The Durham University Fashion Show 2015 was incredible, as these pictures show

The pinnacle of the Durham social calendar

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Last Friday saw the opening night of the inaugural Durham University Charity Fashion Show, and it was one of the best years yet.

Hundreds of well-dressed guests flocked to The Sands for an evening of entertainment, booze, and ultimately staring at beautiful people. This year the fashion show was raising money for The GAP Project, managing an impressive sum of almost £10,000.

The night was held together by the compères Mungo Haldane and Sam Horbye, who managed to keep the audience amused throughout the evening. Their chat was certainly geared towards the well-known, well-to-do members of the university, with one audience member commenting they were “so Bailey it’s unbelievable”, but they managed to make a considerably tough gig look like a walk in the park with their energy and wit. The inclusion of text-ins proved hilarious as the audience relaxed more and provided a cheeky insight into Durham’s salacious gossip triangles.

The theme of the show this year was ambiguously titled “Urban Classic”. We asked Creative Director, Ed Little, to give us an explanation in layman’s terms. He murmured something about the President’s year abroad in Amsterdam, the complex juxtaposition between urban charisma and classic style, and Theo Walcott.

Probably more confused than we were before, we went to Vice-President Katy Roxburgh to make things clearer. She described “Urban Classic” as a movement that has been happening in Durham in recent years: the “classic” Cathedral city of red chinos and signet rings has recently seen an “urban” influx of Nike Air Max and short back and side. This mix of looks that defines Durham today is what “Urban Classic” attempted to capture, and the impressive array of clothes on display certainly succeeded.

From blinding ski suits to sleek snapbacks, the clothes displayed the full array of styles present in Durham.

Between walks the audience were entertained by three brilliant dances from Troupe, who were the unspoken stars of the night, leaving onlookers stunned with their slick moves.

The models themselves of course looked incredible, showing confidence and poise as they strutted down the catwalk. It was clear that they’d worked hard to pull of such an effortless performance, and the choreography really made the most of the set-up, with VIP and Premium ticket holders benefitting especially from it.

Things really hotted up in the “Uptown Funk” walk. The models let loose and the audience absolutely loved it, standing up in their chairs and high-fiving anything that walked past. Things kept pace from there, and the night was definitely improved by the relaxed vibe and audience interaction.

The charity auction went down incredibly well, with exceptional amounts of money being raised due to a combination of generosity and blind drunkenness. The hot air balloon ride for two was especially popular, selling for a whopping £700. Let’s hope that whoever bought it actually gets laid.

We were lucky enough to go backstage and have a chat with the models, and they did not disappoint. The general consensus was that this year had been the best fashion show yet and all of them were absolutely loving it. Model/goddess Ellie Pomeroy described her night as “absolutely fantastic” while her co-star Toby emphasised the importance of maintaining a chilled vibe, even if you are owner of a face carved by angels.

When asked who of their co-models they fancied the most, the general consensus swayed towards Ellie Butler for the girls and James Warlock of the boys; as you all know The Tab always strives to put forward the hard-hitting questions.

We even managed to sneak into the male changing room as they were all preparing for the underwear walk. As you can imagine, tension was high and all the weights were in use in a last minute attempt to maximise the effects of all those protein shakes.

It was all worth it in the end, with the much anticipated underwear walk showing both girls and boys to be smoking hot, super sassy and so clearly out of everyone’s league.

The night was an absolute success, and once again proved that the University Fashion show deserves its reputation as the social event of the year. As the audience stormed the stage at the end of Saturday’s performance, it was clear that everyone was absolutely smashed and had thoroughly enjoyed themselves. From the cheeky compères to the wavy garms, the models’ walks to the exquisite cheese selection, everything about the event made sure that it was a night to remember.

Get yourself down to Wiff Waff this Friday for the DUCFS closing party, where they’ll announce the official total raised for Newcastle based charity, Changing Lives.

Models and Exec will be there once again, so this is be the last time you’ll have the opportunity to find yourself partying with the most beautiful people you will ever meet.

The Exec also added that they would like to thank their ‘sponsor and friend, Urban Oven.’

Photography by Mike Dennison