9 June 1942

Ossie was born Raymond Clark in Warrington, Lancashire to Samuel and Ann Clark. During World War II he was evacuated to Ostwaldtwistle, Lancashire – hence his nick-name Ossie.

1952

Ossie, with the guidance of his mother, is already making clothes. He would make clothes for his nieces and nephews. He practised tailoring clothing on his dolls and designed swimsuits for the neighbourhood girls. His art teacher helps him with his drawing and gives him a large collection of Vogue and Harper's Bazaar magazines. Ossie pored over these magazines and took in all the glamour and cutting edge fashion.

1955

Ossie studies architecture in school. He later said that the experience was "invaluable" The class taught him the fundamentals of proportion, height and volume. He would later go on to use all of these to great effect in his fashion designs.

1958

After leaving Beamont Secondary Technical School Ossie gains a place at the Regional College of Art in Manchester. Ossie was introduced to Celia Birtwell by a classmate named Mo McDermott. The pair started out as just good friends but that friendship soon developed into a love affair. Ossie also became good friends with artist David Hockney they are widely rumoured to have been lovers with a volatile relationship.

Ossie had to get up very early in the morning to make the long trip from home to college each day. His mother would give Ossie prescribed pills to keep him awake and alert. This would be the start of a life-long addiction to both prescribed and illegal drugs.

1962

Ossie wins a scholarship to the Royal College of Art in London. While attending college Celia Birtwell came to live with Ossie in his small Notting Hill flat.

1965

Graduates with a first-class degree – the only one awarded that year – and three months later his graduation collection appeared in the August British Vogue. Simultaneously

1966

Ossie and Celia began designing for Alice Pollock's shop Quorum, which featured the work of many talented young designers. Ossie presented a collection of white and cream chiffon garments that sold fast Despite its glittering clientele, Quorum was burdened by debt.

Ossie present a fashion show at Chelsea
Town Hall for Pathé News. He also showed his first full collection in London's Berkeley Square. His was the first ready-to-wear collection ever to present a show during London fashion week. It was also the first British fashion show to feature black models.

1968

Ossie agreed to design a diffusion line for Alfred Radley that made his clothes available to a high street clientele. By this point in their relationship, Ossie and Celia were at the apex of their working relationship.

Celia would work up several prints of her own design and liking, with no input from Ossie as to their colour or print. Her textiles featured a vibrant range of patterns inspired by the natural world. Clark would then design clothing based around and inspired by these designs.

While continuing to produce his own exclusive label, Clark also designed a line called 'Ossie Clark for Radley'.

'Ossie Clark for Radley' was one of the first 'diffusion' lines. Its affordable prices combined with world-wide distribution made Clark's designs accessible to a much broader market.

1969

Ossie married Celia. Although Ossie was openly bisexual and carried on many affairs with men, he and Birtwell had two sons Albert and George, together.

1970

The French manufacturer Mendes invited Ossie Clark to design a collection for distribution in France.

1970’s

More and more Ossie would work less and party more and his work began to suffer. Celia and Ossie divorced – Ossie never recovers.

1980’s

Fashion turned punk a la Vivienne – Ossie’s romantic flowing gowns were no longer in fashion. His business declined.

1983  

Clark went bankrupt and eventually was forced to close his business.

1990’s  

Ossie trained the designer Bella Freud to pattern-cut.

1996  

Ossie was stabbed 37 times in his Holland Park apartment by his former lover, Diego Cogolato. Congolato then broke Clark's skull with a teracotta pot, killing him. Cogolato was convicted of manslaughter and jailed for six years.