BBC1’s “The ONE Show” on Wednesday, 17 March 2010 featured a segment at the end of the show about the British Army’s new Multi-Terrain Pattern camouflage clothing. Note: the clothing featured in the show were the prototype garments produced in the current Soldier 2000 style, not the style of clothing that will be issued to soldiers deploying soon to Afghanistan.The segment moved at a pretty quick pace, and featured that annoying “cheeky chappy” Phil Tuffnel as the presenter, so I’ve done a few screen grabs of the best bits that showed off the new pattern.  This will spare you the hassle and agony of having to watch and re-watch the segment on BBC iPlayer. Here’s the link though in case you want to download the whole thing: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00rkg21/The_One_Show_17_03_2010(NOTE: the BBC iPlayer only works if you’re in the UK).

Soldiers demonstrate MTP in open grassy terrain.

Tuffnel gets a briefing on the new pattern from Lt. Col. Tresidder – Defence Equipment and Support, DSTL

Close-up view of the pattern

Close-up view of the pattern

Comparison of MTP against Temperate-DPM and Desert-DPM in an arid urban setting

Tuffnel tries out the photo-simulation test – note the good view of the DPMesque shapes in the MTP pattern.

 There was also a nice segment in the piece about Roland Penrose, British camouflage pioneer in the Second World War.

Penrose was so keen on camouflage that he painted his car in a camouflage pattern as a publicity stunt.

He also covered his girlfriend, Lee Miller, in green body paint (and not much else) and took some saucy photographs of her to spice up his lectures on camouflage.

Penrose also wrote the first manual on camouflage for the British Army.