Although the Burberry trench coat is now 170 years old, it showed no sign of its age at the British heritage label’s latest London Fashion Week presentation.
Trench coats naturally dominated the runway, yet creative director Daniel Lee clearly enjoyed experimenting with vibrant shades, novel fabrics and decorative embellishments, bringing a fresh, modern and youthful energy to what was originally designed as a practical utilitarian garment.
This approach was immediately apparent in the very first look sent down the runway for the spring/summer 2027 collection: a whimsical pale pink trench coat featuring oversized arms and an eye-catching puffed bubble skirt.
The runway presentation coincides with the opening of a free exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in South Kensington, celebrating 170 years of the Burberry trench coat. Entitled The Burberry Trench: Crafting an Icon, the display charts the history of the style—from its fusion of utility and fashion to modern reimaginings of its signature silhouette.
In 1879, brand founder Thomas Burberry created gabardine, a durable and weather-resistant fabric that established his reputation for protective outerwear. Initially manufactured as military clothing, the trench coat eventually transitioned into civilian wardrobes.
Key design elements remain consistent across different styles, notably functional details retained from its practical origins, such as epaulettes, storm flaps and buckled cuffs. While the fashion house is synonymous with a classic beige overcoat, British designer Lee demonstrated that the silhouette can serve as so much more than a neutral layer—becoming the main event.
Bold colour choices featured throughout the show, including butter-yellow trench coats unexpectedly paired with lilac lipstick, alongside striking green and orange designs heavily decorated with intricate floral embellishments.
Floral themes were a recurring motif across the collection—hardly unusual for a spring/summer presentation, yet a refreshing shift for Burberry, which traditionally relies on solid block colours and its signature nova check print. Floral prints appeared across smocked peasant dresses and blouses, while providing decoration for several of the collection's statement coats.
Lee also experimented beyond florals with print, introducing a novel multi-coloured circular face motif across knitwear, bags, coats and other pieces.
The graphic suited Lee’s relaxed, streetwear-influenced vision for the heritage brand, demonstrated notably by rapper Central Cee, who walked the runway wearing oversized jeans, a blue hoodie and a two-toned jacket.
The accessories were just as playful as the clothing. Models wore thick-framed, 70s-inspired oversized sunglasses alongside floor-length bag charms and decorative floral brooches.
Despite these ventures into pattern and print, Lee consistently returned to the trench coat. Traditionally, designers choose to close runway presentations with their most formal and elaborate look, often a red carpet-worthy gown.
Instead, Lee used his final look to fully express his casual Burberry aesthetic, centred firmly around the trench coat. The show concluded with a cream coat embellished with yellow flowers, styled with neutral trousers and simple white sneakers.
A high-profile front row gathered at London's Chelsea College of Art to watch the show, with figures from film, music and sport arriving en masse.
Wicked actor Jonathan Bailey debuted a shaggier hairstyle than usual, wearing an all-black outfit comprising a slim-fitting turtleneck and leather trousers.
Actor Jodie Turner-Smith, who featured in Burberry’s autumn advertising campaign, maintained the leather theme in a wine-coloured two-piece of skinny trousers tucked into boots, a bomber jacket and a furry stole worn on one arm.
Model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, another regular face in Burberry campaigns who walked in the label's previous London Fashion Week show, gave the classic trench coat an edgy interpretation in black leather, bared with skin underneath.
Meanwhile, Irish actor Fiona Shaw presented a more subdued take on the leather trench coat, modelling her double-breasted version in an autumnal bottle green hue.
Diverging from leather trench coats was singer Jorja Smith, who wore a midi-length coat in pale grey with a bright blue scarf looped around her neck.
Irish actor Eve Hewson opted for a loose-fitting black suit, worn with nothing but a bra underneath.
Heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson also experimented with suiting, wearing a sharply tailored style in deep navy.
