Fashion's latest trend: 3D

Forget blue aliens – the next stars you’ll be watching in 3D will be wearing check trenchcoats.

In a unique move, fashion label Burberry will stream its upcoming fashion show live in 3D at exclusive events around the world this month, including one in Dubai.

Burberry will, for the first time, send a live 3D broadcast of their autumn-winter 2010 womenswear collection direct from the runway in London. The show will feature some of the world’s top models and always attracts dozens of celebrities.

Dubai, along with Paris, Tokyo, New York and Los Angeles, has been chosen to host the invitation-only event in surroundings designed by the luxury label for the occasion.

“This unprecedented event will enable people to experience the energy and atmosphere of this event from around the world,” said Burberry Chief Creative Officer Christopher Bailey. “3D technology will bring our global audience into the London show space allowing them to see the colours and fabrics, to hear the music and to be a part of that moment when it all finally comes together.”

The event represents something of an evolution in both the way 3D is used and in the dismantling of fashion’s often impenetrably exclusive club.

Following the success of 3D in films such as Avatar, which has taken more that $1 billion world wide since its release in December 2009, the technology is moving to the TV screen. With a 3D-enabled televisin and a pair of not-so-stylish glasses the possibilities of 3D viewing are endless. Last week saw another first -- the screening last week of a Premiership football match in the UK.

And while the twice-yearly fashion shows in London, Paris, New York and Milan were once the exclusive domain of wealthy customers, powerful fashion journalists and industry insiders holding coveted invitations to events with a stricter door policy than the Pentagon, the internet has opened up the world of fashion to the public. During the last round of runway shows  in September and October 2009, many labels, including Burberry, began streaming their shows live on the internet, opening up what were once exclusive events to anyone who cared to watch – and giving rise to an army of fashion bloggers.