The Burberry Trench Looks Totally Different for SS24

Daniel Lee's second Burberry outing was easily one of London Fashion Week's most highly anticipated shows of the SS24 season: an opportunity to see if (and how) the former Bottega Veneta wunderkind evolved his vision of the British brand for a new season. Like his debut, the show took place in a park and embraced "a sense of outdoor living," reimagining the trench for summer in tow.

Attended by a starry host of stars and celebrities (more on that below) the runway wasn't without drama. A PETA protester managed a brief appearance on the catwalk, strutting with a banner aloft that read "Animals Are Not Clothing." She was promptly and effortlessly escorted out of the Burberry check tent.

As for the clothing, the show started with a couple of black trench coats, followed eventually by the signature beige. Same same, but decidedly different. Lee's trenches have a slimmer cut and a dropped-waist, which feel rather more relaxed than its cinched-in predecessors. The house’s recently reinstated Equestrian Knight features less prominently, though undoubtedly is in every detail of the collection. Where that electric Burberry blue took center stage last season, SS24 was a subtle but confident nod to the red, white and blue. Dark green and blue lips on the models adding a punk-y and precise edge that Vivienne Westwood would be proud of.

Read on for Hypebae's rundown of Burberry's SS24 showcase.

WHO: Everyone from Brit-pop royalty to the next-gen stars. Think Blur frontman Damon Albarn and his daughter Missy, Lennon Gallagher (son of Oasis' Liam) rubbing shoulders with Jourdan Dunn, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Jason Statham, Kano, Jodie Comer, Kylie Minogue, Georgia May Jagger, Skepta, Michael Ward, Jessie Buckley, Barry Keoghan, Arsenal star Bukayo Saka and Olympian Mo Farah. The list goes on...

WHERE: Following on from his debut in Kennington Park, Lee chose Highbury Fields as his SS24 setting. The travelling food truck catered by Norman's, Tufnell Parks’ favourite caff, perched in one corner, serving up a bite of Guinness bread and tea, while a sprawling tent nearby housed proceedings. The house’s signature check dressed the exterior, supersized and rendered in green, acting almost like cameo.

SEE: Burberry blue (and green) lips aside, print is perhaps most prominent: hardware hand-painted on silky fabrics while repeated prints fully embrace the clichés of British fruits with a punk irreverence. These aren't sweet strawberries or charming cherries, they are punchy prints zig-zagged with zippers and worn with knowing irony.

TOUCH: Shoes and bags are never far when talking about Lee and his stardust, sadly the bags were all worn (as they will be IRL) very much under the arm, so were hard to discern on the runway. But shoes – in their full oversized buckle, crystal-covered, and woven glory – were on full show. Square-toed heels are going nowhere, fast.

HEAR: Melodic, eerie but completely compelling, the show was soundtracked by the music of Dean Blunt, which famously combines elements of dub, hip-hop, electronic and post-punk to create something all together new, but not unfamiliar. Echoing Lee's approach to Burberry, perhaps? Closing the show: "Pressed" featuring Tyson.

TASTE: Trench styling 101: collar up, belted low on the hip. Or hanging off your shoulders. There is no in-between.

In related news, Burberry is taking over a city near you soon.