A fearsome fob for keyring yobs

When Dr Klaus Maerten hurt his foot in a skiing accident, he can have had no idea that the air-cushioned shoe he invented with his friend Dr Funck using old rubber tyres would have had such an impact on popular culture.

Without their trusty Doc Martens, how would the mods and rockers have stoved each other’s heads in throughout the Sixties? A decade on, skinheads and punks were indebted to the good doctor as they wellied the life out of their enemies on dance-floors up and down the country. And, of course, football hooligans in the Eighties would have looked silly wearing flip-flops.

To celebrate the shoe that launched a thousand kicks, Doc Martens manufacturer AirWair has chosen Milton Keynes agency Evolino to produce promotional gifts based around the iconic boot. And what better way to promote a company than by producing keyrings? Maybe these miniature versions of the iconic bovver boy boot will come in useful for Subbuteo pitch invasions.