The best-dressed on the Baftas red carpet: our fashion editor’s verdict

London may be a very long way from Hollywood but on Sunday night it certainly didn’t feel like it. The Baftas awards ceremony delivered golden-era glamour in spades.

Dramatic and somewhat retro silhouettes were the name of the game, as seen most spectacularly on the newly ascendant American star Chase Infiniti in plum Louis Vuitton with an extravagantly wavy hemline that called to mind a Wall’s Viennetta.

The British actress Erin Doherty wore another remarkable creation by the same label, a navy concoction with skirts that resembled a turbine engine. Clear the runway!

Showstopping silhouette No 3 came courtesy of Teyana Taylor, in purple ruffled Burberry with a collar worthy of Elizabeth I. This was quite a departure from her usual bodycon. Introducing collarcon.

A more classic, princessy variety of glamour was conjured by Minnie Driver in a vermilion moire bustier dress from Emilia Wickstead, plus Kate Hudson in a version of similar by Prada.

In that same rather regal category were Rose Byrne in lemon yellow Miu Miu — to my mind one of the top scorers for sheer sartorial class — and Gillian Anderson in watercolour-patterned brown chiffon by Roksanda. The only actual princess in attendance, the Princess of Wales, looked gorgeous, in sunset-hued Gucci that — what, this old thing? — she last wore in 2019.

Monica Bellucci let her decolletage do the heavy lifting — because, quite frankly, if you are Bellucci, why wouldn’t you? — in a simple column of black velvet by Saint Laurent accessorised with a downright humungous accretion of sapphires and diamonds from Cartier. Also in velvet was Jessie Buckley, in drapey blue Chanel that evoked not so much a princess as Empress Joséphine.

Playing a different game altogether were the flesh-flashing brigade. Renate Reinsve accessorised her black Louis Vuitton — yes, it was a very good night for the French house — not only with Boucheron jewels but with her lunch, or rather lack of it. The flatness of her stomach, revealed almost in its entirety, suggested that she had been on a liquids-only diet for days.

Indeed, it doesn’t look like an easy life being a Vuitton muse. Emma Stone’s midnight keyholed number was almost as unforgiving — albeit, I would argue, rather more chic — as was Alicia Vikander’s embroidered baby blue, which allowed you to count her ribs like an abacus.

The men were more restrained than in recent years, another reason why this all felt rather golden era. Even a fop such as Timothée Chalamet kept matters low-key in beautifully sculpted suiting from Givenchy, now headed up by the British designer Sarah Burton. Where actors did have some fun was at the neck. Ethan Hawke wore a cowboy-style bolo tie. Regé-Jean Page sported a vintage Hirsh London diamond dragonfly, as you do.

Among the women slaying in tailoring were Tilda Swinton, in a Chanel trouser suit, and Glenn Close, in an embroidered white-on-black Erdem skirt suit. The American actress had attended the Erdem catwalk show that day, a celebration of the London brand’s 20th anniversary.

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Also in tailoring was Little Simz. The rapper was wearing what one should presumably call a Dior bar coat, this being an outerwear retool of the Dior bar jacket that originally formed part of the celebrated New Look of 1947.

Talking of outerwear, one star in attendance was in a duffel coat. Not your usual red carpet fare. Yes, Paddington Bear stayed true to his signature aesthetic, in a blue duffle and a red hat with — wisely, given his diet of marmalade sandwiches — absolutely no midriff to be seen. Let’s hope he isn’t standing by for a call from Louis Vuitton.