Why some men keep wearing jeans even in a heatwave

Many people dress as lightly as possible for an extreme heatwave, but some men still pull on their favourite jeans. This week, as temperatures in the UK rose sharply, Andy Burnham stuck to his tried-and-tested “cool dad” combination of dark jeans with a dark blue (not black, as he pointed out to Kemi Badenoch) T-shirt as he went to be sworn in as MP for Makerfield.

At Paris men’s fashion week, brands handed out umbrellas and iced towels, yet the front rows remained peppered with jeans. Dior moved its show from an afternoon slot to early morning to avoid the heat, but designer Jonathan Anderson still took his post-show bow in vintage Levi’s jeans and Salomon trainers on France’s hottest day on record.

On the high street, John Lewis reported sales of Burnham-esque indigo jeans from Nudie were up 3% this week, searches for Carhartt jeans were up 100% week on week while straight fit Edwin jeans were up 200% compared to last week. Commentators offer different explanations.

jeans, heatwave, andy burnham, makerfield, paris fashion, dior, jonathan anderson, levi's, john lewis, carhartt