Galliano dazzles with Dior show

The British creative director of Christian Dior, John Galliano, seduced Paris fashion week on Monday with a show that turned the clock back to the Sixties, evoking the spirit of Jackie O and rich bored housewives a la Anne Bancroft in The Graduate. Opening the show with Mrs Robinson, the title track from the 1967 movie, creative director Galliano sent bouffant-haired models down the catwalk wearing slimline daysuits in acid colours of fuchsia, orange and violet. A dazzling set of evening wear included a giant bright pink puffball, with Galliano's trademark 'rise and fall' hemline which touched the floor at the back and rose at the front to reveal a crystal-beaded short skirt.

Galliano said the collection was inspired by a visit to the American Vogue archives from the Sixties, a time when the legendary Diana Vreeland was editing the magazine. "I looked into the similar period at Dior when Yves Saint Laurent and, then, Marc Bohan, were designing for the house, Bailey and Avedon and Penn were taking great fashion photographs and it was a time of optimism and bright colours. It seemed to me it is what's needed right now." In the front row was one of the Sixties' leading cover girls, Marisa Berenson, along with actresses Lucy Liu and Monica Cruz.