Fashion designer extraordinaire John Galliano was awarded a CBE by the Queen for his services to fashion on Tuesday, calling it “one of the greatest honours” he’s ever received. Dressed in a dark suit and pale waistcoat – minus a shirt – for the ceremony, Galliano took the opportunity to praise the monarch’s sartorial sense.
“I think she’s sublime, fantastic,” said the celebrated designer at his Buckingham Palace investiture. “She has created a style of her own – so has the Queen Mother.”
“I have fantasised about designing for them both,” he admits, “but I don’t think I could take that job on.”
Galliano took over as creative director at the House of Dior in 1996, becoming the first British designer to head a French couture house. He has since quadrupled sales for the venerable firm. His cutting-edge style and barely-there gowns have elicited endless praise, with many calling the four-times British Designer Of The Year a genius – a description he rejects.
“I always think being called a genius makes it sound kind of easy. As though you wake up and it just happens,” says the designer, who turns 41 on Wednesday. “I work really hard!”
Next up for Galliano, a St Martins School graduate, is the launch of a signature fragrance, plus a new shop in Paris.
Football commentator John Motson was also honoured at the Tuesday ceremony. “I was more nervous meeting the Queen that I’ve ever been before a commentary,” he said. “This is the climax of my career.”
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
