London Fashion Week AW20: The Beckhams come out in support for Victoria while Roland Mouret champions ‘values not trends’
Day three brought defiance and drama to the runways, reports Olivia Petter
Nothing can rain on London Fashion Week’s parade – not even a sprightly storm named Dennis. The downpour might have raged on as editors, celebrities and buyers darted between shows in Westminster and Whitechapel, but designers including Margaret Howell and Roland Mouret ensured nobody’s spirits were dampened, with autumn/winter 2020 collections that enlivened and brightened in equal measure.
Defiance was a common theme – and not just against the weather. At Victoria Beckham, the collection was intended to reflect, “the tension between refinement and rebellion” and Beckham urged her customers to follow their instincts, to twist the codes of femininity and to “be spirited”, all of which gave way to Beckham’s boldest collection to date.
The mood was no less lively over at Preen by Thornton Bregazzi, which was just a hop, skip and a puddle-jump away. Models stomped down the runway in wrinkled knee-high boots whose grit was offset by sculptural sequin gowns and glistening sheets of gold leaf that illuminated their faces. Even at Margaret Howell, where the aesthetic is famously English heritage and the palette is neutral, there was something transgressive in the air as women went bare-legged under cropped trench coats and tucked their hair into bucket hats that lent the aesthetic a more androgynous feel.
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