Burberry unfolds its Fall/Winter 2025 collection within the hallowed halls of Tate Britain, celebrating a one-year partnership supporting vital conservation work at the museum’s world-leading Painting Conservation Studio. Daniel Lee’s mood for this collection was all about the great weekend escape – city dwellers fleeing London on a Friday night, off to the rolling hills and misty estates of the English countryside – where the rain-slicked exodus from London meets the faded elegance of Britain’s grand country manors. Velvet brocade jackets mimic flocked wallpaper, tapestries weave their way into jacquard coats, and hand-painted wallpaper swatches inspire delicate lacework and feathered trims.
Burberry has always been about storytelling, and this season, the house took that literally by bringing British actors to the runway alongside celebrity models Naomi Campbell, Lila Moss, and Nora Attal. Richard E. Grant, Lesley Manville, Jason Isaacs, and Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù, all synonymous with Britain’s silver screen, also walked the runway, embodying the characters of Lee’s country house narrative and giving the show a cinematic, character-driven feel. The casting wasn’t just about diversity in age and experience; it added a certain personality to the collection, making the clothes feel like they already had stories woven into them.
A vision of modern aristocratic irreverence shapes the runway, and there is an undeniable sense of decadence undone as sumptuous fabrics borrowed from the interiors of English manors are reshaped into outerwear. It was as if the wardrobe of an old estate had been dusted off and reborn, not in a museum, but in the streets of London.
Textures are everything. There are rich damasks, delicate lacework, embossed leathers, and rugged shearling — all nodding to the idea of interiors becoming exteriors. Some coats looked like they had been cut straight from a grand old drawing room, while others felt purpose-built for braving the elements on a long walk through the Yorkshire Dales (a personal inspiration for Lee). And then there were the details — feathered trims cut to resemble pheasant prints, weathered leathers on totes and holdalls, and classic Burberry check woven into heirloom-worthy pieces. The B Bracelet bag, a new addition, played on the House’s equestrian roots, while shoes ranged from stately slippers to sturdy riding boots.
Music, as always, plays a major part of Burberry’s runway experience, and for this show, longtime collaborator Benji B dug deep into the archives of Sinéad O’Connor, creating a hauntingly emotional tribute and backdrop for the show. Tracks like Troy, I Am Stretched on Your Grave, and Special Cases (her collaboration with Massive Attack) underscored the collection’s themes of melancholy, nostalgia, and rebellion — a perfect match for the rugged romance of Lee’s Burberry.
If Lee’s goal has been to redefine Burberry for a new era, he’s doing it by embracing Britain’s slightly eccentric, deeply stylish, and effortlessly cool side. For Lee, F/W 2025 wasn’t just about creating a collection; it was a whole mood — one that celebrated the charm of being a little undone, a little raw, a little nostalgic, but always ready for the next adventure. And with that, the Burberry traveler packs up once again, off to wherever the weekend takes them next.
