Thank goodness the design bods at Levi have returned to the drawing board.

The jeans giants have decided to redesign their classic 501 range taking inspiration from the first ever pair of Levi's work trousers marketed in 1873.

And the reason for the redesign? To stop the faded denim look being associated with middle-aged men.

The new jeans will be called 'anti fit' and will be much baggier than the straight-legged style which have become associated with the likes of the not-so-stylish Jeremy Clarkson and Tony Blair.

But sadly Levi has just not gone far enough - instead of consigning the high-waisted, straight-leg 501s to the history books, the company has pledged to keep on making them alongside the new, sexier design.

Now call me harsh but I strongly believe there should be a law against men of a certain age pulling on denim pants.

Jeans were originally meant to be workmen's clothes and then became a uniform for young people - they were never designed to be worn by grandfathers and those trying to hang onto their youth.

Something seems to happen to reasonable thinking middle-aged men when faced with denim.

Their fashion sense goes out of the window, they think faded blue is a flattering colour and believe their waist has shrunk back to a respectable size.

The result is portly men stuffed into tiny trousers with unsightly bulges that make them look like fading porn stars with chicken legs.

And then to top it all, they team their terrible jeans with a denim jacket or shirt - ending up looking like a fight on a very cheap market stall. I'm not saying that all men over 40 should wear cardigans and slippers but growing old gracefully has nothing to do with following the fashion faux pars of Pop Idol devil Simon Cowell.

The phrase 'mutton dressed as lamb' is hurled at hundreds of women but why isn't there an equivalent insult for men?

If our dads and grandads can't see what they are doing to themselves then ladies across the country should took the men in their lives by the hand and steer them towards a better casual look.

How many women would let their 50-year-old husbands dress like skaterboys or Eminem? Surely cladding them in denim is just as ridiculous. Even the ultimate cowboy Clint Eastwood looks terrible in his jeans now he is a pensioner so what chance does the normal man in the street have?

But if you can't persuade your fella to drop his old-style jeans then simply turn on Top Gear and open their eyes to the Clarkson effect. Then compare the curly-haired grump striding around in his ill-fitting trousers to 007 Pierce Brosnan - a slick suited sex symbol who has clothes to take him from the bedroom to the ballroom without even a nod towards the dreaded denim.