a light blue oxford shirt with his grey tweed sports coat in A View to a Kill. This is a versatile shirt that dresses up well with a tweed jacket or blazer or dresses down with a casual jacket or cardigan.
Heavy cotton twill is another sporty fabric that should be exclusively worn for cool weather. Finer twills make for excellent formal shirts, but the more noticeable the twill wale the sportier the shirt is. Twill does not breathe as well as plain-weave and basketweave fabrics.
Bond wears a cotton twill shirt with his tweed suit in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service as part of his disguise as Sir Hilary Bray. This shirt has a tattersall pattern, a multicoloured grid check that adds a level of sportiness of the shirt.
This shirt also has a brushed surface to give it a soft, comfortable nap, increasing the sportiness of the shirt.
Denim is a variant on twill, usually in blue and white, and is currently a trendy cloth for a sport shirting. Denim shirting is a lighter weight than for jeans and jackets. Bond wears a denim shirt in No Time to Die, nicely matching the relaxed nature of his corduroy suit.
For warm weather, linen is the most popular sport shirting. Its texture and propensity to wrinkle makes it a very sporty fabric. To soften the hand and to decrease wrinkling, linen is often mixed with cotton.
Sean Connery wears a pink shirt that is likely a linen and cotton blend in You Only Live Twice. It is made in the same style as his formal poplin shirts in the film with a spread collar and cocktail cuffs, but he flattens the collar out like a camp collar so it has sportier look in combination with the soft look of linen.
Chambray is another sporty summer shirting. It’s a plain-woven cotton cloth with a coloured warp and white filling yarns, more commonly in blue and white.
Bond is not a big fan of chambray, but he wears a chambray shirt in Never Say Never Again.
For an even more casual look, Bond on occasion wears knitted cotton jersey shirts, constructed like a shirt rather than a polo. Roger Moore was a fan of these, as they are very soft.
His black shirt in Moonraker with a half-zip placket is a notable example of Bond in a long-sleeve Jersey shirt. He also wears one in dark blue in For Your Eyes Only under his grey jumper. Other knitted cottons, such as pique, can also make excellent sport shirts.
Silk works well for sport shirts designed to be worn untucked. There’s something about the look of a silk shirt that makes it look more complete as a standalone piece compared to a shirt designed to be worn under a jacket. Silk blends are good for warm weather, as silk on its own can wear very warm.
Bond wears an untucked silk shirt in No Time to Die in retirement in Jamaica.
Colour and Pattern
Sport shirts can be made in any colour. Darker shirts are traditionally not formal shirts, but sport shirts are equally sporty no matter the colour.
Checks can also make a shirt sportier, so even a smooth cotton poplin can make up a sport shirt if it has a check. Larger checks are sportier than smaller checks and can be dressed down more easily.
The list of fabrics above is a better indicator of what makes a shirt sporty, since checks of all sizes can be worn as both formal and sporty shirts.
Bond rarely wears checked shirts, with only a few throughout 25 films. The tattersall shirt in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is Bond’s sportiest checked shirt. In GoldenEye he wears a very subtly checked blue shirt as a sport shirt with a navy blazer and under a navy jumper. This kind of shirt can be dressed up with a suit or dressed down in a variety of contexts.
Stripes are not as sporty as checks, but fancy stripe patterns can work well on sport shirts. A dark blue shirt with yellow stripes is suitably sporty with a tan linen suit in Die Another Day.
Printed shirt also tend to be sportier. Bond wears a printed shirt untucked on the beach in a very casual manner in Skyfall.
Styles
Though most of Bond’s sport shirts are made with a spread collar, there are a few uniquely sporty collar styles. The button-down collar, the hidden-button-down collar and one-piece collar (like a camp collar) are inherently sporty collars, even though the button-down collar can be dressed up on a poplin shirt. One-piece collars are more common on warm-weather sport shirts.
A long-sleeve sport shirt will have button cuffs and never double cuffs, which are too formal. Cocktail cuffs can work for sport shirts, as Connery shows in You Only Live Twice, though they are just as unusual on a sport shirt as they are on a formal shirt.
Sport shirt often have one or two breast pockets, but the presence or lack of a single open pocket does not make a shirt a sport shirt. A single flapped or buttoned breast pocket or two breast pockets can make any shirt a sport shirt.
Military-inspired safari-style shirts with two flapped breast pockets and shoulder straps are a more creative sporty style for warm weather.
Some sport shirts have a straight hem with vents at the side for wearing untucked. Wearing a shirt untucked is more casual than wearing a shirt tucked, but a straight hem gives an untucked shirt a more ‘finished’ look than one with curved tails designed for tucking. Bond wears a deep navy polyester with a straight hem in Casino Royale.
How to Wear a Sport Shirt
For the most part, long-sleeve sport shirts pair well with sports coats and sports suits, though they should be tucked in. When they have a two-piece collar they can usually be worn with a tie, though they always should look good without a tie.
Sport shirts can wear well under a jumper for cool weather. More formal shirts can also look perfectly fine under a jumper, but a sportier shirt is most at home here.
For those who work in a business-casual office, sport shirts in more conservative colours and patterns can often look more stylish than a formal white or light blue shirt that would traditionally be dressed up with a suit and tie. A formal shirt can often look incomplete or out of place without a suit and tie.
Ready-to-wear sport shirts are typically not sold with a sized collar, let alone a sized sleeve, which relegates them to more casual dress. However, there’s no reason why a sport shirt shouldn’t have the same attention to fit as a more formal shirt. As sport shirts are more commonly worn without a jacket than more formal shirts are, the fit of a sport shirt is even more important and is the perfect kind of shirt to have made by a bespoke shirtmaker.
Another great article. In terms of how to wear a sports shirt, what are your thoughts about rolling the sleeves? The first three Bonds avoid it, while the latter Bonds tend to do it – though I don’t think there’s a right or wrong for this one…
I roll my sleeves because my wife says it looks a lot better. I tend to agree with her.
I think sometimes a long sleeved shirt can look a little out of place on it’s own. The relaxed look that comes with rolling up the sleeves can make it look a little more casual, and more able to stand on its own. I don’t always do it, but on a warm day I like the relaxed look it conveys.
Matt,
Another great article and now that is getting warmer in the DC area sport shirts is something I have been thinking a lot about. So your article has helped narrow things down even more. Seems like fabric is the key.
I do have one quick question. Should a collar be worn inside a sweater or out side a sweater. I noticed in the pictures Brosnan has his collar out and Dalton wears his collar inside the sweater. Does Bond have a hard and fast rule about this. Seems like Bond goes either way.
I am asking because I recently purchased, from Mason and Son, the Connery Slazenger sweater and want to wear it properly. Great sweater by the way. I used golf a lot but then two elbow surgeries ended that pretty quickly. Still a great piece, however. Now if I can just track down the original Penfold golf balls I would be all set.
As always, thanks for the great articles!!!
The shirt collar can go either in or out of the sweater’s collar. There’s no ruling on this one, so figure out what works best for you.
I’ve got a few ‘popover’ shirts. (I dislike the nomenclature but it seems to be in the public arena now!) – they are a hybrid that lie somewhere between sports shirts and polo shirts on a formality continuum. I find them to be versatile for travel. They wear better under a blazer than a polo as the collars stand up better, and I usually recycle the blazer with a more formal shirt and tie for work later in the trip. Has Bond ever worn a popover? I can’t recall one.
My favourite sports shirt is a button down collar made in royal blue pique cotton – another hybrid between sport shirts and polos – from Kamakura. The warp and weft of the shirting are different colours so close-up there’s a bit of a textured two-tone effect, and the pique cotton means it doesn’t wrinkle, so it’s great for travel!
The black half-zip shirt in Moonraker is a popover shirt.
I have seen those shirts from Kamakura. They are wonderful!
I always liked the gingham check sport shirt in FRWL, and I also like the black sport shirt on MR as well.
That is interesting that Bond wears a denim shirt in NTTD. Will this be the first time a Bond wears a denim shirt? Also, do you think this attire looks better with or without the necktie
I think that is my favourite non-formal shirt as Bond isn’t in character as such it’s during his down time. He’s not trying to project any image and as a result looks even more the cooler and stylish for doing so.
This is purely my own opinion on the matter, but I love the tie with the suit, I love the shirt with the suit, I don’t like the shirt with the tie. Maybe it’s the relatively dark blue of the denim clashing with the dark tie, or the complete informality of the shirt being dressed up with the tie… I dunno. Something about it doesn’t look right to me.
I think he looks miles better once the tie has been lost, which I really think is a pity. With a light blue or off-white shirt the whole outfit would be a winner to me.
I bet Mr Bond never had to iron any of them. I can tell him that having been fortunate enough to try some top end shirts over the years they are absolute sods to iron. It takes ages to get them looking good. And linen shirts always look like an old sack within minutes if putting them on.
Mr Bond has the benefit of wardrobe hands to switch out his clothing and press it during takes!
Sports shirts are very popular at the moment, especially ones like Daniel Craig’s blue-grey example from Skyfall or the denim blue shirt button down collar shirt in NTTD. I personally think they look better dressed down with dark jeans or chinos and a casual jacket like a Harrington then with a suit or sports coat, though you do see sports shirt increasingly worn with suits to no great success. I still think the dark navy sports shirt and linen trousers in Casino Royale is a great casual look, not a huge fan of polyester on it’s own in a shirt, but we are not to know that when viewing the film.
I always thought of Brosnan and Craig as the sport shirt Bonds. But you are right. They’ve always been there.
Would a royal oxford fabric make for a good sport shirt with a button down collar and breast pocket especially in warm weather, or would it be considered too dressy?
Royal oxford works as a sport shirt, but it is dressier than regular oxford.
Thanks, and what about regular poplin fabrics with a button down collar and/or chest pockets? They’re the only shirt fabrics I’ve worn outside of pique knits that are both comfortable and breathable.
It’s been done, but I think that more casual shirts should have more casual fabrics. Royal oxford is more breathable than poplin.
I was just thinking, if you like poplin, get end-on-end. It’s the same kind of fabric, but the two-colour weave makes it look much better as a sports shirt.
It could work, but would look quite a bit different than the kind of standard oxford used in say, a Brooks Brothers shirt in the same style. There’s a sheen to it that just looks more expensive.
Thanks Matt. End on End sounds like my thing, only downside is they’re not available in white or ivory colors because of how End on End is woven.
Yes, it’s a pattern, so you can’t have it in a solid colour.
After further consideration, I’ve decided on my ideal warm weather sports shirt: a long sleeve cotton shirt with double button through chest pockets in white, lighter shades of blue, cream and maybe a light stone shade. Something very similar to this: https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/He0d0ed5e8ab84b99980a526ace412395I/Safari-Shirt-Men-Solid-White-blue-Men-s-Cuba-Collar-Double-Pocket-Shirt-Casual-Slim-Fit.jpg or this: https://bocatime.com/products/timeless-safari-shirt
I don’t know if a camp collar would work or if it’s more versatile as a short sleeve shirt.
My cold weather sports shirt would still be an OCBD in the classic style with white, light blue and cream.
Between a military-inspired safari-style shirt as you described and a single pocket shirt similar to what Daniel Craig wore in NTTD, which would you say is more versatile for warm weather?
Daniel Craig’s shirt is probably more versatile.
Two more questions on things you didn’t bring in the post: what style of button cuffs work best for sport shirts: rounded, squared or mitred? I personally think button down collars look best with the rounded cuffs as seen on OCBDs, but what about other styles like a one piece collar?
Second do you think warm weather sport shirts look better with a regular front placket or a french front?
Any button cuff style works for a sport shirt. For people who like to roll up their sleeves, a shorter cuff works better than a longer cuff. When I asked for a 3-button cuff on a sport shirt at Turnbull & Asser, they advised that it wouldn’t be good for rolling up, but I never roll up the sleeves of a nice shirt.
I think a front placket looks better on most shirts with a two-piece collar for symmetry, but that’s a matter of taste. Obviously shirt with a camp collar or another kind of one-piece collar, which are common for warm weather sport shirts, can’t have a placket.
One last observation I just thought of: How are shirts in a blend of not only cotton and linen but silk as well? To me it sounds like the ultimate warm weather shirt just as a wool/linen/silk blend sport coat seems to be the ultimate fir warm weather. Would it still be breathable with silk in it?
Silk looks great but doesn’t breathe as well. In a blend is still performs less than ideally and involves more care.
Got it thanks, this has been really helpful.