Basso & Brooke fuk@lfw a/w 06

For the past two seasons, Chris Brooke and Bruno Basso have kindly invited me to their shows. Unfortunately, after having given birth to our third daughter in January 2004 and breastfeeding for 10 months, I've had to miss out. I was a Basso & Brooke show virgin. We checked them out in fuk.co.uk well before the fashion world fell in love with their talent, so it was even more exciting for me to finally get to experience a show.

You enter The Shunt Vaults through a hole-in-the-wall inside a doorway leading off London Bridge tube station. The first thing we saw were bottles of hairspray arranged on book shelves and a neon L'Oreal sign followed by a similar Basso & Brooke sign. It smelled just like a very damp cellar - probably because that is what The Shunt Vaults are. Someone told me there were 200 people outside the show trying to get in. I wouldn't be surprised. I haven't felt this excitement in the audience since McQueen last showed in London. Backstage, the designers milled about, checking outfits, totally relaxed, not a bother on either of them.

Boom. Front of house. The show starts; bass kicking in fast and wham first outfit. Head-to-toe feast for the eyes. Gobsmacking. You drink in the cut, the print, the shape, the powerful force of a woman in front of you and seconds later, she's gone. Beautiful black Dickensian coat, a funky top hat by Stephen Jones, green digital print cropped trousers and long black boots. Boom, next outfit. This time I try to drink in the detail as quickly as possible - I see the green print again. this time in a jacket - boom it's gone, now I see something that reminds me of paisley - it's a playsuit - next boom, another shirt.

Soon I am only aware of this force of colour approaching, it's dark red, purple, flashes of yellow, a dazzling printed tie on what looks like a matching shirt combined with a beautiful technicolour cashmere coat dripping with desirability. On it went like this - twenty minutes of brilliant music and uncompromisingly cool clothes. Then the lasers came on and we we all bathed in green lights which rose and fell - it felt very chilled after the banging pace of the collection. Out of curls of smoke emerged the last outfit - a black coat which wrapped around the model's body like a gothic cocoon combined with a hat featuring a chimney-like addition from which incense burned. The lights down and the last word went to The Beatles.

The collection entitled Science & Fiction features all sorts of historical references as well as "other motifs are pillaged from the shelves of a gentlemen's library". It's strikes me as a psychedelic celebration of clothes which melds breath-taking construction and craftmanship with a lot of wicked fun. Thank you.

www.bassoandbrooke.com

Words: Marian Buckley. Photos: Judith Erwes.

Basso & Brooke are interviewed in Day 3 of our podcast series.