London Fashion Week: Paul Costelloe honored at first fashion show helmed by his son
LONDON — William Costelloe paid tribute to his late father, Irish designer Paul Costelloe, on Thursday, as he presented the fashion label’s first collection since its founder’s death in November.
Models wore long jackets and dresses with sculpted shoulders, sharp trouser suits and voluminous blouses as part of the autumn/winter line. (Watch the show here: https://tinyurl.com/55xexdvv).
There was plenty of tweed, check, and knitwear as well as prints that both father and son, now the brand’s creative director, had worked on in their last collaboration.
Paul Costelloe, who became a fixture at London Fashion Week for four decades, died in November aged 80.
“It’s an honor to him, what he taught me,” William Costelloe told Reuters backstage, saying his first collection went back to the brand’s roots.
“It’s really a celebration of tailoring… making women look incredible, structured shoulders… and then also kind of looking at new silhouettes… these broad shoulders coming in at the waist.”
He chose a color palette of earthy tones, tan, white, and charcoal. Knitwear came in ribbed jumpers with large hoods and short skirts. Models also wore culotte pants or short skirts with large bow-like embellishments.
Accessories included long chunky scarves and oversized handbags.
The show took place on the first day of London Fashion Week, the second leg of the autumn-winter 2026 catwalk calendar, which began in New York and will also head to Milan and Paris.
London Fashion Week ends today, Monday.
KING CHARLES VISITS LONDON FASHION SHOW
Meanwhile, Britain’s King Charles appeared at a fashion show in London on Thursday just hours after his brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
Charles greeted onlookers with a wave when he arrived at Tolu Coker’s London Fashion Week show and was met with applause inside the room.
Watching the British-Nigerian designer’s collection he chatted animatedly to British Fashion Council Chief Laura Weir and designer Stella McCartney on the front row.
Earlier on Thursday, Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested by police and detained in custody to be questioned over allegations he sent confidential government documents to Jeffrey Epstein.
The arrest of the senior royal, eighth in line to the throne, is unprecedented in modern times and presents Charles with the biggest crisis of his reign.
Charles’ visit to London Fashion Week, which was planned in advance, combined his eye for classic British style with his support for traditional crafts.
The monarch, a long-time customer at London’s famed Savile Row street of tailors, watched as models presented the latest creations by Coker, who is known for celebrating cultural identity and craftsmanship in her work.
Charles, 77, follows in his late mother’s footsteps by attending a London Fashion Week show. In 2018, Queen Elizabeth sat beside fashion editor Anna Wintour on the front row at Richard Quinn’s show.
Coker, who launched her eponymous brand in 2021, was showing as part of the British Fashion Council’s NEWGEN program, which provides financial support and mentoring for new designers.
Before the show, Charles toured exhibitions at the London Fashion Week hub, including one by designer McCartney, known for using alternatives to leather and fur in her designs, focusing on sustainable British innovation. — Reuters
