Weddings

The Most Beautiful Wedding Dresses In British Vogue

2 April 2021

Don Honeyman

For as long as British Vogue has helped women shape their wardrobes, bridal inspiration has been part of the repertoire. In the magazine’s 105-year-long history, wedding dresses of all silhouettes, hemlines, proportions, and train lengths have been photographed in fashion and society stories, reflecting changing trends and informing them, too. Today, there are no rules – short and sweet, long and dramatic – wedding dresses in 2021 follow the tastes of the individual, and mirror the diverse fashion landscape seen across the pages of the magazine.

Countless brides-to-be have fallen for “the one” when leafing through Vogue, whether the dress has been part of an intentional wedding-themed shoot, or a seemingly unassuming white dress ready to be transformed into the stuff of dreams with a little imagination.

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Here, 25 photographs spanning 70 years that illustrate the most beautiful bridal gowns seen in British Vogue.

Don Honeyman
1/25
May 1951
For a shoot entitled “More Taste Than Money” in the May 1951 issue, a model stood close to her “groom” in a strapless dress with polka-dot broderie detail by John Tullis.
John Rawlings
2/25
October 1953
A white faille Balenciaga gown with ribbon sash and back-tied bows was styled with a rhinestone and embroidered jacket slung over the shoulders for a shoot illustrating the looks from the Paris collections.
John Sadovy
3/25
May 1954
The May 1954 issue saw a model photographed in a guipure lace dress by Roecliff & Chapman, complete with a veil and hair styled in an elegant updo.
Eugene Vernier
4/25
May 1956
A model acted as bride wearing a tiered dress by Ronald Paterson in a 1956 shoot illustrating the matrimonial highlights seen in the London and Paris spring collections.

Don Honeyman
5/25
February 1959
Evocative of the styles that had defined the ’50s, models wore lace and velvet gowns by Jean Allen and Elizabeth Henry in the February 1959 issue.
Brian Duffy
6/25
September 1960
Brian Duffy photographed a model wearing a Susan Small strapless dress with a jersey panel train for the September issue in 1960.
Richard Dormer
7/25
February 1965
Another bridal option by Small was worn with a crepe lattice headpiece by Simone Mirman for a location shoot in Greece, in 1965.
David Montgomery
8/25
June 1966
A Susan Small dress – a stiff cotton organdie shift complete with a flower corsage – also appeared in the June 1966 issue, worn with Kenneth Jay Lane earrings.