The pink catwalk, ahem, carpet was graced with not a few ladies who like to shop during the proceedings - with a special fashion show to really seal the deal for all the norms out there that yes, your legs are that short. Yes, your clothes are glum. And yes, you do need to go shopping.
Quite possibly the most perturbing sight strutting the runway, following the procession of giraffe-like glamazons, was a pair of men in black. Black netted millinary to be exact. And if the headgear wasn’t shocking enough, they accompanied a rather swish looking high-end bag lady, wearing an unwieldy dress fashioned from Confessions Of A Shopaholic carriers.
Star of the movie Isla Fisher’s biggest confession was that she is, in fact, not a shopaholic, which came as no bombshell, considering she probably has a stylist to do that sort of lowly task for her, now that she is Mrs. Borat and a queen of comedy in her own right. She did pick up a few hits and tips from the film’s stylist Patricia Field – Sex And The City’s grand doyenne: “I used to think that you had to match things, like the bag to the shoes. But she doesn’t believe in that - it's mix-and-match and colour-and-contrast with her. I learned to be more brave.”
Although she loved working with Hugh Dancy, who “has those amazing blue eyes”, she admitted she would really like to star alongside her real life leading man, Sacha Baron Cohen: “I would love to, I think he is the funniest man in the world and I would be thrilled to.”
Writer of the book Sophie Kinsella revealed unsurprisingly that the debt-ridden heroine of the piece Rebecca Bloomwood, was in fact based on her - and that shopping was her very happy hobby. “I do like shopping. Hands up! There was a bag I actually bought when they were filming in the Prada store. All the action was going on around me - and I was looking at the bags! That’s my souvenir.”
She also told us that although Isla Fisher might not have been in her mind when she penned the character - she was the perfect fit for the film: “Amongst the movie star circuit, Isla is absolutely wonderful, she brings Becky perfectly to the screen, she’s funny, she’s endearing and she’s got that kind of sweet innocence which is a part of me, and makes it work.”
Kinsella dispelled any doubts that she had initially about the film being set in America instead of England: “I love London, of course I do, and in my head, it’s a British heroine, but it’s a fabulous backdrop, and actually Becky goes to New York in the second book, which this is partly based on, so it made complete sense to me.”
She also acknowledged the film’s aptness in the current economic climate: “I think it’s incredibly timely and relevant, the film is about buying and the consequences of buying, it’s about credit cards and the consequences of credit cards, and it’s about a character who is on the wrong path, goes bust and has to find her way.”
Super-producer Jerry Bruckheimer dispensed with the girly chit-chat by telling us a little bit about one of the many projects he has lined up - The Lone Ranger, which Johnny Depp has already jumped in the saddle for. We prodded him for any other casting details, but there hasn’t been any movement - as he told us: “It’s just Johnny so far. We’re working on a screenplay.” When asked if George Clooney would be joining the cast as the Masked Man, he didn’t completely dispel the rumours, saying: “Not yet, we’ll see.”
Leading man Hugh Dancy moseyed down the pink carpet last, frozen to the core and wishing he’d worn his thermals. He was all praise for his leading lady who he called a “very funny, talented woman” but made like his sensible onscreen persona about her character’s debt saying: “I’ve never been horribly in debt. I have had my card declined many a time though, but that’s different!”
Dancy also put a stop on rumours that he will be playing Edgar Allan Poe in a biopic about the writer, but did tell us that his next movie would be Adam, where he plays an autistic man who befriends his neighbour, played by Damages’ Rose Byrne.
He also laughed off comparisons with fellow Hugh in Hollywood, Mr. Grant, saying: “I don’t think it bears much resemblance, but I take it as a great compliment.”
And then the stars, and the host of scantily clad models, strode into the foyer to make the most of the free goodies instead of shopping - and most importantly, to take in the film.