It’s not hard to remember a time when wide-leg trousers were considered one of those beyond-the-pale pieces that fashion designers periodically tried to foist on sceptical menfolk, perhaps out of boredom, or “for banter”.

Sure, wide-leg trousers made an impact on the runway. Okay, so they created a striking silhouette. And yes, they had swagger. But off the runway? They were an unacceptable breach of breeches conduct. Sheer pantaloon-acy, to be given an equally wide berth.

But as you perform your umpteenth series of pulse squats to squeeze into your skinny-fit jeans, or dislocate your ankle to get your foot through that drainpipe leg opening, do you ever stop to think that there might be another way? That it might be time to broaden your horizons?

Menswear’s brains trust certainly thinks there’s room for a roomier trouser style. Many of today’s biggest trends prefer a wider leg: street-friendly skatewear, pleated mid-century styles and voluminous tailoring are all generous and flattering below the belt.

The Rise Of Wide-Leg Trousers

Revolutionary though they may seem, wide-leg trousers are not exactly a novel concept. ‘Oxford bags’ as they became known date back to the 1920s, when stunting undergrads at the eponymous university wore trousers with hems of up to 40 inches in circumference – and looked like dons. Frank Sinatra did wide-leg trousers his way in the 1950s, as did Marlon Brando. And David Bowie did frankly whatever the hell he wanted in the 1970s – which included wide-leg trousers.

“Yes, but Bowie was a sartorial extraterrestrial,” you cry. True, but even for us style earthlings, wide-leg trousers are more wearable than you probably imagine. They are undoubtedly a statement – but that means you don’t really need to try that hard.

Thankfully, fashion is cyclical, and wide-leg trousers are getting another long-overdue play. After years of spray-on oppression, high-end fashion houses and streetwear labels alike are freeing men from their stonewash straightjacket. And crucially, dissenting designers challenging the constricting doctrine are practising what they preach by wearing them, proving that they look unusually good in real life too.