A path leading up to a large white tent. Its ceiling a bright blue sky full of clouds. Wooden blocks for seats and a mud-covered runway. An unusual setting, but still somehow familiar. Tucked away in Perks Field, London, Burberry presented its SS26 collection and brought British festival culture to life. Music filled the space. Models made their way through the aisles of guests while Black Sabbath blared to a deafening pitch. A celebration of British music, models strut to three of the band’s songs from the 1970s. An indication of the decade’s inspired looks that then made their way down the runway.
Coats with the instantly identifiable Burberry Nova check in neutral colour palettes were replaced by stunning mixes of lime green and fuchsia. Burberry’s recent collections, including this one, show a continuous lack in the signature print, featured in only seven out of fifty-seven looks, perhaps indicating the house’s trajectory towards more contemporary collections.
Daniel Lee catered to every type of festival go-er. The fashion obsessives there just to show-off their outfits, the genuine music lovers and the London ‘It Girls’. Women wore mini dresses. Like one daring Burberry Check covered dress in sequins of baby pink and differing shades of lime green. With minimal, quirky touches of beaded hems only a hardcore festival attendee might notice. True to the freeing, carefree vibe of the festival scene, men traded ‘masculine’ boxy silhouettes for long trench coats cinched at the waist. Trench coats that were seen in blue, green and even snakeskin print.
The house’s unwavering loyalty to timeless, British style was tested, instead putting a modern spin on their typical coats and outerwear. Lee adds character and drama to the staple, beige trench coat and reinvents them by adding leather-look denim and paisley prints. Traditional in structure. Yet playful in colour and fabric. Mini, A-line dresses also graced the dirt paths – a silhouette reminiscent of the early 1970s. With slightly-plunging v-necklines laced up by gold chains, it’s easy to envision the piece dancing through the crowds of Reading or Boardmasters Festival.
Other major 70s trends appeared on the runway. Fringe swayed from bags, lapels and coat sleeves. Clearly, a recurring favourite seen at both festivals and throughout London Fashion Week. A true showstopper was an ice blue coat with fringe lining the entire front of the coat and even the sleeve cuffs. A sea of blue that swung from side to side with each step the model took. Mesmerising in every way.
The styling choices only add to the 70s, lived in feel of the collection. Of young party animals that have spent the entire day baking in the British sun. Simple, everyday hairstyles that were neither unruly nor polished. Messy from dancing and screaming out song lyrics. Scarves of every colour were paired with large ski-style sunglasses that took up most of the face. Muddied boots left a canvas of heavy footprints you would expect on the grounds of Glastonbury.
Burberry used to rarely stray from their token scarves, checks and trench coats. Could it be that the house is yielding to the pressure of a trend-driven industry, informed by the easily bored and ever-so-short attention span of today’s world. That always wants something new, unique and that no one has ever seen before. How can a brand rooted in classic British silhouettes and timeless style move with new generations to come?