"The bow tie is out, obviously, since it would invite all sorts of jibes about Robin Day, and anyway, the only people who wear them nowadays are doctors who worry about trailing their clothing in their patient’s insides or the sort of boobies who turn up at school sports days wearing MCC boaters and spats."

The tie has been dying for so long, it's amazing that anyone still wears one blah blah blah...

Articles like these that are basically the hopes and dreams of the person writing them are useless. Better bellweathers are asking adolescents what articles of clothes signify success and respect. Also good are examples are non tie wearing groups  who wear a tie for important occasions. Of all the cultures who wear the western suit, it seems America is the most tie conscious.

I think the tie here has become both a badge of manhood and a fashion item which is why a gimmick tie company like the one posted at AAAC can exist here. American men, even non tie wearing ones, know that a tie signals authority/respectability and the tie itself is the main conversation piece in a man's outfit. Those ties probably serve as conversation distractions for men who are insecure in jacket and tie wearing circles.

Also, the sheer amount of ties of every make being sold annually along with the fact the seemingly fastest entry into the men's clothing world is designing ties indicates that thet still have plenty of life in the wardrobe. Add to this that even if most men arent wearing ties, the most serious and influential ones still are. You might as well say that 7 out of 10 unmarried women are out of shape which would suggest men accept it. I think youd just find that the lucky 3 were the ones with all the attention.

Men who think they look good in a business situation without a tie are deluding themselves. And a tie isn't supposed to feel constricting which seems to be Paxman's main issue with them. What people say is unimportant, it's what they are actually observed to do that counts. As long as people get preferential treatment wearing a tie, they will wear one.

Maybe the best indication of the tie's health is the opinion of women. It seems recently that the style axis has shifted in favor of the tie in their eyes. What was once a symbol of boring conformity has become something more akin to success, stability, trailblazing. Maybe theyve just seen enough washed out fellows in open necked shirts and khakis.