London comes calling on L.A.
Britain came to L.A. Thursday night when Burberry hosted an epic bash and runway show at the Griffith Observatory in the shadow of the Hollywood sign, with David, Victoria, Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper Beckham; Elton John, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Cara Delevingne, Jason Statham, January Jones and Anna Wintour among the 700 guests.
The British luxury brand and its chief creative and executive officer, Christopher Bailey, pulled out all the stops, from the majestic U.S. and British flags waving overhead as guests approached the parking lot to the specially made Georgianstyle wrought iron gates at the entrance, featuring the observatory in silhouette. A runway show tent was erected in front of the observatory for the occasion, and placed at each seat was a checked Burberry scarf with the specific guest’s monogrammed initials.
The evening began with sunset cocktails (and photo ops) in a lav-ender-and rose-filled garden.
The runway show featured an encore presentation of Burberry’s fall 2015 collection, which premiered in London in February, modeled by some of the biggest names in the business, including Jourdan Dunn and the show-stopping supermodel and “Empire” diva Naomi Campbell, who shut it down in a swinging fringe poncho.
The show closed with a collection of only-in-L.A. exclusive eveningwear, available at Burberry’s Rodeo Drive store.
A favorite part of the evening was seeing David Beckham cuddle his adorable daughter Harper, 3, on his lap. The chic tot was wearing a tiny Burberry trench dress.
British music acts George Ezra, Tom Odell, Clare Maguire and Benjamin Clementine performed live tracks during the show, against a wood cutout of the London skyline.
The runway extravaganza concluded with James Corden, host of “The Late Late Show,” hamming it up for the crowd and beckoning them outside. (Corden said a backstage skit will be featured on his show Monday.)
But it wasn’t over yet. As the show ended, the First Battalion Grenadier Guards (you know, the guys with the furry hats in front of Buckingham Palace — they were flown in from London for the occasion) led models and guests outside as the end of the runway opened to the outdoors, revealing the Griffith Observatory facade, lighted up with giant digital projections of British and U.S. flags.
“Griffith Observatory for me is this iconic building on top of a hill where James Dean came, so the idea that we could come to this site and have a little piece of London here was a dream — and overlooking the whole of Los Angeles,” said Bailey.
“Isn’t this wonderful,” said City Councilman Tom LaBonge. “And the thing is, [Burberry] is donating a half-million dollars to the Griffith Observatory education fund over the next two years.”
A high point in Anglo-Angeleno relations for sure.