Vivienne Westwood

In 1957 Vivienne Westwood moved with her family to London, aged 17. She attended the Harrow Art School for one term.

She played a vital role in the emergence of Punk Rock in the 1970s and has gone on to become one of the most original and influential designers of our time. Fashion, she said, was 'a baby I picked up and never put down.'

Her designs combine a fearless unconformity with a sense of tradition. She is renowned for her gentle parody of Establishment styles, her use of very British fabrics such as Harris tweed and tartan, her re-use of historic garments such as the corset and crinoline.

Westwood was advanced from OBE to DBE in the 2006 New Year's Honours List for services to fashion, and has thrice earned the award for British Designer of the Year.