Givenchy's artistic director Clare Waight Keller Monday received the British designer of the year womenswear award from Meghan Markle, whose dress she designed for her wedding to Prince Harry. "It is such a pleasure to be here celebrating British fashion," Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, said at the star-studded annual Fashion Awards at the Albert Hall. The former US actress, who is pregnant, praised the "vision", "creativity" and also "the incredible kindness" of Waight Keller.

The two women met in early 2018, before the designer created the dress worn by Meghan for her wedding to Harry on May 19. The British Fashion Awards also recognized Vivienne Westwood, winner of the award for positive change, for her commitment to the environment. The 77-old high priestess of punk took the opportunity to denounce the "rotten financial system" which the dame said was "the cause of all our problems".

A long-time political campaigner, she also took aim at French President Emmanuel Macron who recently cancelled fuel tax increases in the face of the "yellow vest" protests. "This tax hurts the poor more than anybody," Westwood said, adding "he's not thinking that he has already given all these tax breaks to the rich people. So of course everybody is going to be annoyed."-AFP