Our Clothes Show Live ’99 coverage

O CELEBRATE its 11th year, The Clothes Show Live, sponsored by the British Heart Foundation, was bigger and better than ever, crammed full of new fashions and celebrities to maintain its reputation as the biggest and best fashion and beauty extravaganza in the world.
   It was opened on Friday, December 3 by movie star Penny Black at the NEC in Birmingham, as 200,000 fashion lovers descended on Birmingham over the six days to check out the glamorous international models such as Lisa Ratliffe (the face of Calvin Klein) and the new styles for the millennium. These people had the opportunity to see any one of over 200 live catwalk shows. The main fashion show took place in the massive 7,000-seat British Heart Foundation Fashion Theatre, hosted by Britain’s top male presenters, Jamie Theakston and Dermot O’Leary.
   Some of the most innovative styles and fashions for the new century were paraded down the Rivella College Forum and the People’s Catwalk, where tomorrow’s hot new fashion designers previewed their latest creations, ranging from school wear for the millennium to the definitive party wear. These designers, part of the Student College Forum, are definitely worth watching. Talent such as Carol Dorham, Stephanie Hoff, Kate Wallis, Janet Emmanuel and Natasha Thiasse, whose designs were inspired by a trip to Prague, led to their imaginative, powerful and futuristic designs.