Chanel Paris fashion Week show loses its charm as it sends a horse down the ...

Chanel's Paris Fashion Week shows are legendary for their elaborate set pieces, which in the past have included the Grand Palais transformed into a train station, a shopping mall and a winter wonderland.

And usually the runway is the hot ticket of Fashion Week with the industry's biggest names both on and off the catwalk.

But For Tuesdays Haute Couture runway, the muses of the late Chanel creative director Karl Lagerfeld were MIA, despite the brand keeping up their reputation for spectacle by sending a horse down the runway.

Tuesday's show opened with Charlotte Casiraghi, the elder daughter of Princess Caroline of Monaco, accomplished equestrian and one of Chanel's most recent ambassadors, cantering down the catwalk on a horse while resplendent in Chanel black tweed.

Anna Wintour was among those with a VIP seat, sitting just feet from the the brand's four-legged model, but the A-list were missing from the audience and the catwalk.

Pharrell Williams was among the few stars spotted making his fashionable arrival at the Grand Palais, dressed in a colourful cardigan and baggy jeans, topped off with Chanel's coveted mini round bag, which retails for upwards of £3k. 

This time last year the brand was forced to go virtual for its Spring/Summer Haute Couture show, after COVID 19 shut down the January PFW, and indeed the global pandemic has meant a marked decline in over-the-top, costly runway shows as well as the ability for international models to travel. 

Back in 2019 Chanel attracted names like Normal People's Daisy Edgar-Jones and long-time collaborator Sofia Coppola to the FROW.

The heyday of a-list models strutting down the runway is long gone though, with Gigi Hadid and Kaia Gerber last seen on a Chanel catwalk in early 2020.