An ode to the Tumblr generation that grew up for Alexander McQueen AW26

And as Sky Ferreira once quipped backstage at a show for New York Fashion Week in 2012: “If you like Tumblr, you’re going to like this.” The sentiment might as well have been written for Alexander McQueen’s FW 2026 womenswear show. Except this time, maybe it wasn’t the chaotic Tumblr of teenage angst, endlessly reblogged skull scarves, and cropped military jackets: it’s a grown-up version of that. A little gothic romanticism, a little sharper around the edges, but still steeped in that distinctly British strain of romantic morbidity.

Closing the seventh day of Paris Fashion Week, Seán McGirr delivered what may be his most assured collection yet; a study in London girl attitude, perhaps a 2026 Camden girl, filtered through the house. The front row was stacked with Gen-Z cultural currency and a few nostalgic callbacks: Chappell Roan, “Industry’s” Myha’la, Sophie Thatcher, Tokischa, and Ferreira herself.

Like the late Alexander McQueen, McGirr is something of a cinephile. This season’s starting point was Todd Haynes’ unsettling 1955 film, “Safe,” starring Julianne Moore. Moore’s character Carol White develops a mysterious illness; as the condition worsens, her wardrobe dissolves into increasingly soft, ghostlike garments in bleached, eerie tones. By the film’s end, she appears almost spectral. McGirr translated that subtle tension, “there’s this idea of paranoia and perfection,” he said backstage, reflecting on a world where we are perpetually ‘on’-line, and perpetually curating ourselves.

The clothes softened the house’s more brutal instincts. If McQueen thrived on confrontation, it seems McGirr is increasingly interested in vulnerability: icy greys, ghostly flower motifs, and romantic jacquard. Perhaps that gentler edge also reflects Kering’s intentions with their brands; a pressure to translate runway drama into commercially-justified collections.

Still, McGirr hasn’t abandoned the house codes entirely. The opening look—a herringbone jacket, buttoned tightly through the waist before dissolving into soft movement at the thigh—referenced the silhouette of the AW 2006 ‘The Widows of Culloden’ collection.

Tailoring, of course, rooted in the brand’s Savile Row heritage, ran with a textural twist. This was McGirr’s first serious exploration of tailoring at the house, featuring high-shine fabrics and sculptural lapels. One particular convincing proposition: a one-sided crossover peak-lapel suit paired with knee-length trousers and tall boots—a suit that felt squarely aimed at the young’uns, and also referring to the house’s 1996 ‘Dante’ era.

Elsewhere, trompe-l’œil plumage appeared in embroidered shrug tops and peplum tops, while lace pieces were sandwiched between layers of organza, creating a curious image of flowers trapped in ice, and the effect McGirr achieved by literally freezing flowers in blocks, smashing them, and photographing the results.

The archival dialogue didn’t stop there either. Anyone who lived through the Tumblr era wouldn’t be mistaken for seeing the skull scarf on the runway – an absolute relic of the mid-2000s internet fashion. This time it arrived in softer shades of lavender and cargo green. Its comeback, however improbably, has been quietly endorsed by a new generation of wearers, including Timothée Chalamet and Alex Consani.

The low-slung miniskirt, incidentally, appears to be emerging as one of the season’s defining styles. Here it was paired with moulded skirts, lace petticoats layered over tailored shorts, babydoll dresses, sheer-lingerie slips, and chainmail knit.

Two years into the role, and now presenting his fifth collection, McGirr seems to have delivered a highly sellable tailoring and evening wear collection. And perhaps that explains the more enthusiastic reaction online.

To borrow Sky Ferreira’s words once again: if you liked Tumblr then, you’ll probably like this now – only this time, the girls have grown up.