In a season of overtly sexy clothes so far, Riccardo Tisci reminded everyone that he is the legitimate heir to the Gianni Versace or Azzedine Alaïa thrones. The key designers who invented body-con and took sexy clothes to couture levels. Outfits that make traffic stop. Was it Tisci’s swan song at Burberry? It felt like it but in true style of a big designer, this show was one of his very best for the British heritage brand. Tisci started in March 2018 in a big industrial outer-London space and he found another big hall for this collection where the audience was sat around a classical orchestra in the middle. They played a pre-show set, followed by opera singing and in the middle of the show the music stopped. The designer clearly wanted the audience to concentrate on what he had up his sleeve. Tisci let it rip with all the design signatures he is known for: colorful silk and lace mixes, perfectly judged, sexy cut outs, wonderful patternmaking, sharp tailoring and haute street wear. He made the brand known for its directional runway shows but it is an open secret that Tisci’s runway fireworks never really made it into the stores where most of the offerings are still commercial. If he continues, this collection will be a contender for one of the best shows of the season. The saucy theme often turned trashy on the Milan runways and here it was sophisticated.

Riccardo Tisci’s Burberry S/S 2023 show in London

The opening look

The skill?

Tisci opened with a few waist hugging, floor length skirts, which sound old and stuffy by nature. But in his hands and made from denim, they gave the opening section an energizing lift. He then followed with a series of precise cut out dresses, which exposed the pelvic bones, the crotch and the butt. It looked new and spelled out subversive sex.

The men’s wear?

This was a Tisci best of moment. Sweatshirts with an extra attached on the back, lace and tulle layering’s coming out under jackets, bold and colorful prints recalling the Rottweiler days, eight-button, tailored suits in sea colors and his typical hyper-masculine casting of big chested men.

Our highlight?

The crumpled silk and lace dress section in rich coral colors opened by Bella Hadid in which all the dresses had the breast covered with hand crochet targets and a flowing train were stand out as was Catherine McNeil’s net bodysuit over a red lace trim baby doll dress.