The corset, a garment with roots stretching back to Minoan civilisation but most commonly associated with the Victorian era, is making a notable comeback on the fashion scene. Its reappearance has been particularly prominent during the press tour for Emerald Fennell's adaptation of Wuthering Heights, where actress Margot Robbie has worn a series of striking corseted ensembles.
Robbie's 'tourdrobe' includes a brocade corset by British Fashion Awards winner Dilara Fındıkoğlu, paired with buckled black jeans, and a blood-red python bodice slashed through the arms and braided back together with scarlet ribbon. The designs amplify the historical silhouette, using the corset's traditional shaping to create a modern, assertive statement that echoes the novel's themes of passion, danger and psychological tension.
The corset has historically been a marker of class, wealth and control, requiring time, money and assistance to wear. Its return in 2026 reflects a fashion trend towards opulence and conspicuous consumption, reminiscent of a new Gilded Age. As social inequality rises, the corset fits into a world of extremes, where sculpted waists and luxe fabrics imply significant time dedicated to dressing up.
Fashion history also offers counterpoints to the corset as purely oppressive. Vivienne Westwood's punk reclamations endure as symbols of defiance, recently revived by Charli XCX, who wore a Westwood gown to the LA premiere of Wuthering Heights. Jean Paul Gaultier's conical busts for Madonna turned the corset into a bold statement of empowerment rather than constraint.
The corset's resurgence is a curious cultural commentary in a world increasingly anxious about women taking up space. As a trend, it moves easily between runway and street, signalling power and agency in a time of imbalance.
