Review by Ceri Wheeldon
Like many, I binge watched Halston over the weekend. I love fashion so the opportunity to see the story behind an iconic designer and brand was not to be missed!
Starring Ewan McGregor as Halston, the series tracks his rise as a designer influencing American style, and his emergence as a brand in the 70s.
It was fascinating to see how Halston came to define his ‘look’….and interesting to see that it was a fabric (ultra suede) that led to his change in fortunes as opposed to a specific ‘look’.
A complex character
A complicated character we see how he develops friendships and relationships (one notable one being with Liza Minelli) and how those friendships fare as his star rises and the pressure to be constantly creative in order to feed the demands of a global business takes its toll. He could be hugely supportive one minute in dismissive the next.
I was disappointed that apart from the first episode there was little emphasis on the actual fashion – we saw relatively few of Halston’s designs in the series.
What was interesting though was seeing how Halston transitioned from fashion designer to being part of a global brand associated with everything from perfume to homeware, and the negotiations and manipulations that took place around the various lines. It was also interesting to see how competitive the American designers were with each other, and collectively with the big fashion houses of Europe.
It was also interesting to see how he struggled with success and working within a corporate structure, eventually losing the right to use his own name as the brand became bigger than him.
I enjoyed the series overall but would have liked to have seen more of his clothes.
Definitely worth watching, but I my search for series to surpass the Queen’s Gambit continues!
Ceri Wheeldon
Ceri is Founder and Editor of Fabafterfifty.co.uk She is a frequent speaker at events and in the media on topics related to women over 50 , including style and living agelessly. With 20+ years experience as a headhunter Ceri also now helps support those looking to extend their working lives.
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