Victoria Starmer attended a London fashion week event, making one of her first public appearances since stepping back from her role following her husband’s departure from office.
She attended the Edeline Lee show on Sunday. The London-based, Canadian-British designer is a favourite of the Princess of Wales, and his creations have also been worn by celebrities such as singer Taylor Swift and actor-screenwriter Phoebe Waller-Bridge.
The spring/summer 2027 collection was presented in the unusual setting of a north London school sports hall. Starmer wore a bright turquoise knitted midi dress featuring a high neckline, pleated detailing, and short sculptural sleeves, paired with white block-heeled shoes, her hair styled in loose waves.
Departing from the traditional backstage preparations, the event featured models being fitted and adjusted in full view of the audience. Dancers rehearsed beside the catwalk, while a drone captured the proceedings from the high ceiling of the gymnasium.
Starmer was photographed having her makeup applied beside the catwalk, set against a backdrop of a football net with products laid out on a table. Ballerinas stretched nearby, while synchronised swimming-inspired dancers performed in bright red costumes at the school in Chalk Farm.
The collection drew inspiration from the Greek myth of Sisyphus, depicting a man condemned to push a boulder uphill, only for it to roll back down each time he reaches the top.
“There’s a general feeling right now of relentlessness, a Sisyphean cycle,” Lee explained. “I was already thinking about the ballet—dance is incredibly transporting, but the work behind it is so intense, the way dancers train for years, the endless repetition, for one ecstatic moment of performance, and then they’re back in the studio.” “I wanted to acknowledge the rigour and hard work behind that moment—much like the skill and artistry required of my team to present beautiful clothes.”
During her husband’s tenure, Lady Starmer maintained a low public profile, though her “political chic” and “modern British” aesthetic was widely admired. She has consistently favoured contemporary British brands such as ME+EM, Needle & Thread, and Edeline Lee, whose primary design studio is located in east London.
In 2024, during London fashion week’s spring/summer shows while her husband was still prime minister, Lady Starmer took a front-row seat at Edeline Lee’s show. That event was held at Millbank Tower, a former campaign headquarters for Labour and the Conservatives, which currently houses Reform UK’s central office.
On that occasion, she wore a borrowed £615 cream pussy-bow blouse featuring a navy polka dot print, paired with matching £715 wide-leg trousers.
This appearance came amid controversy over free clothes for Lady Starmer, with Keir Starmer facing an investigation into a potential breach of parliamentary rules regarding gifts.
He had previously failed to declare that some of his wife’s designer clothes had been purchased for her by his largest personal donor, Lord Alli. The Sunday Times reported that the Labour peer had funded a personal shopper, clothing, and alterations both before and after Starmer assumed the premiership.
