It's Only a Game is the twenty-fifth collection by British designer Alexander McQueen, released for the Spring/Summer 2005 season of his eponymous fashion house. It was inspired by the youthful Edwardian-era clothing in the Australian Gothic film Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) as well as McQueen's ideas about a clash of Eastern and Western fashion cultures. The collection saw McQueen updating historical silhouettes with modern touches like short skirts, as well as revisiting and reworking ideas from his previous season. Japanese influences were clear from the use of kimono-inspired silhouettes and cultural motifs like koi, while Western sportswear appeared in motocross jumpsuits and American football-inspired armour.

The runway show was staged on 8 October 2004 at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in Paris. Thirty-six outfits were presented, grouped in thematic sets such as blonde women wearing outfits based on school uniforms. With a finale inspired by the giant chess scene from the first Harry Potter film, It's Only a Game marked a return to showmanship when compared to McQueen's previous show. The models remained on stage during the catwalk portion instead of exiting as normal. Once all thirty-six outfits had been presented, the stage lit up like a chessboard and the models, dressed to represent major chess pieces, played out a game representing the culture clash central to the collection's narrative.

Critical response to the clothing and runway show for It's Only a Game was positive, and it is well-remembered in retrospect. Critics were pleased with the return to showmanship, although there was some criticism of the reliance on reworking old ideas. Academic analysis has largely focused on the collection's influences and referentiality. Items from It's Only a Game have appeared in museum exhibits such as Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty.

Background British fashion designer Alexander McQueen was known for his imaginative, sometimes controversial designs. Over the course of his career, which lasted from 1992 until his death in 2010, he explored a broad range of ideas and themes, particularly sexuality, death, violence, romanticism, and historicism. He began as an apprentice on Savile Row, earning a reputation as an expert tailor; later he learned dressmaking as head designer for French fashion house Givenchy. Although he worked in ready-to-wear – clothing produced for retail sale – his showpieces featured a degree of craftsmanship that verged on haute couture – extremely high-end custom designs with elaborate handiwork.

McQueen's personal fixations had a strong influence on his designs. He often used visual and thematic contrasts for effect. His collections were historicist, in that he adapted historical designs and narratives, and self-referential, in that he revisited and reworked ideas between collections. As a cinephile, he often referred to his favourite films in his work, especially the historical clothing in Gothic fiction and period films. He was fascinated with Japanese culture and had drawn on Japanese clothing in multiple collections, including Voss (Spring/Summer 2001) and Scanners (Autumn/Winter 2003). His fashion shows were often elaborate to the point of being performance art, and audiences began to expect him to present dramatic spectacles. His previous collection, Pantheon ad Lucem (Autumn/Winter 2004), had been criticised as dull and disappointing for lacking such theatre.

Variations on a hard moulded bodice appeared in a number of McQueen's collections, beginning with Banshee (Autumn/Winter 1994). For No. 13 (Spring/Summer 1999), McQueen commissioned plaster of Paris life casts of model Laura Morgan, which were used to create leather bodices. The casts were re-used to make similar items for future collections, including The Overlook (Autumn/Winter 1999) and In Memory of Elizabeth Howe, Salem, 1692 (Autumn/Winter 2008).

Concept and creative process

It's Only a Game (Spring/Summer 2005) is the twenty-fifth collection McQueen designed for his eponymous fashion house. The collection is presented as a contrast of fashion cultures, juxtaposing Western fashion with Eastern fashion. Although drawing on a range of influences, the overall look was strongly influenced by the Edwardian-era clothing in the Australian Gothic film Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975), which concerns the mysterious disappearance of a group of schoolgirls. The palette mostly comprised soft Edwardian-style colours: violet, lilac, primrose pink, dusky rose, and a pale green known as "eau de nil". The collection was softer and more romantically feminine than his usual offerings, although his signature sharp tailoring was present as well.

McQueen incorporated Edwardian elements throughout the collection, including lace; high, fitted collars; an hourglass silhouette; sharp vertical pintucks and pleats; and smocking. Heavy fabrics like brocade provided structure. Grosgrain, a type of fabric that would normally be used inside boned bodices, was used on the exterior of garments in ribbon-size widths as a waist closure. Fabric inserts called godets were used to add volume to some skirts. McQueen also referenced eighteenth century fashion with tight bodices, chiffon empire-line dresses in floral prints, and wide-hipped skirts that echoed the broad silhouette created by panniers in that era.

Compared to the previous season's Pantheon ad Lucem, which had a mature silhouette exemplified by sleek floor-length column gowns, the designs in It's Only a Game were more youthful, including babydoll dresses and shorter skirts that had flouncy or puffy silhouettes. Many designs drew directly from formal historical children's wear, rendered in adult proportions. One set of designs drew on school uniforms and sailor suits, influenced by McQueen's background in men's tailoring. These outfits, which had a mostly grey palette, included variations on fitted blazers, white blouses, and either short skirts or calf-length trousers for bottoms. Twisted candy-cane stripes and carousel prints or embroidery were a common decorative flourish.

Cultural clash was the other major influence on the collection, represented in the show's finale by a chess game of opposites. As with Voss, there were heavy references to Japanese culture and clothing. Many designs included wide collars or sashes reminiscent of the Japanese kimono and its associated belt, the obi. Embroidery and graphics on many items were made to look like colourful Japanese tattoos or incorporated traditional motifs like koi fish. To a lesser extent, the use of silk and the appearance of dresses modelled on robes also signalled Japanese influence. Some items had prints or patterns apparently inspired by the work of Orientalist painter and costumer Léon Bakst.

On the other hand, contemporary American influence was shown through sportswear, particularly in outfits based on American football equipment, complete with helmets and shoulder pads. Fantastical elements like spikes on the helmets gave these items the appearance of a warrior's armor from dystopian fiction. There were also motocross jumpsuits with a large "Q" on the chest. As he often did, McQueen revised previous ideas for It's Only a Game. A criss-cross bodice style from Pantheon ad Lucem that had been popular commercially was brought back for Looks 16 and 34, and carousel motifs on some of the later looks recalled the circus theme of What a Merry-Go-Round (Autumn/Winter 2001).

Notable items Morgan's body casts were re-used to create four moulded leather bodices or "cuirasses", representing knights. Looks 25 and 30 were in pastel shades with horsehair skirts and ponytails, as well as metal bars across the mouth. Looks 31 and 36 had brown leather uppers with high horsehair ponytails, worn over colourful bell-shaped skirts. Prosthetics expert Steve Powell was commissioned to craft these, with the horsehair provided by the company that supplies Royal Horse Guards. These items referred to previous collections in a number of ways. The brown bodices visually recalled the original brown leather corsets from No. 13. Some authors have described the knight ensembles as reminiscent of medical devices like body casts, possibly in a callback to the hospital theme of Voss. The mouth bars also have visual similarities to dental braces or the face masks on football helmets.

Look 28, one of the queen ensembles for the chess game, is a lilac minidress with puffball skirt. It incorporates Japanese elements, with its wide kimono-esque collar and floral Japonisme embellishments on the sleeves and bodice, while its wide-hipped skirt references eighteenth-century silhouettes. Laura Dimitrio considered the dress an "eccentric" re-interpretation of the kimono, with its unusual skirt and obi-esque sash at chest height. It was paired on the runway with a Japonisme headpiece by Philip Treacy, sometimes referred to as the "Chinese Garden" headpiece. It is an assemblage of cork shadowboxes of Japanese landscapes which Treacy purchased from Japan, disassembled, and rearranged into one piece.

Runway show

Production details

The runway show was staged on 8 October 2004 at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in Paris; it was the first of six shows McQueen presented there. The invitation was a playing card with a joker on the face side and the show details on the back.

McQueen typically worked with a consistent creative team for his shows. His longtime collaborator Katy England was responsible for overall styling, assisted by Tabitha Simmons. Gainsbury & Whiting oversaw production. Joseph Bennett took care of set design. Eugene Souleiman styled hair, while Val Garland and Terry Barber handled make-up on behalf of MAC Cosmetics. Styling was kept simple, with minimal make-up and hair in backcombed, messy up-dos.

The chess game finale was choreographed by dancer Les Child. It was inspired by the giant chess scene from the 2001 film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, as well as the performance art of Vanessa Beecroft, whose work features young women standing in formation. McQueen wanted the models and their outfits to be visually contrasting. As Child recalled, for example, this meant "a redhead opposite an Asian model, a look inspired by sportswear opposite a geisha queen." The show's chessboard was condensed to thirty-six squares compared to the usual sixty-four, but all squares were filled when the game started rather than the centre being left unoccupied.

Twenty models represented major chess pieces. The two women in the football-inspired ensembles were the kings. The queens wore short puffball-skirted dresses and elaborate headpieces: one a Chinese garden, one an exaggeratedly pointed crown. The castles on one side wore motocross jumpsuits with "Q" on chest, and yellow dresses on the other side. Bishops wore tall column dresses on one side and robes with kimono collars on the other. Finally, knights wore moulded bodices with horsehair ponytails; soft pink and lavender with horsehair skirts for one side, brown leather with carousel-themed skirts on the other.

Catwalk presentation The runway was a square white stage, without set dressing, with the audience seated on three sides. The opening appeared conventional, with models walking straight down the centre of the stage. Instead of exiting, they took positions in columns of six, facing forward, as others walked past them. The models walked to the songs "Relax" (1983) and "Two Tribes" (1984), both by Frankie Goes to Hollywood.