How all men can look stylish in a utility jacket like Pierce Brosnan

Happy coat season to those who celebrate! While a classic overcoat is a staple in any man’s wardrobe, this year there’s another style to master and no one modelled it better than Pierce Brosnan who recently took to social media to post a picture from the set of his new film Cliffhanger (a remake of Sylvester Stallone’s 1993 classic) wearing a sturdy navy and emerald green checked overshirt accessorised, bucolically, with a baby goat.

There are several variations of the jacket du jour, but they all combine function and utility: chore jackets, hunting coats, and waterproof shells pervade created in shearling, canvas, corduroy, and serious hardware, with big collars that can be upturned against the wind.

But the new trend for utility-wear isn’t just about honest, hard-wearing garb. There’s a modernity to it, too. Barbour has recently launched a slew of cool collaborations, and a series of Europe’s foremost luxury brands have taken farmhouse-wardrobe staples and adapted them for the discerning 1 per cent. Utility outerwear has found its way to the high street, too, where a series of inclusively-priced pieces are selling like hot cakes.

London-based American designer Carter Young believes the trend can be pegged to macroeconomics. By adopting the trend, he believes we can “consume new products in a way that doesn’t feel ostentatious when there’s been a global economic downturn and political uncertainty… [it’s a kind of] blue-collar cosplay, but you still get to participate in fashion,” he says, with admitted cynicism.

“‘Utility’ is a word we’ve used [in menswear] for a long time,” says brand consultant and stylist Olie Arnold, “it can be anything from Barbour to Prada, and everything in between.” But where “utility clothing” was once what we called garments “designed to allow people to do a [labour intensive] job,” he adds, the phrase is now something of a catch-all for anything pocketed, warm and roomy.

Whatever its genesis, the menswear market is currently awash with good go-anywhere garb – here’s a breakdown of the key new styles.

The Updated Hunter  

A fusion of the classic American hunting jacket and a traditional fly-fishing jacket, the new wave of blousons are cut short and wide in the body, and equipped with tall collars, roomy pockets and handy buckles. Uniqlo’s brilliant “Utility Blouson” has proven hugely popular, and is a snip at just under £70, but there are more considered versions available from the likes of Korean brand, Frizmworks, and American cult label, Manresa. And of course, there’s always Barbour’s brilliant Spey jacket.

Utility Short Blouson, £69.90, Uniqlo  

Quilted Heritage Hunting Jacket, £295, Frizmworks 

The Bittner Coat, £219, Manresa

Spey Slim Waxed Jacket, £279, Barbour

Luxurious Utility

The notion that function and fortitude come at the cost of form has been challenged by the likes of Hermés, Prada and The Row, which have all unveiled luxurious takes on simple, hardwearing staples recently. Though you may not want to risk them on a country walk, or even out of the house. Fendi’s latest range of waxed jackets, which feature four front pockets and a corduroy collar, ring-up just north of £3000. But if that seems a bit steep for a scruffy throw-on, consider the brilliant wax jacket at Drake’s, which is a step or two up from the high street.

Utility Jacket, £4,915, Hermés 

Wool blend jacket, £5,300, Prada

Frank Jacket in Cotton, £1,710, The Row

Blouson Jacket, £3000, Fendi 

Green Waxed Coverall Jacket, £695, Drake’s 

The New Donkey Jacket

Last year, the menswear-sphere went mad for a specific wool jacket worn by Jeremy Allen White in The Bear. The checked version of the jacket, by Swedish brand NN07, is often sold out (though other colours are available), but there are plenty more to consider. Brosnan’s sturdy green check number looks to be by Barbour, while British designer Oliver Spencer has the Arlington bomber jacket, which looks especially good with a teeny beanie, pleated trousers and work boots.

Gael Wool Jacket, £430, NN07

Chapter Check Overshirt, £129, Barbour

Arlington Bomber Jacket, £449, Oliver Spence

The Techy Adventurer

The trend for utility is not confined to heritage workwear alone. Future thinking British brand Vollebak, for example, comes at it from a mind boggling angle, offering, amongst other designs, its “indestructible” utility jacket. Waterproof and fleece lined, it is cut from Dyneema, which claims to be 15-times stronger than steel.

Elsewhere, heritage outdoor brand Berghaus has updated a series of archive pieces with modern mountain-ready garment technology, and slick running brand Soar launched a waterproof knee-length mac designed for top-spec, foul weather protection, on the hoof (£495, soarrunning.com).

Fleece-lined Jacket, £695, Vollebak

Unisex Trango Gore-Tex Waterproof Jacket, £400, Berghaus

ProtoLab Rainmac, £495, Soarrunning

The Trusty Pea Coat

The classic, double-breasted wool pea coat has never and will never go out of style, as demonstrated this week by Bruce Springsteen, who was seen sporting a charmingly weathered red check number on the set of his biopic, Deliver Me From Nowhere. You could find something similar at Ralph Lauren, or at heritage outdoor brand, Filson.

However the humble pea coat has also been updated by a series of brands. Carter Young took inspiration from Paul Newman in 1974’s Towering Inferno to create his pea coat/ fireman’s coat hybrid, while British brand Connolly has reframed the classic boxy shape in a longer, chunky corduroy form.

Shearling-Collar Plaid Wool Ranch Coat, £1,399, Ralph Lauren

Mackinaw Wool Cruiser Jacket, £730, Filson

Newman Peacoat, £595, Carter Young

Navy Oversized Martingale, £1,200, Connolly

The Timeless Classics

And for those that prefer timelessness over trend, there are a series of mainstays that can never be overlooked. Carhartt’s brilliant Detroit jacket in ‘duck’ canvas is a design classic, but if you want true utility, you’ll buy it from the brand’s workwear department, rather than WIP, its trendier sub-brand. Belstaff’s belted Trailmaster was first released in 1948, and has remained a burly staple ever since, and Barbour’s Bedale is still unrivalled in the rural-style stakes, especially if it’s seen a good few winters.

Relaxed Fit Duck Blanket Lined Detroit Jacket, £143.99, Carhartt

Trialmaster jacket, £495, Belstaff

Bedale Waxed Jacket, £279, Barbour

After all, everyone can tell if your cool, hard wearing jacket hasn’t been worn very hard at all.