John Galliano

Born in Gibraltar to a Spanish-Italian mother and English father, John Galliano was raised in South London and graduated from Central Saint Martins in 1984. His graduation collection 'Les Incroyables' was bought wholesale by Browns and launched his eponymous label. Bernard Arnault recruited him to Givenchy in 1995 — the first British designer to lead a French couture house — then moved him to Dior in 1996, where for fifteen years he produced some of the most theatrical couture of the modern era: Maasai, geisha, surrealist Marie Antoinette. A 2011 antisemitic incident in Paris led to his dismissal from both Dior and his own label. After rehab and a Maison Margiela apprenticeship under Renzo Rosso, he returned in 2014 as creative director of Maison Margiela, reviving its 'Artisanal' couture franchise. He left Margiela in late 2024. His three-decade arc remains the modern industry's most charged study in genius and downfall.