The end of the 80's brought recession and poverty to many. But one kid at our school had it worse than most.

Our very first PE lesson at secondary school. 35 kids crammed in the changing rooms as our new PE teacher asked Stuart why he hadn't put his trainers on.
He explained that his parents couldn't afford any, and then produced from his bag a pair of red shiny wellies cut off at ankle height. These were to be his trainers.
To top it off, he later started cycling to school on his mum's brown Raleigh Shopper, wearing the same red ankle boots, because they couldn’t afford to buy him a bike either.
We felt sorry for the kid. But not sorry enough not to take the piss.