Chanel catwalk shows are always a fashion week highlight as they’re guaranteed to impress and delight, but no one could have guessed what they were going to do for this year’s Paris fashion week show - a hay-strewn farmyard was the last thing guests expected when they set foot in the Grand Palais in Paris yesterday.

And the surprises didn’t end there. A front row counting Prince, Claudia Schiffer, Sean Lennon and Rihanna watched as models dressed in Karl Lagerfeld’s exquisite creations not only walked, but frolicked among the bales.

As the show approached its finale, a central hay bale rose from the ground to reveal house model, Lily Allen, complete with band and backing singers. Dressed in a gold skirt, black top, black heels and tights - all Chanel of course! Lily sang her latest hit It’s Not Fair, for the star-studded audience.

Citing Marie Antoinette’s shepherdess phase as an influence, designer Karl Lagerfeld played on the country-chic theme with milkmaid-style high-heeled clogs, woven bags with appliqué flowers, and the raw-edged tweed that is the label’s signature.

 “I’m from the country, darling,” Lagerfeld told reporters after the show. “I hear all this talk about organic farming and the environment and things, and I’m all for it. But there must be a certain sophistication, so it’s not used as an excuse to let things go to seed,” he said.

Models took Blackberries from quilted purses as they strode the stage, some in tights with a balletic trompe l’oeil ribbon design, others barefoot, like glamorous flower girls.

There were trends aplenty, from lavish puffed sleeves and short, full skirts to lace, of which there was lots, playing on the lingerie trend that has been so strong of late.

The final look, according to tradition, was a bridal one, and the barefoot model, who carried a bouquet of wheat, looked every inch the beautiful country maid. But she was not as sweet as she looked, as she pushed her groom onto the ground, to be joined by another model for a three-way romp in the hay.
Lagerfeld, who took his bow as the models frolicked, hinted that his ambitions had been even wilder.
‘We had little pigs that we were going to bring into the hall, but they were so smelly we didn’t dare to let them out,’ he said.