Coronation gown spotlights

Queen Camilla’s style

IN just a few days’ time, the eyes of Britain and millions more around the world will be on Camilla as she is crowned queen alongside her husband, King Charles III.

“It’ll be the dress that will be the most talked about, it will be analyzed in every detail,” said Caroline Young, a writer specialising in fashion.

While the design of Camilla’s gown is being kept under wraps, the 75-year-old queen consort commissioned British couturier Bruce Oldfield, who boasts a long list of highprofile clients, including Charles’s ex-wife Princess Diana.

According to fashion expert and royals’ commentator Miranda Holder, the coronation gown is going to “define” Camilla.

“It’s going to go down in history,” she added.

Britain last held a coronation in 1953. Charles’s mother Queen Elizabeth II wore an intricately embroidered white satin gown on the day.

But Camilla is likely to opt for something less luxurious with the new king keen to slim down the ceremony as the country grapples with a cost of living crisis.

When the royal procession arrives at Westminster Abbey on Saturday, the queen will be cloaked in a crimson velvet “Robe of State”, originally made for Elizabeth 70 years ago.

Camilla will be crowned with Elizabeth’s grandmother Queen Mary’s Crown, which she wore at the coronation of her husband King George V in 1911.

In honour of Camilla’s late mother-in-law, the crown will be reset with several diamonds from her personal jewellery collection. AFP

Britain’s Camilla, Queen Consort