British GQ November 2021

There has been a lot of work chat these past few months. You know, not so much about a particular project, challenge or journalistic assignment, just more generally about direction, horizons and opportunities post-Covid. I found myself desperately trying to be present with my partner and two daughters, yet my mind and thus the conversation would, like rainwater on a cambered road, run back endlessly to the subject. Even when I was with friends, relaxing on the August bank holiday, it dominated my thoughts; sometimes, however, I found, such shop talk served as a helpful reminder of where I’d come from. Travelling at speed in a Land Rover Defender in Hampshire – five adults, eight children and three dogs (two pug tzus plus a Rhodesian ridgeback) crammed in like human Haribo…

Giles Duley This summer, award-winning photographer Giles Duley returned to the country where he was severely injured in 2011. “As the Taliban offensive on Kabul gained momentum, I knew there may just be one last opportunity to return to Afghanistan. With the increase in fighting, it seemed more important than ever to highlight the stories of civilians injured in the conflict.” Renell Medrano Photographer Renell Medrano shot Will Smith, ahead of the release of the actor’s autobiography, Will, as well as his return to the cinema screen in Emancipation, in which he plays a runaway slave in 1860s Louisiana. The cover shoot marks Medrano’s second time working with a Smith, after photographing Smith’s daughter, Willow, in 2019 for Allure magazine Amelia Tait For this issue, GQ contributor Amelia Tait investigated the new breed of social…

I don’t know about you, but here at GQ we’re bored rigid with boring clothes. Sure, neutral sweater sets and sensible sandals had their place at the height of the pandemic, and, yes, minimalist overcoats and cigarette chinos can look chic when they try hard enough, but the truth of the matter is that life as we know it is on the brink of collapse (here’s looking at you, carbon) and as a consequence it’s never been more important to have fun with the clothes that we’re wearing. It’s a point on which the world’s most important designers seem inclined to agree, as this season the runways were awash with bright, bold knits crafted for a brave new world. From the candy-hued intarsia sweaters shown at Dior, Ralph Lauren and…

Next month will see the debut of a TV show based on an internationally bestselling series of high-fantasy novels that the author never personally finished. It will have a huge budget, a sprawling cast and will centre around the one known as the “Dragon Reborn”, who will either save the world or destroy it. But this won’t be the much-anticipated Game Of Thrones prequel about the Targaryens, House Of The Dragon. Instead, it’s The Wheel Of Time on Amazon Prime, based on the novel series by Robert Jordan, who died before finishing his final volume, which was then completed posthumously by Brandon Sanderson (George RR Martin, author of the series behind Game Of Thrones, has no such excuse for the decade-and-counting wait for his penultimate volume). The following month will see…

For the first time in two years, the party-season period during which every snazzy shirt wearer worth his glass of cab sav hosts some form of festive jolly is almost upon us. Not only does that mean you should be pressing said shirt and freezing your gym membership until 2022, but it also signals the need to revisit your grooming regimen. Personally, we’re after a fragrance that will make us feel worth a million gifts (you heard) at any given knees-up. Enter, Boss Bottled eau de parfum. A sexed-up, olfactory riff on the popular 1998 eau de toilette, the scent is noticeably stronger and more impactful than the familiar original. What’s more, the heady liquor boasts a smoky composition, tinged with decadent cardamom and cinnamon oils. It’s extra long-lasting, too, so…

Like everything else, these days electoral politics is all about the online branding. It may be depressing, but it’s true. If you want to be the next president of the United States you’ll have to have a massive profile on social media. You’ll also need serious merch That’s something Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – the much-loved and equally hated socialist congresswoman from the Bronx – understands better than any politician in America, with the possible exception of Donald J Trump. “AOC”, as she is widely known, spent more than £1 million in the first six months of this year stocking her online store. You can duly buy her “Tax the rich” sweater for £42 (the hat for £20) or her “Housing is a human right”, “Drink water & don’t be racist” and “Fight for…