Burberry closed London Fashion Week with a cinematic Fall/Winter 2026 runway show at Old Billingsgate, a Victorian-era fish market on the north bank of the River Thames.
Chief creative officer Daniel Lee — presenting his seventh collection for the heritage British house — built the show around the concept of “going out in a particularly London way,” where rain is a constant companion and a great coat is the ultimate fashion statement.
A miniature London after dark
The show marked Burberry’s first use of Old Billingsgate as a venue. Inside the cavernous Victorian hall, the creative team constructed a miniature London at night.
The centerpiece was a deconstructed interpretation of Tower Bridge — its pieces floating as though mid-assembly, dotted with small blue lights and wrapped in Burberry Check-patterned scaffolding.
English singer-songwriter FKA Twigs composed the show’s original soundtrack — a pulsating, club-inspired score that played loud enough to physically vibrate the seats. The music reinforced the collection’s nightlife theme, with models walking to a rave-friendly rhythm.
The Collection
The going-out coat
The collection’s central thesis was the elevation of outerwear from functional layering to the main event of an outfit. Lee’s show notes described the clothes as “a return to going out in a particularly London way” — where howling rain is a constant threat, and no matter how good the going-out outfit, there must be something on top.
Trench coats appeared in nearly every permutation: ruffle-necked in faille, cropped with a slightly inflated silhouette, oversized with exaggerated lapels, and rendered in leather, wool, shearling, and silk. Standout variations included a deep burgundy patchwork shearling trench, a sharply formal white wool version, and a glamorous dark shearling coat adorned with bead embellishments.
Lee described the coats as items to be “slung like accessories over sleek satin dresses”. Beneath them, the collection revealed covetable pieces — a navy silk dress swooping low at the front, and a maroon beaded fringe skirt that clicked with every catwalk step.
Leather and Fur
Leather bombers in rich plum tones with fur-trimmed collars carried a strong aviator influence — a recurring motif throughout the show. Wet-look leather coats in inky black brought a glossy, oil-slick edge, some finished with full fur collars and cinched at the waist with wide leather belts.
Fur coats appeared in varying lengths and finishes as a defining feature of the collection. One standout look featured a cream and caramel-toned fur coat cinched with a dark leather belt over a soft ivory dress, its exaggerated collar framing the face dramatically.
The London Map trench
Perhaps the most talked-about single piece was a dark leather trench etched with a detailed grid map of London across its body.
Elle described it as the coat for getting home at 4 A.M. without Google Maps. Inspired by discoveries from the Burberry archive, the piece was described as Daniel Lee’s personal favorite from the collection.
Embellishment and Detail
Trousers and dresses featured beadwork designed to mimic the effect of falling rain. Exaggerated 1980s-style epaulettes draped over the shoulders on most silhouettes, lending a confident yet romantic edge. Romantic ruffles emerged at the collars of several pieces, softening the utilitarian edge of leather and aviation references.
The Burberry heritage check was reimagined on oversized trench coats — one plaid trench styled with exaggerated lapels and aviator sunglasses felt simultaneously archival and futuristic.
Color palette and mood
The collection established what JTDapper Fashion Week described as a “diamond night mist” atmosphere. The tightly cohesive palette centered on navy, black, cream, deep plum, grey, brown, and beige — allowing texture to take center stage rather than color.
The overall mood was described as cinematic, elegant, and unmistakably British — like a quiet walk through London at night with streetlights glowing softly through cool evening air and a touch of mist blurring the city’s edges.
