Kate, Duchess of Cambridge gets BAFTAs dress memo, other celebs chose new glam over green
The dress memo stressed sustainable. While the Duchess of Cambridge recycled for the red carpet, others just couldn’t mix green with glam.
How green is my red carpet? Not quite as verdant as the British Academy of Film and Television Arts would have hoped, apparently.
In a release sent out on Friday, the Academy announced that it had requested its stars attending the BAFTAs wear something sustainable in order to lower its carbon footprint. They suggested vintage, upcycled, rented or wearing something they had worn before.
How early guests had received this request is unknown, but clearly most didn’t get — or chose to ignore — the memo.
Saoirse Ronan was on board, in a drop-waist black Gucci gown made from discarded satin, and the Duchess of Cambridge wore a cream-and-gold Alexander McQueen gown she had worn in Malaysia eight years ago.
Joaquin Phoenix continued his pledge to wear the same Stella McCartney tuxedo for the whole awards season. When the brand announced this initiative at the start of the season, the social media response to a man wearing a suit more than once didn’t get quite the response they had hoped.
To be fair, it’s likely that Al Pacino’s New Balance sneakers had done some miles before walking down the red carpet.
What is quite surprising in all of this is that the “green carpet” movement originated in the UK, thanks to Colin Firth’s ex-wife Livia Firth, founder of sustainability consultancy Eco-Age.
It was exactly 10 years ago that Firth started the Green Carpet Challenge blog on British Vogue, which inspired stars including Emma Watson, Meryl Streep and Cameron Diaz to wear sustainably created red carpet looks.
Instead, for the BAFTAs it appeared to be glamour as usual for the stars of screens large and small, most wearing custom creations from the world’s luxury houses, as has been the case in the two decades since celebrity dressing became such an integral part of a brand’s marketing strategy.
Best actress winner Renée Zellweger – who has form for wearing vintage gowns to awards ceremonies – opted instead for a brand new mid-century style pink column dress by Prada.
Among the most striking looks of the night came from Zoe Kravitz, in a gold sequin sheath by Saint Laurent, and Florence Pugh in a puffed pink taffeta coat over black mini dress from the recent collaboration between designers Dries Van Noten and Christian Lacroix.
The pregnant star of Queen & Slim, Jodie Turner-Smith, was resplendent in daffodil sequined halter-neck Gucci, and Laura Dern was striking in fuchsia Valentino with embellished bodice.
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