Julien Macdonald is putting his talents behind an important cause (Image: -)
When you are trying to alert the world to the dangers of a silent killer, it helps if one of the greatest showmen of his time assists you in capturing the limelight. Julien Macdonald, a former Welsh wunderkind who remains a titan of fashion, is an ardent warrior in the battle to stop osteoporosis claiming lives.
It is estimated around 90,000 people are missing out on potentially life-saving treatment. Mr Macdonald, who has spent decades dealing in dramatic dazzle, brings his signature passion to his efforts as an ambassador for the Royal Osteoporosis Society.
The connection with the campaigning charity was born when he picked up the phone and was presented with a proposition: “Oh, we love your style. Would you do a fashion show for us in the Royal Palace?” He orchestrated a fashion spectacular at Lancaster House but the person who captured the headlines was not a supermodel but the future Queen, the Duchess of Cornwall.
He has a three word description of Camilla, who is the president of the charity: “She’s amazing, obviously.”
This is a cause close to the Queen’s heart. Both her mother and her grandmother died of osteoporosis.
The charity is pushing Health Secretary Wes Streeting to deliver on his pre-election promise to end a postcode lottery which means simple checks for osteoporosis are not performed in around half of NHS trusts when someone in an at-risk age group turns up with a fracture for the first time. Ending this oversight – which is the key demand of the Sunday Express’s Better Bones campaign – would prevent an estimated 74,000 further fractures over five years, saving the NHS £665million.
Mr Macdonald brings much more to the campaign that fundraising flair. His clothes, worn by the likes of Taylor Swift, Eva Longoria and Kim Kardashian are famed for their pyrotechnic glamour, and his events crackle with an uplifting energy that is entirely fitting for a charity which believes osteoporosis can be beaten if only Government ministers would take action.
Read more: Wes Streeting’s dithering leads to 17,000 broken bones and £150m bill
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Julien Macdonald, the then-Duchess of Cornwall and Julien’s mother, Joan (Image: PA)
A recent Forbes magazine article in response to his London Fashion Week show at the Shard argued that Mr Macdonald’s brand stands for “for something greater: the refusal to shrink under pressure”. Such a spirit is found in everyone fighting to get basic checks in place for osteoporosis.
“I’m all about woman empowerment, being strong and being healthy and loving the body that that you’re in, no matter what shape, age, or size, or where you come from in the world,” he says.
Mr Macdonald’s life story is worthy of a Hollywood biopic or a West End musical. He was born in 1972 in Merthyr Tydfil, a proud South Wales Valleys town battered by the collapse of heavy industry. His mum taught him to knit, he headed to Brighton to study fashion and then he won a place at the Royal College of Art, where he staged a legendary graduation show. He was spotted by Karl Lagerfeld who put his talents to work for Chanel and he succeeded Alexander McQueen as creative director of Givenchy.
He recently dropped by his old comprehensive, Cyfarthfa High School, with a message for both the students and the parents. It may look as if he has enjoyed meteoric success but he says the “journey of life” is “hard” and he warns against crushing dreams and ambitions burning in young hearts.
“Look,” he says, “my dream came true and I’m standing in front of you as a living testament to that. I went to my mother and father when I was 14 and said I wanted to be an international, famous fashion designer.
“My father said to me, ‘Don’t be so stupid!’ And then I said, ‘I also want to go to university.’ My mother said, ‘People like us don’t go to university.’”
He used his moment in front of the parents at his former school to tell them: “Always put confidence into your children and encourage every single dream that they want to do, no matter how kind of crazy, obscure, or far away it can be – because all they need is your support.”
Whether a child aspires to be a fashion designer, a mathematician or an astronaut, he urges parents to say: “We are behind you and we’ll be there for every part of that journey.”
Julien MacDonald with the King and Queen last year (Image: Kin Cheung/WPA Pool/Shutterstock)
He speaks with awe about the women he dresses. His imagination is fired by performers of unbridled energy such as Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez, Kylie Minogues and Dame Shirley Bassey.
Alongside these international icons, he says his mum has “always been an inspiration” in his life.
Now 92, she remains “very glamorous” and is a fixture at his shows – though for his most recent spectacular at the Shard, “we didn’t tell her where she was going because unfortunately my mother is scared of heights”.
She has crossed paths with the Queen on more than one occasion.
Ahead of their most recent convergence, his mum wondered if Camilla would remember her. He told her: “I think she will.”
Sure enough, the Queen recognised the mother of Wales’ most celebrated fashion designer.
The pair had a “right old chit-chat”, causing onlookers to ask: “Does your mother know the Queen?”
“She’s met her a few times now,” he said.
Julien Macdonald has never shied away from glamour (Image: Getty)
He has lost none of his excitement about the life-altering delight clothes can bring. Women are known to break into tears of joy when they put on one of his creations
“Are you okay?” he remembers asking one of his overcome clients.
She told him: “Well Julien, I just feel like a million dollars. I’ve always had a dream of how I wanted to look but your your clothes make me look like that Hollywood star I’ve always wanted to be.
“I feel so special and happy and your clothes have just changed my life.”
He is fascinated by the power of what you wear to shape your existence, even if it is just for one night.
“You know, it was Andy Warhol who said everybody can be famous for 15 minutes. Just wear a Julien Macdonald dress and make it 25,” he says with the glee of a master salesman.
He is famed for his love of sequins but he designs dresses intended to bring a new luminosity to the person fortunate enough to try them on
“They just become happy… You know, they sparkle, they shine, and it’s just a sense of happiness.”
As well as kindling pleasure, he aims to ignite a sense of strength.
“My clothes empower women to be who they are, or even who they want to be.”
The designer with models in 2004 (Image: Myung Jung Kim)
There is something countercultural about the exuberance and colour of his works in an era of fretful handwringing about global threats.
As he puts it: “There’s enough doom and gloom in the world.”
Mr Macdonald remains a true believer in the magic of glamour.
He is proud of the “extreme sophistication” he brings to his craft but he revels in “sassiness”. People wear his clothes “to be seen”, he says, and he delivers garments which ensure heads turn.
His talents have directed world attention to Britain’s osteoporosis crisis and won the admiration of a Queen. As campaigners push Labour to honour its pledges and tackle the horrors of bone disease, this champion of elegance, strength and confidence is powerful ally in an urgent cause.