The first full day of London Fashion Week successfully navigated a seemingly impossible path; showcasing a crop of British talent as the nation mourns the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
London Fashion Week began with a string of tributes to the queen, from models holding pictures of her to others being dressed in all black. Some brands have pulled out while Monday's schedule has been altered — the UK marks a bank holiday on the day the monarch will be laid to rest following a state funeral.
However, for others, the show goes on; many welcomed it as a chance to showcase London's proud association with fashion, with the queen herself having been a surprise visitor at the event in 2018.
Bahrain's Noon by Noor opened Friday's schedule with a suitably elegant presentation. The label is from cousins Shaikha Noor Al Khalifa and Shaikha Haya Al Khalifa, who are known for their understated aesthetic and their outing reinforces that.
Edward Crutchley followed, as he held his co-ed show three stories below street level, in a central London car park. Stripped of cars, the space felt a little bleak, but actually offered a perfect space for Crutchley to unveil a collection centred on the theme of a constantly changing sea.
Opening with a tiered dress made from metallic double faced jacquard, this same fabric appeared throughout the show. Clothes looked as if they floated, like ethereal jellyfish around the body, cinched with obi-style wraps, and balanced on precariously high, iridescent platform sandals.
There were multi-coloured knit dresses with cut-outs. And, as colours shifted from silvery to dark blue, it was strangely beautiful, with a quiet aura of romance.
One consequence — perhaps entirely intentional — of the venue, was that while providing a private space to show the collection, it also offered secrecy for the audience, who arrived in full regalia. One guest strolled past in Dr Martin boots and a Marie Antoinette wig, while another had pink glitter eyebrows and two long feathers, worn deely bopper style on a headband. Another wore sequin fishnet trousers, someone else a kilt, and everyone seemed to be carrying a fan.
Temperley London also chose to showcase its new wares in a hidden location.
In a private residence in West London, described as an "iceberg house" because most of it was underground, the new collection was split into two parts. The spring collection, set for a November launch, was filled with party season shimmer, courtesy of golden sequins, as the three-piece suit introduced last season was here again, now in a luscious raspberry velvet.
The second half was for summer 2023, filled with plenty of Temperely's eye-catching patterns and embroideries. A loose linen safari jacket arrived in a lovely mustard print, with matching paper bag shorts, while a dotted pattern across dresses turned out to be cowrie shells. Elsewhere, a slip dress and matching jacket arrived with heavy mustard embroidery as tea dresses in pinks and blues were lavished in signature embroidery.
A recent introduction is the Heritage range, made from bestsellers now with a permanent collection all of their own. Filled with the top pieces from the brand's 20-year history, it is a shift towards a more mindful approach, giving longevity to pieces that take hours to create.
At Boru Aksu, there was a minute's silence to honour the queen, ahead of what turned out to be a lightly military themed collection. Opening with a drummer, it was followed by a look finished with a row of medals and a tailored, double-breasted trouser suit, before softening into something more feminine and frothy.
Dresses came adorned with polka dots, ruffles and asymmetric drapery, as full skirts spilled out from under tailored jackets, and scalloped hemlines.
Aksu created most of the collection from deadstock, some of which is decades old, neatly bringing the past into the present day.
With that in mind, it is a fitting way to mark a new era for Britain and its unwavering adoration for fashion. And, the queen.
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
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Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
Babumoshai Bandookbaaz
Director: Kushan Nandy
Starring: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami
Three stars
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (all kick-offs UAE time)
Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (10.30pm)
Saturday
Freiburg v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)
Paderborn v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Borussia Dortmund (5.30pm)
Borussia Monchengladbach v Bayer Leverkusen (5.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm)
Sunday
Schalke v Augsburg (3.30pm)
Mainz v RB Leipzig (5.30pm)
Cologne v Fortuna Dusseldorf (8pm)
Squads
Sri Lanka Tharanga (c), Mathews, Dickwella (wk), Gunathilaka, Mendis, Kapugedera, Siriwardana, Pushpakumara, Dananjaya, Sandakan, Perera, Hasaranga, Malinga, Chameera, Fernando.
India Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Pandey, Rahane, Jadhav, Dhoni (wk), Pandya, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Thakur.
How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
