Vivienne Westwood

Vivienne studied at the Harrow School of Art, later to become the University of Westminster for one term. Vivienne went on to attend Middlesex University Trent Park College and later taught at a primary school in North London. She loved teaching.

Vivienne's first husband was Derek Westwood, with whom she had one child named Ben. Their marriage lasted three years before she met Malcolm McLaren, later known for being the manager for punk band The Sex Pistols. The two had a son named Joseph, and Vivienne continued to teach until 1971, when Malcolm decided to open a shop, called 'Let It Rock' where Westwood began to sell her outrageous designs. During this period, Westwood, McLaren, and artist Jamie Reid were influenced by the Situationists. She still owns the shop, which is at 430 King's Road, and sells her Anglomania label from there. The shop is now known as "World's End."

The punk style began to gain notoriety when the Sex Pistols wore clothes from Westwood and McLaren's shop at their first gig.

The inclusion of more traditional elements of British design, such as tartan fabric, amongst the more unusual elements of her style, only served to make the overall effect of her designs more shocking.

Together, Westwood and McLaren revolutionised fashion, and the impact is still felt today.

Vivienne Westwood worked historical factors into her collection by using historical seventeenth and eighteenth century original cutting principles and modernising them. A historical influence has always shown in her work.

Gwen Stefani is well known for wearing Vivienne Westwood designs.