If the dress code for Vogue World: London was drama, Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan nailed the brief in Harris Reed. Ticking all the boxes on an evening celebrating British culture, the actor’s corseted gown was beguiling, but eccentric—a clever proposition from one of the capital’s biggest fashion dreamers, who frequently fuses his off-kilter fabulous work with the theatrical.
Reed’s campy glam reference points, which span debutante balls, club kids, pearly kings and queens, and Shakespeare, are the perfect match for Coughlan, who rose to fame as the romantic town gossip Penelope Featherington, but most recently put her stamp on Mattel’s bubblegum universe, courtesy of her role as Diplomat Barbie in the summer blockbuster. On the red carpet, the Irish actor is pure joy—a polite riot of unapologetically bold colors, textures, and silhouettes—which fit within the realm of her prim-meets-playful aesthetic, but somehow always manage to get people talking. Translation: the perfect poster girl for Reed, whose mission is to celebrate individualism.
“What I love about Nicola and so many of the individuals I get to work with, like Ashley Graham and Precious Lee, is that they feel so confident within their skin and know how they want their body to feel,” says Harris, who balances his eponymous brand design with the not insignificant task of rebooting the house of Nina Ricci in Paris.
The demi-couturier landed upon a black velvet dress with a silk double duchess satin wrap for Nicola to turn heads in at Vogue World: London, with further help from his high-drama millinery beloved by other daring dressers, from Beyoncé to Iman. “Nicola owns who she is, she knows what she wants and she’s fierce,” says Reed of his friend, who was once unfathomably intimidated by the industry that now counts her as one of its own. “Speaking up is so important and, for our brand, it’s all about using your voice and embracing who you are,” adds Harris.
So what does Coughlan’s Vogue World: London look say? Nicola knows her way around a corset, sure. But the notion of glamour is a fluid concept. “I’m always trying to rewrite what Hollywood looks like,” asserts Reed, who trades in deconstructed ballgowns designed for anyone who wants to feel sensational. “In these super uncertain times with the strikes, it was so important for me to look back at the past and the 1920s and Veronica Lake, and imagine Old Hollywood glamour for one of the biggest starlets we have in today’s society.”
Making Coughlan feel “as iconic as possible” on the night did not faze Harris, who staged his spring summersummer 2024 show at the Tate on the eve of the West End spectacle. “I’m all about being dramatic as f*ck,” he says in the kind of throwaway manner that indeed makes him dramatic as f*ck. “For me, my whole experience at Central Saint Martins was about embracing art. Now, it’s all about feeding into the fact that this is a place of art, fashion, and beauty. We have to fight for that and can’t let London go unnoticed.” A job well done from these partners in fabulousness.
Director: Anna O
Donohue
Director of Photography: Lloyd Willacy
Editor: Nicole Cimei
Producer: Alex Ayodele-Otele
Associate Director, Creative Development: Alexandra Gurvitch
Producer, On Set: Joe Myers
Post Producer: Qieara Lesesne
Assistant Camera: Mike Moreira
Audio: Simon Haggis
Production Assistant: Matt Smith
Assistant Editor: Justin Symonds
Post Production Coordinator: Holly Frew, Jovan James
Supervising Editor: Kameron Key
Associate Director, Post Production: Nicholas Ascanio
Production Coordinator: Ava Kashar
Production Manager: Natasha Soto-Albors
Line Producer: Romeeka Powell
Senior Director, Production Management: Jessica Schier
Associate Talent Manager: Phoebe Feinberg
Global Entertainment Director, The Talent Group: Deborah Ababio
Director of Content, Production: Rahel Gebreyes
Executive Producer: Ruhiya Nuruddin
Senior Director, Programming: Linda Gittleson
VP, Digital Video English: Thespena Guatieri
Filmed at: The Savoy, London
See every look from the Vogue World 2023 red carpet in London here.
