Do certain types of clothing make cyclists seem 'less human' to motorists?

For some reason, Tom Hollander in Rev sprang immediately to mind - bit of an ecclesiastical theme going on here maybe.

mdavidford wrote:

For some reason, Tom Hollander in Rev sprang immediately to mind - bit of an ecclesiastical theme going on here maybe.

Also thought of the detective in New Tricks who always rolls up to work on his bike.   Im sure there are others as well. 

Off at a bit of tangent, but BBC Weather normalises driving - 'you might have to scrape a bit of ice off the windscreen tomorrow morning'.

BBC travel is basically all about driving, every half hour on the radio, as if cars are the only way to travel.

How true! Yet with cyclists far more at the mercy of the weather you'd think they were a more appropriate reference point for the weather person's patter. "In the East you'll need warm base layers and thick gloves tomorrow, best pack a waterproof if you'll be returning after 5pm. If you're headed northeastwards allow 10% extra time for your journey", etc. Never heard it.

W1A - the central character and his boss both rode Bromptons to the Portland Place BBC. I know it was "light hearted", but still. 

but the character is portrayed as a complete buffoon and the Brompton riding is almost part of that presentation of his buffoonish.

I wouldn't say he's really a buffoon - just a bit at sea in a world of gibberish.

The main character in Flaked rides one everywhere. Part of it though is he's a recovering alcoholic who isn't allowed to drive. Still, he's a sympathetic character using a bicycle in ordinary ways.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4973548/

I seem to recall Eben Weiss writing about characters on bikes in films and TV.

He suggested bikes are used to indicate that a character is either a 'man-child', a 'loser', a 'tree hugger', or a 'dorky exercise freak'.  The bike can be used as shorthand, because 'everyone knows what it means'.

(his examples included Steve Carell in 'The 40 year old virgin', and 'every cyclist who gets "hilariously" driven off the road into a bush or a market stall ever', IIRC).