The Hollywood Reporter attended this year’s BAFTA tea, a tradition held every year the Saturday before the Golden Globes, at the Four Seasons Hotel. And it had quite an amazing turnout, including Leo DiCaprio, Charlize Theron, Michelle Williams, Viola Davis, Meryl Streep and the cast of The Artist. But what stood out most to us in a room filled with the heaviest heavy hitters was the violet dress Downton Abbey‘s Elizabeth McGovern was wearing, by couturier Jacques Azagury.
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We found it on the London-based designer’s website. It’s part of his fall 2011 collection. It has a fitted bodice in a brocade fabric like none we’ve ever seen before. It’s purple on purple. The waist is tight and the skirt on the dress was very full, a very 1947 “New Look” kind of shape, with a lot of drama. It suits McGovern’s role on PBS’ most popular series.
“He’s a real artist,” McGovern told THR. “And a very sweet man. I met him in London — and I’ll be wearing one of his dresses to the Golden Globes as well.”
This should be a real boost to Azagury’s profile, but then, he already dresses Helen Mirren, and his most famous frequent client of all was Princess Diana. His favorite looks that he designed for her are in a special section on his website. Now, how do we get a hold of one of these dresses? They’re like art, and we can’t believe no star has worn him on a red carpet repeatedly.
