A previous article on the Bijoux4Men blog was devoted to the renewed interest in the men's necklace due to the hero of a series broadcast in Great Britain and the United States. Today, the trend is not slowing down as the men's jewelery sector sees its sales explode due to the chain worn by actor Paul Mescal who plays Connell in Normal People.
When the BBC aired the 12 episodes of the small-screen adaptation of Sally Rooney's novel Normal People, viewers reacted enthusiastically on social media. To praise his treatment of the subject of consensual sexuality, or to admire the physique of Connell, the character played by Paul Mescal.
Connell's silver men's chain continues to ignite passions
But some fans of the series have focused their attention on an accessory of the character, namely his silver chain. This was far from going unnoticed. It has even been the subject of the creation of a dedicated Instagram account.
This simple silver men's necklace, described in the novel as "Argos chic " (Argos is a sort of generalist La Redoute in Britain), is meant to represent the social class difference between Connell and Marianne. It is very rare to see the character without his chain, either in a normal situation or in a steamy scene.
It's not just fans of the series who have taken hold of the phenomenon. Vogue hailed Connell's men's silver necklace as "the most erotic accessory" on the small screen. For businesses that sell these men's chains, it's a real bargain. Asos saw a 130% surge in sales, while Argos says searches for 'man channel' jumped 56% on their site.
"Normal People's Connell neck chain deserves its own Emmy, " chimed in one Twitter user. " It's the BBC, don't expect anything sexy. Then you see a close-up of Connell's necklace, and you realize you've made a hasty judgment, " another exclaimed. "If you say Connell's chain didn't trigger something in you, you're lying," said a third fan.
Silver chain: men's jewelry that comes from afar
Fashions come and go, it's well known. As for the men's silver chain, it comes a long way. Until Normal People, this necklace was associated with the 90s and boybands. We mentioned in our original article on the subject that the highlighting of the chain in the series was calculated. It's so true that at the end of the filming of the episodes, Paul Mescal gifted the necklace to his partner on the small screen, Daisy Edgar-Jones.
“I gave it to him as a farewell present, with photos, at the end of the shoot. We then met again for a photo shoot for the posters, so I had to wear it, but the necklace had been misplaced among the costumes, etc. We ended up getting our hands on it, and I think Daisy owns it now. You can end the search," he said.
How he chose this silver chain
He also explained how he fell for this silver chain:
"It's like with Harry Potter, the wand chooses you!" When we did the first fittings, I was not convinced by what was on offer. During the second session, other models had been added. The one that was chosen seems to be the right one, because it is both simple while being loaded with a symbolism that Connell himself seems to ignore. »
Reporter Billyie Bhatia, who is behind the Connell Channel Instagram account, said she was inspired by other legendary channels in film history. Namely Elio in Call Me By Your Name, Leonardo diCaprio in Romeo and Juliet.