Fashion protest over terror plans - Oct 2 2007
British designer Vivienne Westwood used her Paris fashion show as a platform to protest against Britain’s moves to increase the number of days terrorist suspects can be held without charge.

She sent models down the catwalk wrapped in T-shirts and silk blankets printed with "56" -- the maximum number of days the government reportedly wants to hold terror suspects, doubling the current limit.

After the display, she launched a stinging attack on Gordon Brown, amid growing speculation that he will call an early election.

"I’ll be voting against him, definitely. Anything to get him out," said Westwood, who is best known as one of the founders of the punk movement in the 1970s.

The Home Office said that, while a 56-day limit on detentions has been widely reported, no formal proposal was ever made and that officials are still trying to determine how much longer they would like to hold terror suspects.

Currently, suspects need to be charged or released within 28 days.

Westwood accused Mr Brown of behaving like a "tyrant" and said the measures would not protect British citizens against terrorism.

"We need people (in court) in front of the law -- this will protect me," she said.



Viv’s goth designs - Feb 05
Vivienne Westwood designs for Marilyn Manson’s wedding. The designer, often known as The Queen of Punk, made friends with Manson and his fiancée Dita Von Teese at a dinner party last year (what we wouldn’t give to be a fly on the wall at that bash!) and has now been asked to design Von Teese’s wedding dress. The bride has confirmed that the wedding dress won’t be gothic, red or black but nor will it be a white meringue.

Punk-show - Aug 04
Vintage Vivienne Westwood designs will be on show in a London gallery later this year.

The Hospital Gallery will be showing a number of items relating to Sex Pistol, Sid Vicious and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen in an exhibition which also includes items from the couples hotel room where Vicious allegedly stabbed Nancy to death. The items will come from Westwood and Malcolm MacLaren’s SEX shop, a punk emporium made famous in the late 70s.

Vivienne Westwoods retrospective - April 04
The Victoria & Albert Museum is hosting a retrospective to this great designer, which takes us through more then 30 years of Vivienne’s fashion history, through punk to New Romantic through the reinvention of the corset!

Celebrities including Jerry Hall, Sadie Frost and Kate Moss were all present and suitably attired at the gala held to honour the designer. Vivienne said about her clothes "I’ve fallen in love with these things over and over again"

Exhibits include such iconic fashion memorabilia as Sex Pistols gear worn by Johnny Rotten in 1976 and a pair of outrageously tall blue platform shoes which famously tripped up supermodel Naomi Campbell on the catwalk in 1993. The exhibition opens on April 1 and runs until July 11.

For those interested - The Berkeley Hotel in Knightsbridge has organised weekends to celebrate the opening of the V&A’s Westwood retrospective. The price of a room there will also include entry to the musuem, a bottle of Boudoir perfume and afternoon tea for two. Until July 11. Inquiries: 020 7235 6000.