Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style will bring together around 300 garments and items.
Queen Elizabeth II’s stunt double’s dress, complete with bloomers, will be part of an exhibition showcasing the late monarch’s wardrobe.
Her trademark headscarves, see-through Fulton umbrellas, tweed suits and lavish dresses worn at state occasions are featured in the event, which has sold out its first few weeks with thousands of tickets snapped up.
The Queen famously took part in the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony, appearing to millions to skydive into the Olympic Stadium from a helicopter with James Bond actor Daniel Craig, after he escorted her from Buckingham Palace.
Her stunt double leapt above the arena in a dress with sown-in Victorian-style bloomers and a large zip at the back to accommodate his parachute.
Two identical dresses, designed by Angela Kelly, are on display for the first time alongside a host of items from the Queen’s wardrobe which was kept in her apartments before her death in September 2022 and are now under the care of the Royal Collection.
Exhibition curator Caroline de Guitaut said: “I think she had a definite sense of what suited her. She absolutely knew how she wanted to appear.”
Opening on Friday at the King’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace, Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style will bring together around 300 garments and items from the Queen’s wardrobe for the largest exhibition staged of her clothing.
Spanning 10 decades, the show charts her evolution from young princess to Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, exploring how fashion became one of her most powerful tools of communication.
Colour was important element of the monarchy’s soft power and the Queen used it to complement hosts, like the exhibition’s Norman Hartnell gown in green and white, Pakistan’s national colours, worn at a banquet during a 1961 state visit to the Commonwealth nation.
She opted for bright or distinctive shades at large events like away-days around the country or garden parties so she could be easily spotted by guests.
The Queen’s off-duty wardrobe is explored for the first time with her tweed suits, worn when relaxing or receiving guests at Balmoral, on display alongside clothes for riding and practical outdoor wear, with Kelly’s thick woollen coat from Elizabeth’s later years featuring alongside items by Burberry and Hardy Amies.
The Queen adapted her style to suit the period and, speaking about her long list of designers, the curator said: “Of course, they would insert whatever the contemporary prevailing fashion of the time. The hemline – Hardy Amies said ‘we went as high as we dared’ in the 60s’.
“But at the end of the day, it’s down to practicality, It’s down to what enables her to carry out her duties, I think, that was always there, that was always present.
“But that’s not to say that she doesn’t have this important contribution and interest – contribution to British fashion, and interest in fashion, which is something that has always been sort of put on the sidelines.”
Clothes worn at milestone moments during the Queen’s 96-year life are also on display, from the historic christening robe commissioned by Queen Victoria for the baptism of future Edward VII to a wedding dress created by Sir Norman Hartnell and the late monarch’s coronation dress.
Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style is at the King’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace, will run from April 10 to October 18.
