by No prizes for guessing who was on the mood board when Burberry’s creative team planned its latest campaign. Olivia Colman leans against a 4×4 with lush green foliage in the background. She wears a khaki quilted coat with a distinctive Burberry check blouse peeking out at the collar and cuffs. The images could easily be mistaken for publicity stills from the era of Colman playing Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown.
The late Queen is clearly the inspiration for these shots, which form part of the new It’s Always Burberry Weather campaign, a slogan borrowed from the archives to refer to “the strong elements of the brand’s clothing and the unpredictable British weather ,” according to the fashion house. Shot by Alasdair McLellan, the campaign also features model Cara Delevingne, posing in front of the Houses of Parliament.
If anyone excelled at dressing elegantly for the unpredictable British era, it was Queen Elizabeth. As one episode of The Crownstarring Colman, witnessed, the late monarch’s country wardrobe was built to pass the “Balmoral test” – sturdy shoes and waterproof jackets were essential to meet the demands of long walks on the muddy moors where the elements were not allowed to be get in the way of the task at hand, whether it’s stalking a deer or putting Margaret Thatcher through them.
Colman is a smart move from Burberry – a national treasure in its own right – in quasi-Queen Elizabeth mode, which is currently going through a turbulent time after falling out of the FTSE 100 with losses expected to be reported in its next round. results. These images will remind people around the world of his long-standing links with the Royal family; The company was first awarded a Royal Warrant in 1955 by Queen Elizabeth and received a second one from the then Prince of Wales in 1990. Burberry weather coats are fully synonymous with the Royal family’s off-duty passion for country pastimes.
Burberry is reasserting its own heritage but also has a keen sense of royal nostalgia. It’s not the only fashion label to bash Queen Elizabeth’s country look recently. Italian designer Miuccia Prada’s label, Miu Miu, paid homage to the ‘fear of British style’ with its Miu Balmoral collection last month featuring waxed jackets, ladies’ handbags and cable-knit jumpers. Meanwhile, Fendi took Princess Anne – who undoubtedly takes after her country-chic mother – as the muse for her autumn/winter collection, which was shown in Milan earlier this year. Further back, designers from Dolce and Gabbana to Erdem and Max Mara’s Ian Griffiths have paid homage to Queen Elizabeth with their designs.
“I think the main reason designers are returning to the off-duty royal look, especially in recent years, is the relationship of the country lifestyle with sustainability and longevity,” reflects Rosie Harte, historian and author’The Royal Wardrobe: A Look at the Wardrobes of the Most Fashionable Royals in History. “The iconic images of the Queen enjoying the British countryside preserve a sense of tradition. Unlike the clothes royals wear for public events, which are specific to their unique lifestyle and are also made fresh for each event, their country look includes trendsetting items that are decades old. age that serves a practical purpose.
We also love that Queen Elizabeth accidentally became a style icon through her country attire. “Unlike her sister Margaret, the Queen didn’t try to be fashionable, just practical,” says Harte. “Her clothes had to suit the role she was playing at any given time, and it was well known that she was more comfortable in a pair of boots and a tighter coat than a shiny shoe.” Or as Suzy Menkes wrote in her 1992 book Queen and Country: “For the Queen, the country is not an irony or an escape, it is her true royal life.”
Although she is now known as the epitome of British country cool in her brogues, felts, cardigans, waterproof coats and windswept Hermès headscarves (with a Land Rover as another key accessory), this was not the Queen’s look. which does not last. win style points. She maintained a no-nonsense attitude, even when she was probably aware of the impact of the look; in 2012, Dame Margaret Barbour revealed that the Queen had asked for her old jacket to be remade rather than get rid of. “A well-worn Barbour jacket is very desirable,” said Barbour.
In the Burberry campaign, Colman nods to this innate sense of practicality. In some pictures, she is shown with a flock of sheep in front of her. She takes it all in looking as relaxed and happy as Queen Elizabeth would undoubtedly have done in the same environment.
