British Fashion Autumn 1983

1983

Fashion frills and thrills!

London: a city for all seasons' is the theme of this 1983 fashion show. A mixture of performance, dance and modelling showcases the styles of the year. From winter's Cruella de Ville style fur coats and candy coloured dresses of spring to sparkling floral evening gowns, this video showcases the trends in men and women's fashion. It's difficult to pick a favourite - perhaps the lace frill-filled wedding dress?

Shot from the perspective of the audience, the video allows viewers to see the show as if they were there. It's not just the style of clothes that have changed, but also the staging of the show. The style of models, the way they move and the method of displaying the garments are all very different to the minimalist and repetitive presentation of catwalk shows today.

The show ends with a New Year celebration, ringing in another year of fashion.

Film of a catwalk show with the theme 'London; a city for all seasons'.

What We Wore

Fashion takes enormous strides forward in 20th century Britain.

From the Tudor court to the Georgian dandy, Britain has long cultivated a passion for fashion, but the late 20th century saw things step up a gear. New generations of talent emerged, whose idiosyncratic style democratised fashion for a younger crowd and helped sell ‘Cool Britannia’ to the world - long before that term was coined. In the 1960s, progress was catalysed by the ‘Swinging London’ of Biba and Mary Quant, followed by the Punk movement a decade later. Designers drew inspiration not just from contemporary subcultures but also from established craft traditions across the UK – in some cases helping to revive cottage industries at risk of dying out. The dawn of the 1980s saw the rise of avant-garde pioneers (Zandra Rhodes, Vivienne Westwood), reimagined Savile Row tailoring (Tommy Nutter) and the upscale yet quintessentially British chic of Jean Muir and Bruce Oldfield – a favourite of Diana, Princess of Wales, who gifted British fashion a truly global platform.

38 videos in this collection