Since my titfer left me, it's found a new place to dwell...

Hatbreak Hotel: Graham King and... er.... another King celebrate at Sun Studios

This picture has all the elements that make for a great P40B signature shot. Note the historic location - the studio in Memphis where Elvis Presley recorded his first track. And note the efforts that Graham is making to create a new piece of history in the American heartland.

The shot is just one of a number taken on a semi-wild excursion by birthday fans Gabby, Tim, Graham and Jane around the southern states of the US. They've done such an incredible job that I thought they deserved their own web page. Tap your feet and hold on to your hats, as you take a whistlestop tour around Tennessee.

This titfer was last seen in Austin, Texas and is set to go wild very soon.

Location: Memphis, TN, United States of America
Date: 23rd July 08
Hat No: 14
Status: Semi Wild

I'm just wild about number two

My old friend Andy has a plan for titfer two. He's conducting an officially authorised experiment to see if he can turn it wild by abandoning it somewhere with a note. I know this isn't really how it's all supposed to work, but the 40 White Hats Project is designed to be fun and I'm not getting too uptight about all the rules and regs. If he makes a success of it, maybe other titfers could go wild in public places too. Place of abandonment is, at this stage, still unclear. I'll keep you posted on developments.

To hat and to hold

Do you take this hat? Bride Dyanne and husband Mark share a touching titfer moment.

Something old, something new, something borrowed and something contemporary, stylish and branded with the logo of a major forthcoming birthday event.

We have to wonder whether Dyanne and Mark will set a trend for weddings around the UK and perhaps beyond. Veils are so yesterday. White titfers are the new black.

Titfer No 1 is unusual in that it's been photographed in the UK, took a trip to Italy and then returned to Blighty under the careful supervision of P40B fan Aliche. But the numero uno is about to go wild, folks, so watch this space.

Location: Unknown wedding party venue, UK
Date: 27th July 08
Hat No: 1
Status: Semi Wild

P40Blow-dry

This hairdresser's ain't big enough for the both of us: Brent swaps his ten-gallon hat for a branded P40B equivalent. Click to enlarge.

With this latest picture, it's difficult to tell whether we're entering a salon or a saloon. Brent - from Bar Hairdressing in Clerkenwell, London - plans to blast us with hot air, six-shooter style. Perched on his head is the four hat, which seems to be doing the rounds of this fashionable part of the British capital. But where the titfer will head next is by no means cut and dried. Reliable sources inform me that Bar is the place to go if you're looking for great hair. And they'll even throw in some drinks and a relaxing massage. Afterwards, I'm off to raduno, darling, for a drop of Pol Roger 1998.

Location: London, UK
Date: 25th July 08
Hat No: 4
Status: Semi Wild

23 goes wild!

Flight of fancy: Aussie pilot Brady gives a thumbs up for the first hat to go officially 'wild'. Click to enlarge.

Every titfer secretly hopes to become a star. The truth, however (with apologies to the Bard) is that some hats are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon 'em.

Number 23 has many claims to fame. It's currently the piece of branded headgear to have changed hands the most times. It was the first hat to send a picture of itself from a non-European location. And now it's calling up Norris McWhirter once again with the first genuinely 'wild' shot.

For new readers, I better clarify what I mean by wild. Put simply, it's a status applied to hats that are in the hands of people the original recipient doesn't know. Claire and Rob (see previous post) met Brady and his girlfriend Leasa at a cookery course in Vietnam. And it's that chance meeting which saw the hat wing its way to Hong Kong - the former UK territory which is now a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China.

I've asked Brady to see if he can find a way of continuing this great success story. But I can go to sleep tonight with a smile on my face. Because I've been wished happy birthday by a complete stranger on the other side of the world. And that's what the whole P40B phenomenon is all about.

Location: Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China
Date: 24th July 08
Hat No: 23
Status: Wild

First titfer to fly long-haul

Here comes the bride: a P40B hat is spotted at a traditional temple in Ho Chi Minh City. Click to enlarge.

Although I know there are already quite a few titfers outside Europe (see the Hatlas), we've yet to receive the photographic evidence. The P40B Award for the first picture from the wider world therefore goes to two newlyweds, Rob and Claire. Although they're honeymooning in Asia, they've still found time to email me from the Mekong Delta, which I'm sure we'd all agree is above and beyond the call of duty. By my reckoning, temperatures are likely to be well into the nineties in Vietnam at this time of year, so the branded headgear may well be helping to keep the bride and groom cool. Entering completely into the spirit of this signature P40B project, Claire and Rob passed hat 23 to someone they met on their travels. More on this in the next post. For the moment, it's a case of going, going, Saigon.

Location: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Date: 24th July 08
Hat No: 23
Status: Semi Wild

Birthday power at the Leaning Tower

Birthday fan Aliche recently took her extended family to Italy. She returned with what we can safely say are the only shots of Pisa ever to feature P40B branded headgear. The muscular arm belongs to boyf Chopkins, but I think he must be standing at some kind of funny angle, as the unusual tower behind him appears to be a little lopsided.