New York is glossy and commercial, Milan is sexy and frenetic, and Paris is the big one – where most designers given half the chance to flock and show their clothes in the city where haute couture was born. London, on the other hand, is kind of a mess. It’s chaotic and all over the place, a wild, kaleidoscopic riot of creatives cobbling together collections with not very much – just a DIY attitude and a dream. The British fashion scene has turned out countless bolshy designers with big things to say – from Vivienne Westwood, to McQueen and Galliano, to more recently established upstarts like Charles Jeffrey, Mowalola, Chopova Lowena, and more.

Supporting this thriving fashion scene since 1993 is NEWGEN. The brainchild of the British Fashion Council, the talent initiative has incubated some of the finest talents to ever come out of the UK, including Christopher Kane, JW Anderson, Kim Jones, Meadham Kirchoff, and Nasir Mazhar, providing mentorship and support via all-important funding. Now celebrating its 30th birthday, the BFC has debuted a stellar new exhibition which encompasses the cream of the crop coming out of NEWGEN: from pivotal, game-changing collections, to iconic garments, and the culture surrounding it all – like the club nights and underground happenings were relationships were formed and drunken ideas took seed. 

Needless to say, for those living in or visiting London, it’s a must-see, taking place at the Design Museum until the end of February 2024. But in case you’re not convinced already, here’s five reasons you need to stop by.

IT PIECES TOGETHER MCQUEEN’S LEGENDARY TAXI DRIVER COLLECTION 

There’s no end to the amount of Alexander McQueen collections that could legitimately be labelled ‘iconic’, but perhaps his most notorious offering was the one that disappeared without trace never to be seen again. 

Graduating out of Central Saint Martins’ hallowed halls in 1992, McQueen turned out his second collection in the form of Taxi Driver [AW93], and in the process introduced the world to his signature bumster trousers. Post-show, with positive reviews from the press ringing in his ears, McQueen packed the line down into black bags and carted them off to a nightclub, where he hid it behind the bins as he partied late into the night. Unsurprisingly, when morning rolled round, the bags were gone, tragically destined for landfill. 

Now, one of the first installations you come to as you enter the exhibition meticulously recreates looks from the ill-fated Taxi Driver line and places them in a recreation of the pokey flat they came to fruition in. It’s an exhilarating opportunity to get a look not quite at the original garments, but a close approximation, and hear the inspiration and legacy behind it via a detailed narration of its inception from friend and team member Simon Ungless. 

And while we’re on the topic of McQueen, there’s also a chance to reappraise the boundary-breaking 1998 issue of Dazed, which was guest-edited by the designer and featured amputee model Aimee Mullins on the cover – part of wall of clippings from magazines like this charting 30 years of NEWGEN designers and pop culture moments [like Kylie Minogue walking at LFW].

YOU CAN GO CLUBBING AT 9AM, IF YOU LIKE 

London’s fashion scene is inextricably linked with its nightlife, with the city’s pubs and clubs just as likely to be the places where brands are founded and collections formulated as classrooms and studios. Recognising this unique synergy is a darkened room within Rebel, where a supercut of frenetic video footage celebrates nights like Loverboy, which took over Dalston’s Vogue Fabrics and birthed Charles Jeffrey’s label, and Trash, where brands like Sibling, Gareth Pugh, and Meadham Kirchoff found their feet. Also included are jungle and drum and bass and soundsystem nights, as well as grime parties, where clothes by NEWGEN alumni like game-changing legend Nasir Mazhar and KTZ ruled. 

IT’S A REMINDER OF HOW IMPORTANT SCHEMES LIKE NEWGEN ARE 

While the show was an inspiring, energising reminder about everything great about British fashion, it was also tinged with a bit of sadness, as you realised just how many of the brands that were supported and celebrated by NEWGEN are no longer around – like bratty upstarts Meadham Kirchoff, knitwear legends Sibling, and one-of-a-kind glitter king Julien MacDonald – and others who’ve been bashed and bruised by the industry, like Scottish wunderkind Christopher Kane and pioneering Nasir Mazhar, who stepped away from fashion after growing disillusioned with the way it operates. With the Tories and their right-wing cronies stripping away educational opportunities and funding within the creative realm, incubators like NEWGEN and Fashion East are more pertinent than ever to prevent fashion from becoming more of a playground for the very wealthy than it already is.

YOU GET TO SEE BJÖRK’S ICONIC SWAN DRESS IRL 

The moment the Icelandic musician stepped out at the 2001 Oscars in a white feathered swan gown has gone down in history as one of the most iconic red carpet moments ever, but did you know who designed the look? That would be Marjan Pejoski, former NEWGEN recipient and member of KTZ. Also worn on the cover of her album Vespertine, the dress is now on show as part of the Rebel exhibition and in London for the first time ever, after the BFC tracked it down from the person who paid just $9,500 for it on eBay in 2005. And if that’s not a reason to score a ticket ASAP, then I’m not sure what is. 

Grab your tickets here. 

@dazed Tfw you spot yourself in @the Design Museum 👀 The REBEL: 30 Years of Fashion exhibition sponsored by @Alexander McQueen explores London’s leading role in global fashion and is on until February #londonexhibitions #fashiontiktok #designer #britishfashioncouncil #itgirl ♬ IT GIRL - aliyahsinterlude