The equations of mean motion indicate that two-dimensional turbulent wakes, when subjected to appropriately tailored adverse pressure gradients, can be self-preserving. An experimental examination of two nearly self-preserving wakes is reported here. Mean velocity, longitudinal and lateral turbulence intensity, inter-mittency and shear stress distributions have been measured and are compared with Townsend's data from the small-deficit undistorted wake. In comparison with the undistorted case, the present wakes have slightly lower turbulent intensities and significantly lower shear stresses, all quantities being non-dimensionalized by a local velocity scale taken as the maximum mean velocity deficit. A consideration of the reasons for the shear stress reduction leads to an expression from which the shear stresses in any symmetrical free equilibrium shear flow can be found. This relationship is used to calculate the rate of growth in the measured wakes, with reasonable success.