Burberry's Fashion Week finale   (Events)

Tuesday night in London belonged to Burberry as the luxury brand closed a spectacular London Fashion Week 25th anniversary. Among the throng RedKarpet witnessed leading names from music, film, politics (!) and fashion. All had swarmed here to support the British style icon on a night that firmly redirected the style spotlight on London.

Pictured above : Slumdog's Dev Patel, Freida Pinto & Alexa Chung with Mary-Kate Olsen.  Sat Bal (Thurs 24 Sept'09)

In moving its spring/summer 2010 Burberry Prorsum womenswear show from Milan to London the brand joined other fashion exiles in a return to the city. Matthew Williamson, Clements Ribeiro and Antonio Berardi were just some of the other designers who decided to show in the city again, putting the London runways back up there with New York, Milan and Paris.

In its wake, the symbiotic relationship between fashion and celebrity was all too obvious at Burberry's catwalk show and the afterparty at its new global HQ at Horseferry House in Westminster  which features cutting edge showrooms, design studios, offices and an in-house photo studio. The imposing venue was designed by Burberry creative director Christopher Bailey whose approval extended even to the type of bottled water that the Burberry HQ stocks.

Predictably, it was champagne, not water, that dominated party proceedings after a successful runway show that brought Anna Wintour, the influential editor of Vogue, back to Britain for London Fashion Week after a two-year hiatus.

The guest mix also included Razorlight's Johnny Borrell, Westminster's Lord Mandelson, comedy TV's David Walliams, retail magnates Sir Philip Green and Sir Stuart Rose. International press was led by French Vogue’s Carine Roitfeld, Glenda Bailey of American Harper’s Bazaar.

(Left) Mario Testino & Harvey Weinstein       

Liv Tyler, Emma Watson & Gwyneth Paltrow wearing and watching Burberry

Victoria Beckham & Agyness Deyn                         American Vogue's Anna Wintour

Party

Party chat was diverted from Burberry's 'must wear' dessert-shaded, shoulder-focused collection to the spectacle of the sparkling light projections on the building’s atrium. The Kooks later upped the party tempo with a rousing set.

(Above) The Kooks rock Burberry's party HQ

Razorlight's Johnny Borrell                        Matthew Williamson returns to LFW

As the party faded out with A-ha's Take On Me Burberry could reflect on how it took on the fashion world and the money markets.

Creative director Christopher Bailey (pictured left at the party) has brought both creative and financial triumph to Burberry in a sound reversal of fortune.

Proof lay in Burberry's  newly acquired FTSE holding as its shares strutted to a high of 502.5p following Tuesday's show.

It also assured the label's position as a top 10 global luxury brand, despite the recession.

Overall the British Fashion Council estimates that fashion week injects £20m (approx $32m) into the British economy; a fitting end to any 25th anniversary- or party!

RK  _________________________________________