The very best of British

Times might be hard, but that doesn't mean we have to skimp on style and utter fabulousness, darlings.

London Fashion Week opens this Friday, showcasing the best of British fashion design, with Burberry, Matthew Williamson, Pringle of Scotland, Christopher Kane, Vivienne Westwood and Sienna Miller's label Twenty8Twelve all confirmed as taking to the runway. And on the front rows, if last season is repeated, we can expect to see A-listers including Victoria Beckham, Gwyneth Paltrow, Emma Watson, Alexa Chung, Mary Kate Olsen, Tilda Swinton, Yasmin Le Bon, Freida Pinto and Liv Tyler.

Some of these actors are already heavily associated with big British

fashion names. Emma Watson, for example, models for Burberry, this season joined by her younger brother Alex, so he might put in an appearance as well. Tilda Swinton is the enigmatic face of Pringle of Scotland and stars in an intriguing little film (these fashion movies are so now), which you can see on the company's website, shot in the North of Scotland. As for Alexa Chung, well, she actually has a spring/summer 2010 bag named after her – Mulberry's Alexa is must-have for the season.

Burberry has started a trend for innovative ideas at London Fashion Week and this time is going for the first-ever global fashion show, streaming its presentation on Tuesday live in 3D to New York, Paris, Dubai, Tokyo and Los Angeles.

"This unprecedented event will enable people to experience the energy and atmosphere of this show from around the world. 3D technology will bring our global audience into the London show space allowing them to see the colours and fabrics, to hear the music and to be a part of that moment when it all finally comes together," says Burberry's Christopher Bailey. There will also be a live stream of its show in 2D at live.burberry.com where viewers can watch and comment on the show in real time using their Facebook and Twitter accounts.

The return of brands such as Burberry, Matthew Williamson and Pringle to London has upped both the high fashion and the glamour stakes, something the British Fashion Council is keen to capitalise on, announcing a partnership with BAFTA to help develop links between the fashion and film industries – appropriate, not least because the BAFTAs take place this Sunday, right in the middle of London Fashion Week. There will be parties and cocktails, over which designers and leading ladies can meet, with a view to teaming up on the red carpet in future.

"The red carpet continues to play an increasingly important role in a designer's marketing programme as images are instantly distributed to audiences worldwide," said Jaeger boss Harold Tillman, who is chairman of the British Fashion Council.

Fashion is big business and London Fashion Week generates orders in the region of 100m, attracting visitors from countries including the US, France, Italy, Russia, the Middle East, China and the UAE.

The collections that will be shown over the coming week are the autumn/winter collections for 2010. Meanwhile, we'll celebrate the work of our classic and favourite British designers and brands taking part in London Fashion Week, by looking at their collections for spring/summer 2010 – handily just coming in-store now.