(Un)Surprisingly, British Design Was The Top Trend At London Fashion Week

The British are coming. No, really. Homegrown talent stuck to its roots this season, stoking the flames of the Britishcore revival on the runway. And now, with another rendition of London Fashion Week behind us, we’re ready to see just what our Brits had to say.

The Case For Britishcore At London Fashion Week

Now, it might seem pretty obvious to expect British design to sit at the forefront of London Fashion Week – and rightly so. The British Fashion Council has strived to create a platform where homegrown designers can really flourish and explore their creative parameters.

But this goal has always sat parallel to global design; whatever the city, Fashion Week has evolved into an international event, and London has always been proud to lift up creative voices from all backgrounds. And, with the consistent rise of microtrends and social media-fuelled fads, those glimmers of Britishness can sometimes get lost in the proverbial sauce.

But they do have a way of coming back when you least expect it.

Future Cities

First stop? The city. Whether it’s London or Cambridge, Liverpool or Bath, British cityscapes remained treasure troves of inspiration for today’s designers – especially when it came to envisioning how traditional codes of dress could be elevated for future audiences.

MITHRIDATE AW25

Let’s start with MITHRIDATE. While under the creative direction of Demon Zhang, the label remained true to its Chinese heritage both in look and construction – but recently, there have been a few changes. An internal shake up earlier this year saw British designer Daniel Fletcher step into the role of MITHRIDATE’s new Creative Director and, never one not to leave a mark, he brought Britishness right into the core of his first collection with the brand.

‘You can instantly tell that’s Daniel,’ noted one audience member at MITHRIDATE’s AW25 show. The brand’s earlier hallmarks – deconstructed qipaos, dragonflies, pompoms and fans – were no longer in play; instead, this was a collection that combined Chinese craftsmanship with British heritage.

Underpinned by preppy city staples, Fletcher’s collection leaned into stereotypes of British eccentricity while still feeling relaxed enough to project chicness. Trench coats, Oxford shirts, Harrington jackets, striped sweater vests and monogrammed jumpers all played starring roles in this new chapter for the brand, lending a more British vernacular to MITHRIDATE’s visual repertoire.

KENT&CURWEN AW25

And speaking of transition, this theme acted as the driving narrative for KENT&CURWEN. Examining how tradition evolves over time, the brand’s Chief Creative Officer Daniel Kearns chose to illustrate recent changes in British sartorial cornerstones through the art of ‘dressing up’.

So while the designer presented recognisable clothing codes – namely tartans, trench coats, tailored blazers, rugby shirts and Fair Isle knits – these were given a new dimension through oversized silhouettes, new textures (fringed polos, laminated tartan) and disrupted patterns that made familiar splashes of herringbone, argyle and sporting stripes almost unrecognisable.

This in-between space, showcasing established design on the precipice of something new, embodies this feeling of transformation that was so prevalent amongst designers at London Fashion Week. ‘In an era of rapid reinvention, how do we define tradition?’ asked the brand. ‘Clothing act[s] as a portal to fantasy, allowing wearers to envision those in-between moments and who they might become.’

Country Chic

But despite the glamours of the city, there’s something about the British countryside that continues to enamour designers. (We don’t think it’s the weather though.)

Paul Costelloe AW25 (c) Debbie Brag

For schedule regular Paul Costelloe, this translated into an exploration of equestrian sport. For his AW25 collection, an expansion of his heritage dressage brand, the designer sought to capture the energy and movement of horses and the riders atop them.

The Irish-American designer delved into his own roots, drawing on traditional Irish knitwear (sourced from Magees of Ireland) and wools from Harris of Scotland to fill his collection with textural richness. Combined with an autumnal palette of chestnut, charcoal and amber, models trotted down the runway in tweed blazers, checked capes and oversized jodhpurs, with a grain leather saddle bag tucked under-arm for good measure.

Burberry AW25

Over at Burberry, meanwhile, Daniel Lee gave his AW25 offering the narrative of a countryside getaway. ‘Think of them as weekend escapees,’ the designer said of the pictures pinned to his mood board. ‘It’s that great Friday night exodus from London. Long rainy walks in the great outdoors to disconnect and day trips to grand stately homes.’

Lee’s vision of the British weekender features a handful of city staples – a billowing trench, a velvet suit and shiny leather boots – but these are offset by preparations for a stay in the country: plaid kilts, a thick woolly scarf and a brightly patterned umbrella (just in case).

Burberry AW25

The Punk Strand

Despite the veil of propriety that sits over British fashion, a rebellious streak has always lurked beneath the traditional zeitgeist. Designers like Vivienne Westwood, Malcolm McLaren and Alexander McQueen paved the way for London’s punk scene decades ago – although that spark of challenge dates back more than a few centuries – and today’s cohort continue to embrace the art of subversion.

Hector Maclean, for example, used disruption as a means of retelling history. While planning his AW25 collection, Maclean delved into his family tree – and discovered his descendancy from Lady Susan Bellasyse, a commoner who gave birth to King James II’s illegitimate son. The revelation urged the designer to reexamine his roots, as well as the ‘life and vivacity’ of women from British history who helped shape his design rhetoric.

Hector Maclean AW25 (c) Mark Gunter

The result was ‘Hector Maclean Is A Bastard Aristocrat’: a turbulent runway comprised of court-inspired gowns crafted from upcycled Union Jack flags and bedsheets, Twiggy-inspired mini dresses, neon-hued debutante attire and a long train fashioned from hundreds of paper Remembrance Day poppies (donated by the Royal British Legion).

This wasn’t the clean cut suiting or traditional tweeds spotted at other designers’ shows, but rather a satirical, demi-couture take on Britishness. ‘This is Hector’s British utopia,’ an official release from the brand stated. ‘Taking the aesthetic beauty of all aspects of the UK’s diverse cultures and bringing it together in one love letter to his home: celebrating the idea that we are all royalty.’

Hector Maclean AW25 (c) Mark Gunter

London Fashion Week’s AW25 edition was testament to the theory that enduring timelessness – and, to that extent, Britishness – never really goes out of style. Instead, you’ll find designers referring back to the sartorial codes that make British fashion so exciting: an artfully crafted suit, tweed and jodhpurs, pinstripe shirts, soft knits and streaks of punkish rebellion littered with Union Jacks.

As the above list probably suggests, there isn’t just one look (or, in internet terms, aesthetic) that makes something feel British. After all, wellies and wool jackets belong to the countryside-dwelling Brit, while a blazer and tie might look more at home on the Brit that spends their days walking around Savile Row. But if you want to pin down Britishcore, there are plenty of designers at London Fashion Week who can lend a helping hand.

londonfashionweek.co.uk

Featured image: Paul Costelloe AW25 (c) Debbie Brag