Ever wonder what the original man in black wears to tell when it's time to swing by the canteen for a helping of penne ala 'arrabiata? I found the answer Dave Prowse's wrist this weekend at Star Wars Fan Days II in Plano, TX: the incredibly-sweet timepiece you see above.
Prowse, the actor who manned the suit and emoted as Vader in all three original Star Wars movies, said that this beautiful over-sized chrono diver originates from TW Steel, a UK watchmaker. TW Steel's motto ("big in oversized watches") is no joke; even though it looks smaller on Prowse's ex-body-builder wrist, the zirconia-encrusted TW9 model he's wearing is a whopping 50mm in diameter.
Prowse was kind enough to let a fellow watch-geek snap a photo of his wrist while he signed autographs for fans and mentioned that he's a spokesperson for TW Steel. Wikipedia indicates that since 2007 he's managed the alt-rock group Losing Sun in Cardiff, South Wales -- a group that's also sponsored by TW Steel. Hopefully TW Steel realizes what a great job he's doing presenting the watch: I want one!
It seems those of us in the US are stuck with various Amazon and eBay dealers. The best deal I could find on the TW9 is around $450, though I'm going to keep looking. Think TW Steel could use an American spokesperson? (Hint, hint.)
TW Steel [Main Site]
TW9 Watch [Amazon]
Love the Eddie Izzard shout out!
At the sound of the breathing the time will be 3:00 (cue Vader breathing)
Gah! I wish I had known you were going to be at Fan Days!!! Im a bit behind on my podcasting, so maybe you mentioned it but I went up there that Saturday for Fan Days =)
Would of been cool to meet you
That watch is really nice. My FIL is a concert pianist and has one of those watches (though a plainer version), and it really is tailored to thick-wrist folk.
Also, how cool is it that White Darth Vader is wearing a baby blue polo shirt. (Has to be a polo with that fabric weave.)
I’ll never watch the end of Return of the Jedi in the same way.
I have this actual watch , I bought it and another in dave Prowse’s estate sale after his death.
So I own 2 personal watches owend by dave prowse. Can supply photos and documentation if anyone likes to see .