‘Know thyself’ was written over the portal of the antique world. Over the portal of the new world, ‘Be thyself’ shall be written.”

— Oscar Wilde, 1891

MCQUEEN AUTUMN WINTER 2025

“To me, dandyism is the ultimate act of adornment; deeply personal, playful and transgressive. It raises questions of character and identity, idealism and gender. I wanted to explore the enduring relevance of the dandy’s radical spirit in our modern world.”

— Seán McGirr, Creative Director

COLLECTION:

London, by night.

Dandyism — unravelled and rewritten. Artists, writers and aesthetes, decorated for distinction. Oscar Wilde, Vesta Tilley, Romaine Brooks.

The neo-dandy — visceral and tactile pleasures, borrowing from the codes of the Victorian Gothic. Fluid silks and textured lace with intricately traced florals; layered and raw edged, brushing against skin. Intimate opulence and adornment.

The tension between spectacle and concealment. Gold bullion embroidered cloaks and crystalline masks, glimmering in the dark. Black sculpted hats by Philip Treacy, angular and obscuring.

A proud silhouette. Lean, sharp suiting subverting British tailoring traditions. Tall book-pleated collars and pinched Victorian shoulders. Enveloping shearling and elongated boots.

Irreverent artistry. Technical performance fabrics clashed with opulent heirloom jewels. Tailcoat parkas with mirrored facets, reflecting the electricity of London.

Darkly decadent jacquards, suiting and wool cashmere unfolding into hallucinatory colour. Swirling plumes of fuchsia, iced lilac and green. Deep plum nylon against rippling silk georgette.

FABRICS:

Wool tailoring — double-faced wool cashmere in black. Cavalry twill wool in black. Wool gabardine in black, woven in British mills.

Silk — washed silk satin organza in black and gesso. Silk georgette in black, fuchsia, iced green, lilac, plum and poppy red. Silk organza woven with natural shearling.

Lace — fine serpentine rose lace in black and crimson. Chantilly floral lace in black, ivory, crimson and iced lilac. Flower applique, glass bead and sequin embroidered lace tights in black and crimson.

Leather and shearling — black leather, antiqued brown leather, tufted shearling in black, fuchsia, ivory and natural.

Nylon — tri-layer waterproof nylon in navy and plum.

Jacquard — sunflowers woven in metallic black and deep green, and silver and gold.

EMBROIDERY:

Naturalistic motifs woven through a crystal ribcage comprised of glass stones, bullion and metal mesh. Studded sunflower embroidery featuring metal and faceted beads and crystal, and jet sunflower embroidery featuring glass beads, faceted beads and sequins. Gold work comprised of bullion and metal sequins, inspired by archival McQueen bullion.

ACCESSORIES:

Hats – Philip Treacy for McQueen.

Masks – Matthew Empringham and Frederic Coomes for McQueen.

BAGS:

The Farringdon – supple leather with McQueen harness detail in black leather, oxblood leather and oxblood suede. The T-Bar Sling bag — sculptural cross-body with polished T-Bar buckle. The Drop bag — spherical with a hardened exterior; metal with crystal mirror embroidery and pearlescent finish.

JEWELLERY:

Victorian naturalism and Oscar Wilde-inspired motifs — crystal-encrusted sunflowers and sharp faceted jewellery.

SHOES:

The Corvax boots, mules and Oxfords — elongated laced and buckled shoes, sharpened to a fine point. Black, crimson, ivory, silver, patent black and patent fuchsia leather, and black, crimson and fuchsia lace.

SHOW SPACE:

Featuring an installation by Tom Scutt. A sharp portal cutting through Victorian architecture. Portrait-like, echoing The Picture of Dorian Gray. Mirrored and askew. Ambient and otherworldly, aglow in tungsten-tinged and absinthe-like light.

MUSIC:

Nineteenth century strings blending into hypnotic arpeggios by French musician Ange Halliwell. Followed by a soundscape cycling through genres and states after dark, featuring international artists and a continuing collaboration with British artists driving innovation in UK music.

“My Secret Grief” by Ange Halliwell

“flight fm” by Joy Orbison, written by Peter O’Grady, Publishing by Sony Music Publishing Limited, courtesy of XL Recordings

“Crazy for Love” by D-Breeze and remixed by Autechre, courtesy of Skam Records and Warp Records

“Menthol” by The Force Dimension

“Found” performed by John Glacier, written by John Glacier, composed by Kwes Darko, licensed courtesy of Young Recordings, Young Songs Ltd and Sony Music Publishing

“Cherry Stem (Alternative Version)” by Ssaliva

“Only the Stones Remain” by The Soft Boys, courtesy of Tiny Ghost Records

CREDITS:

Philip Treacy OBE is a London-based Irish milliner and long-term collaborator of the house, having worked with Lee Alexander McQueen since the early nineties.

Tom Scutt is a British Tony award-winning artist working across theatre, live music and fashion as production designer, stage director and creative director. Notable recent work includes Cabaret (West End/Broadway), Pet Shop Boys Dreamworld tour, and Carmen at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York.

Matthew Empringham and Frederic Coomes are a London-based design duo, supported by the Sarabande Foundation. They graduated from the BA Fashion course at Central Saint Martins in 2024, launching their brand Aletta that same year.

The Galerie de Géologie et de Minéralogie is part of the French National Museum of Natural History. Situated in the Jardin des Plantes, Paris, it was established as the Royal Cabinet of Natural History in 1785, housing scientific curiosities and wonders of the natural world.

Styling: Sarah Richardson

Casting: Julia Lange

Hair: Gary Gill

Make up: Daniel Sallstrom

Nails: Ama Quashie

Concept and Production Design: Tom Scutt

Music: Cyrus Goberville

Movement: Pat Boguslawski