Back in 2023 Christopher Ward and Fears teamed up to create the Alliance 01, a lovely burgundy jump hour Brunswick that spawned a fan favourite sub-collection for Fears. The idea behind the Alliance collaboration was to raise awareness of and support the British Alliance of Watch and Clock Makers, a non-profit organisation that advocates for the British watch industry. Now Christopher Ward are collaborating with another mainstay of the British industry to launch the Alliance 02, Studio Underd0g. And as you may have noticed already, the Christopher Ward x Studio Underd0g Alliance 02 is a pocket watch.
I must admit that I don’t tend to get hands-on with all that many pocket watches these days. But that’s sort of the point because when CW and SU got together to discuss potential projects together, they wanted to challenge convention and explore creative routes that neither brand had travelled down. A pocket watch does just that. It allows them to take a hyper traditional form of horology and reimagine it for the modern world with their signature British humour, colour and creativity. Plus, a pocket watch just feels very proper and British too, appropriate for an Alliance watch.
It’s a fascinating object to hold. It’s surprisingly heavy with a 44mm steel case based on Christopher Ward’s Lightcatcher design. It’s a sweeping round shape with a sort of stepped structure and alternating brushed and polished surfaces that loop all the way around the caseband, starting and ending at the carrying loop above the crown at 12 o’clock. That loop can be attached to a braided leather strap for carrying, or you can remove the strap and place the watch on the provided bamboo stand to double up as a small desk clock.
While the case has strong Christopher Ward DNA, the dial is Studio Underd0g’s domain. It’s based on the 02Series field watch design in yellow and orange with a lume base below a layer of sapphire (their thickest ever at 1.4mm), upon which the Roman numeral hour markers and minute scale are printed. It gives the characteristic floating appearance to the scales that feels modern, emphasised by the visible screws flanking the central hand stack. Those hands are your standard hours, minutes and seconds, with a 5-day power reserve indicator subdial positioned below at 6 o’clock.
Turning the watch over reveals an exhibition caseback through which you can see the CW-0001 (formerly SH21) in-house movement. It’s manual winding with a 120-hour power reserve and finished in lovely fashion with circular, concentric waves emanating from the centre across the bridges. Around the edge of the caseback it’s co-signed by both Christopher Ward and Studio Underd0g along with its limited edition number and ‘Assembled in Great Britain’ inscription.
The Christopher Ward x Studio Underd0g Alliance 02 is priced at £2,995 in a limited edition of 100 pieces. It’s available exclusively to members of the British Alliance of Watch and Clock Makers and you must be pre-registered on the organisation’s website in order to qualify for purchase. It will then be sold via Christopher Ward’s online boutique from December 11th at 3pm. All sales go towards supporting the Alliance. Certainly, it’s the only watch this decade that has me thinking, ‘maybe I wear pocket watches now.’
Price and Specs:
More details at Christopher Ward.
