My mac took me to the Andes and the Amazon

Marion Morrison, 79, lives in suffolk with her husband. she bought her white PVC mac in 1966.

I BOUGHT this mac at Selfridges, just before my husband, Tony, and I set off for South America, where we were filming travel and wildlife documentaries for TV.

I can’t remember what it cost, but it wouldn’t have been a bomb, because I didn’t earn enough to splash out on fashion.

The idea was to have one set of smart gear to wear while we were out there — to impress people and look the part. This was my smart overcoat, and I adored it.

This photograph was taken outside our family home and, at the bottom of it, my father has written: ‘Our Marion looking posh.’

I suppose it was quite posh — I grew up in rural Suffolk, and I’m not sure Mary Quant had reached the countryside by then.

Her designs were shorter and freer than other clothes and, boy, did they make a statement.

We’d grown up wearing drab school uniforms, so this was a breath of fresh air.

Everyone wanted to be a part of it and, if you couldn’t afford Mary Quant outfits, you’d make them from patterns in magazines.

The mac may not have been the most practical thing for three-anda-half years on the road, but it made me feel great — whether 1,200 ft above sea level in the Andes or in the sweltering depths of the Amazon rainforest.

Unfortunately, having been packed and unpacked so many times during our trip, by the time I got home it was creased and brittle.