The 80's Revival

In the spirit of the 80's revival, GIRL recognises many of you may not have experienced the essence of the most tasteless era ever, first hand. Sit back, and allow us to be your guides for a trip down memory lane. We'll show you which 80's videos should be rented so you can spot the originals. Fasten your seat belt; it's a helluva ride.

First stop, Xanadu - the roller rink film starring Olivia Newton John. Xanadu is clearly responsible for the icky teeny-weeny terry toweling / satin side split racing shorts. More recently the shorts have resurfaced in videos for Khelis' Good stuff and Maya's Can you feel it?

Pretty in Pink / The Breakfast Club / Sixteen Candles - 80's teen queen Molly Ringwald is the equivalent of Mena Suvari, Tara Reid and Kirsten Dunst. Molly starred in the trifecta of teen angst films, spawning a whole new genre and paving the way for films such as Clueless and American Pie.

Fame and Flashdance - like the style in Geri Halliwell's video clip, It's Raining Men! She's taken her inspiration from the hit TV series Fame and the film Flashdance, centered on performers who are hungry for...fame, of course. Big Brother's Jemma is also fan of Flashdance and Fame fashion, her off the shoulder tops originated here!

Jane Fonda workout tapes - this woman is responsible for the whole leotard over color-coordinated leggings and worn with legwarmers disaster, also seen in Geri's It's Raining Men clip. Avoid at all costs. Moving along....

Madonna originally wore the black and white striped top that's found its way into Portmans at present, in her Papa Don't Preach video clip.

The Rubik's Cube revived in the film Dude, Where's My Car?, was the massive 80's fad that drove millions mad.

Multiple / wide / low slung belts were all an 80's fashion fixture. Made popular by The Bangles in Walk like an Egyptian.

Rainbow striped scarves and tops. You're not going to like this one. Before Robin Williams hit the big time, he was the star of Mork and Mindy, portraying a loveable alien. Rainbow scarves, jumpers and braces can be traced to here.

Big gold hoop earrings now Jennifer Lopez's signature accessory, these were originally favored by the entire cast of Dallas and Dynasty.

Crimped and teased bed hair - Madonna has a lot to answer for. The Material Girl teased, crimped and let her re-growth run free in Like a Virgin and Holiday.

Leather pants - most prominent in Michael Jackson's Thriller video. This was pre-surgery when he still rocked our worlds.

You can thank Cyndi Lauper for Patterned and fishnet tights, in which she happily bopped about in the video for Girls Just Wanna have Fun.

Now you know who's responsible, look them up and ensure whichever trend you follow is with more taste than the original...now, where did I put my lace fingerless gloves?

- Rachael