Jordan (Pamela Rooke)
Encyclopedia
Jordan is a model and actress noted for her work with Vivienne Westwood
and the SEX boutique
in the Kings Road
area of London
in the mid-1970s, and for being a fixture at many of the early Sex Pistols
performances. Her style and fashion sense—a bleached platinum-blonde bouffant
hairdo with dark raccoon-like eye make-up—made her a highly visible icon of the London punk subculture
. Along with Johnny Rotten, Soo Catwoman
and Siouxsie Sioux
, she is credited with creating the W10 London punk look.
Taking the single name Jordan as her punk sobriquet
, Rooke commuted daily to London from the south coast. She recalled that her punk image caused problems for her:
In the late 1970s, she served as an early manager for Adam and the Ants
. She recorded the track "Lou" (about Lou Reed
) as a guest lead vocalist with the band for BBC Radio 1
DJ John Peel
's Peel Sessions and often performed the song live with them from mid-1977 up to May 1978 when she left the band.
She made a cameo appearance in Derek Jarman
's debut film Sebastiane
, and played the lead role in his follow-up film Jubilee as the punk "anti-historian" Amyl Nitrite. She can also be seen in Julien Temple
's The Great Rock and Roll Swindle wearing an "only anarchists are pretty" t-shirt and appearing on stage with the Sex Pistols during their first live television performance of "Anarchy in the U.K.
" in August 1976.
Today, Pamela Rooke works as a veterinary nurse and breeds Burmese cats.
Vivienne Westwood
Dame Vivienne Westwood, DBE, RDI is a British fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream.-Early life:...
and the SEX boutique
SEX (boutique)
SEX was a boutique run by Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood at 430 King's Road, London between 1974 and 1976. It specialized in clothing that defined the look of the punk movement.-History:...
in the Kings Road
Kings Road
King's Road or Kings Road, known popularly as The King's Road or The KR, is a major, well-known street stretching through Chelsea and Fulham, both in west London, England...
area of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in the mid-1970s, and for being a fixture at many of the early Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
performances. Her style and fashion sense—a bleached platinum-blonde bouffant
Bouffant
A bouffant is a type of hairstyle characterized by hair piled high on the head and hanging down on the sides.-History:The bouffant was a mainstream hairstyle in the mid-to-late 18th century in western Europe. It was thought to be created for Marie Antoinette, as she had relatively thin hair and...
hairdo with dark raccoon-like eye make-up—made her a highly visible icon of the London punk subculture
Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...
. Along with Johnny Rotten, Soo Catwoman
Soo Catwoman
Soo Lucas, better known as Soo Catwoman , is an icon of the London punk subculture that sprang up around the mid-1970s.-History:...
and Siouxsie Sioux
Siouxsie Sioux
Siouxsie Sioux is an English singer-songwriter. She is best known as the lead singer of the critically acclaimed rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees and of its splinter group The Creatures . The Banshees produced eleven studio albums and a string of hit singles including "Hong Kong Garden",...
, she is credited with creating the W10 London punk look.
Taking the single name Jordan as her punk sobriquet
Sobriquet
A sobriquet is a nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another. It is usually a familiar name, distinct from a pseudonym assumed as a disguise, but a nickname which is familiar enough such that it can be used in place of a real name without the need of explanation...
, Rooke commuted daily to London from the south coast. She recalled that her punk image caused problems for her:
I commuted for about two years. I had some real bad dos on the train. I had tourists trying to pay me for my photo…worse than that, mothers saying that I'm upsetting their children and debauching them and how dare I get on a train looking like that. Somebody tried to throw me off the train one day, literally out the door, so British RailBritish RailBritish Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
told me to go sit in first class, get out of trouble.
In the late 1970s, she served as an early manager for Adam and the Ants
Adam and the Ants
Adam and the Ants were a British rock band active during the late 1970s and early 1980s. The original group, which existed from 1977 to 1980, became notable as a cult band marking the transition from the late-1970s punk rock era to the post-punk and New Wave era...
. She recorded the track "Lou" (about Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
) as a guest lead vocalist with the band for BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
DJ John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
's Peel Sessions and often performed the song live with them from mid-1977 up to May 1978 when she left the band.
She made a cameo appearance in Derek Jarman
Derek Jarman
Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman was an English film director, stage designer, diarist, artist, gardener and author.-Life:...
's debut film Sebastiane
Sebastiane
Sebastiane is a controversial 1976 film written and directed by Derek Jarman and Paul Humfress. It portrays the events of the life of Saint Sebastian, including his iconic martyrdom by arrows. Most of the controversy surrounding the film derives from the homoeroticism portrayed between the soldiers...
, and played the lead role in his follow-up film Jubilee as the punk "anti-historian" Amyl Nitrite. She can also be seen in Julien Temple
Julien Temple
Julien Temple is an English film, documentary and music video director. He began his career with short films featuring the Sex Pistols, and has continued with various off-beat projects, including The Great Rock And Roll Swindle, Absolute Beginners and a documentary film about Glastonbury.-Temple...
's The Great Rock and Roll Swindle wearing an "only anarchists are pretty" t-shirt and appearing on stage with the Sex Pistols during their first live television performance of "Anarchy in the U.K.
Anarchy in the U.K.
"Anarchy in the U.K." was covered by American thrash metal band Megadeth for their third album So Far, So Good... So What!, released in 1988.Notoriously, the song has incorrect lyrics...
" in August 1976.
Today, Pamela Rooke works as a veterinary nurse and breeds Burmese cats.