L'HISTOIRE: When Lee McQueen Was Inspired by Chess, 'Harry Potter' in Spring/Summer 2005
This runway show also inspired Lady Gaga's 2025 Coachella performance.
L'HISTOIRE explores fashion history moments you should know, from what actors wore on a red carpet to celebrities who made cameos on the runway. Some are unsung, and some are better known. Each is part of the fabric of today’s fashion world, be it barrier breakers or culture makers.
As "recession indicator" discourse reaches fever pitch, Lady Gaga (possibly the queen of recession pop) paid homage to one of the boldest designers of the era, Lee Alexander McQueen, during her 2025 Coachella set. In her now-viral performance of “Poker Face,” the pop star challenged her “Bad Romance” double to a game of chess, mirroring McQueen’s iconic Spring/Summer 2005 show “It’s Only a Game,” which also featured a life-sized chessboard. The kicker? Gaga debuted her “Bad Romance” single at McQueen’s Spring/Summer 2010 runway show, adding to the web of references.
Like "Gagachella," McQueen’s Spring/Summer 2005 collection reviewed the British designer’s greatest hits. Structured tailcoats and blazers paired with collared shirts and frilly petticoats evoked an Edwardian aesthetic while highlighting his roots in menswear tailoring. The collection then blossomed with an array of floral patterns, blush-colored puffball skirts, and white lace blouses. Angular, futuristic looks dominated the latter half of the collection, expressed through metal breastplates, sporty shoulder pads, and spiked helmets (which have a warrior-like quality despite their bright coloring). The influence of Japanese artistry shined through the collection’s kimonos, obi belts, and printed illustrations. As the models, bare-faced with disheveled up-dos, placed themselves in a grid formation, McQueen’s artistic evolution came to life.
And then, an epic ending came: The lights dimmed, the board appeared, and the iconic game commenced. Inspired by the climactic chess game in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, the 36 models strutted, acting like chess pieces at the command of a robotic narrator, with Gemma Ward and Hana Soukupouva playing the rival queens. This is what inspired Gaga's Coachella set, more than 20 years later.
“It’s Only a Game” exemplified McQueen’s penchant for creating dramatic moments anchored in historic detail. His interests stretched far beyond the fashion industry. In a conversation with David Bowie published in Dazed, McQueen cited French philosopher Marquis de Sade as an influence. More than 15 years after McQueen’s death, his boundary-breaking artistry remains an inspiration to artists everywhere.
