Burberry Spring 2026: English Beat

It was Twiggy who offered a clue of what was to come in Daniel Lee’s spring Burberry show.

A symbol of 1960s youth culture with her big lashes and little dresses, the model-turned-actress, singer and dancer squeaked into the giant tent set up in Kensington Gardens eager to beat the other celebrities.

“I want to get in before the boy band arrives,” she said, as the crowds behind her screamed and shouted for the lineup of K-pop stars and other musicians — including Elton John, Skepta, Central Cee and Gene Gallagher — who sat front row at this fun show.

But the night belonged to Twiggy, and to the musicians who inspired Lee and his design team.

For spring, Lee said he wanted to celebrate “fashion’s love affair with music,” and drew inspiration from British summer festivals; “Quadrophenia: A Mod Ballet,” which he saw at Sadler’s Wells in London, and the upcoming Beatles biopics, directed by Sam Mendes.

“Musicians have always had incredible style, and together with fashion they form a really strong culture,” said Lee, who tapped Benji B to source songs from the archive of Black Sabbath, one of his favorite bands, for the show.

He put a Burberry spin on it all, sending out short, swingy A-line coats covered in checks done in Pop Art shades of bright green, yellow, lavender, dark denim blue and aqua. Models wore long scarves, Chelsea boots and shaggy Gallagher brothers-style hair that tickled the eyelids.

Dresses were short, sleeveless and breezy — made from circles of macramé or chainmail, and were hand-crocheted and embroidered. Lee paired them with flat lace-up boots — there’s a lot of mud at those festivals — and oversize bags edged with miles of fringe.

How refreshing to see hemlines rise up once again after years of calf-skimming, ankle-length and oversize dresses and coats. It was Lee’s big swing.

“Nothing’s new in fashion but, as designers, we’re trained to oversize” the clothing, he said. “It’s actually harder to do a ‘neater’ thing, because as soon as you see a model walking in something smaller, it has less impact. So we challenged ourselves to try and celebrate a different silhouette.”

He even slimmed down the suits — jackets were longer, with 1960s flair — and had a shinier coating, too.

“Burberry is about waterproofing, and we were thinking ‘What else can we waterproof, other than a trench?’ So we tried it on denims, cottons and woven raffias. We took the foundations of the brand and used it as inspiration,” he said.

For evening, Lee ramped up the shine, icing mini-kilts with pink, green and silver sequins in the shape of the Burberry check and whipping up silky bomber jackets and bright, tie-dyed suits for the boys. Watch out — England may just be ready to swing again.