lfw spring 2020

Burberry Brings Back an Old Friend

Agyness Deyn walking Burberry spring 2020. Photo: Jeff Spicer/BFC/Getty Images for BFC

In fashion, nothing and no one are ever gone for long. We love a comeback! On Monday, British model-turned-acress Agyness Deyn made a return to the Burberry runway during London Fashion Week after an extended hiatus.

You might remember Deyn for her signature bleach-blonde pixie cut, which was on every runway and every billboard in the mid-2000s. In 2007, she was named one of “The World’s Next Top Models” by American Vogue, alongside Doutzen Kroes, Caroline Trentini, Raquel Zimmermann, Sasha Pivovarova, Jessica Stam, Coco Rocha, Hilary Rhoda, Chanel Iman, and Lily Donaldson. Vogue Paris named her one of the top 30 models of the decade. She was the Paris Hilton of British punk, a living, breathing Dr. Marten.

And then she quit.

In 2008, a Cut headline read “Burberry Dropped Agyness Deyn Because She’s Too Famous?” According to the U.K.’s Metro, photographer Mario Testino, Burberry’s “advertising visionary,” was sick of seeing her face. Lovely! The following year, the Daily Mirror reported that Deyn quit modeling to spend more time with her then boyfriend, singer-songwriter Miles Kane. Maybe she was bored, a source speculated. Maybe she wanted to pursue acting. (She went on to land a handful of roles, most recently in Her Smell.) Either way, she was out.

In 2012, Deyn officially “retired” from modeling, telling The Independent that her feelings toward the industry had changed. “I didn’t hate it, but I was yearning to do something different,” she said. She didn’t hate it! Always a good sign.

Well, now she’s back — this time, walking for Riccardo Tisci’s new Burberry. The designer has made a concerted effort to modernize the British heritage brand, and what better face than Deyn herself. The only difference is that now, she seems to have a bleached-blonde mullet. Here she comes, 2020!

Burberry Brings Back an Old Friend