Rock star Lenny Kravitz wars with cult TV icon in battle of the string vests

Rab C. Nesbitt star Gregor Fisher and rockstar hunk Lenny Kravitz have been pitted as string vest rivals, and a recent poll suggests the public have declared a clear winner

A winner has been declared in the battle of the string vests between pot-bellied boozer Rab C. Nesbitt and ripped rock star Lenny Kravitz.

The two men, although world’s apart, are both the world’s biggest fans of wearing string vests. Rab C. Nesbitt, played by Gregor Fisher in cult Scottish TV show of the same name – which aired between 1988 to 1989 – is famous for wearing a grubby white string vest as he props up the bar.

Rock star Lenny Kravitz, who despite dating Kylie Minogue, Vanessa Paradis and Nicole Kidman has admitted he went 20 years without sex, is also partial to wearing a string vest. Lenny, 60, however, normally wears a black string vest, because he loves ‘showing off his nipples’.

In a poll of 2,000 women, however, Rab C. Nesbitt came out as the one they would rather have an affair with.

The study by married dating site Illicit Encounters found that 65% said they’d rather head down the pub with pot-bellied Rab and his mates, saying they reckoned he’d be ‘more of a laugh’ than with Lenny.

Just 35% opted for hunky Lenny.

Asked why, the 65% said they reckoned Lenny – who is celibate, follows a raw vegan diet, is sugar free, gets up at 2.30am to work out and has said he had never been drunk in his life – wouldn’t be ‘much fun’.

They said, however, that Rab would ensure they had a ‘good time’ on a date, introducing them to his pals and buying them drinks – which Rab calls ‘having a wee swally’.

Such was the popularity of Rab – whose show got up to 5m viewers at its peak – and his string vest, one of the vests he wore is on show at the Riverside Museum in Glasgow.

Speaking about his habit of wearing string vests, Fly Away singer Lenny said he loved a string vest – although he calls them ‘mesh’ vests – saying that his daughter Zoë told him that if his shirt didn’t ‘expose his nipples’ it ‘wasn’t a shirt’.

One of the women taking part in the study said: “Lenny is a great singer and has a fantastic body, but I think he’d probably bore me to death.

“We’d go out to a vegan restaurant, drink water, and he’d have to bed early so he could get early for the gym – and he’s celibate, so not much chance of a night of passion.

“With Rab, you’d go down the pub, meet his pals, have a laugh, get a bit tipsy and probably end up back at his place watching telly and continuing the drinking sessions with a bag of chips.

“I know which sounds more desirable to me, and it’s Rab C. Nesbitt all the way.”

Jessica Leoni, of Illict Encounters, said: “Well, who knew a string vest and a pint down the pub would beat rock star abs and a raw vegan diet?

“But it makes perfect sense – Rab C. Nesbitt brings the laughs, the banter, and the kind of night out you’d actually enjoy.

“Lenny might look good in a mesh vest, but Rab’s the guy who’d buy you a bag of chips on the way home.

“And let’s be honest – that’s true romance right there!”