Geri Halliwell (now officially Horner, following her marriage in 2017) will forever be known for her time as one fifth of the iconic girl group the Spice Girls.
Although Ginger Spice’s style trajectory has spanned three decades in the spotlight and she celebrates her 50th birthday on August 6, it’s her looks on stage that have become the most memorable.
Early in the Spice Girls’ story, the nineties look was in full swing; platforms, leopard print and perspex was the modus operandi for the famous girl group and of course Geri was no exception.
The “hot-headed and bubbly” Ginger Spice lived up to her namesake style, with vibrant red hues and classic ’90s fabrics, but it was her Union Jack dress that made history as one of the outfits most iconic in pop culture history. .
Although uttered by all members of the Spice Girls, “girl power” became closely associated with Geri, and her Union Jack outfit from the 1997 Brit Awards also became an enduring symbol of the movement.
But the singer was not originally meant to wear the iconic dress. Actually, it wasn’t even a dress.
The Spice Girls were scheduled to open the 1997 Brit Awards, but Ginger Spice Geri thought the black Gucci mini dress she had to perform in was too “boring”, so she enlisted the help of her sister, Karen.
Deciding to celebrate being British, Karen sewed a Union Jack tea towel over the original Gucci dress and in doing so, created one of the most iconic pieces of pop culture clothing to come out of the nineties.
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To avoid being associated with the National Front, Halliwell also asked her sister to sew the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) peace symbol on the back of the dress.
After leaving the Spice Girls in 1998, Geri diverged slightly from her bandmates’ style, but quickly returned to uniform for the band’s reunion tour.
The mother of three opts for a classic style these days, favoring clean lines and shades of white for her public appearances.
As Geri Halliwell turns 50, see the Spice Girl’s most iconic fashion looks
1997
One of the most iconic outfits of the 21st century, Geri’s Union Jack dress made headlines around the world after the Spice Girls’ performance at the 1997 Brit Awards.
A year after the British performance, the dress became the most expensive piece of pop star clothing sold at auction when it went under the hammer at Sotheby’s for £41,320 in 1998. It was bought by Peter Morton on behalf of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las. Vegas, where the section of pop memorabilia is still displayed today.
2016
At another Brit Awards in 2016, Geri channeled her bandmate Mel B in a leopard-print dress that could have been lifted straight from Scary Spice’s wardrobe.
2012
The Spice Girls reunited in 2012 to take part in a performance of to live forever, a musical based on the band’s music. Gary channeled Frozen Elsa in a floor-length ice blue layered strapless dress for the occasion.
1997
During her proper Ginger Spice days, Geri wore a red satin mini dress that matched the shades of her hair color when the Spice Girls attended the Cannes Film Festival in 1997 to promote their film. World of Spices.
1996
If it weren’t for her period hair, Geri’s striped top and black pants wouldn’t look out of place if she wore them today.
2000
Geri still had a nod to her Spice Girls days – note the Union Jack belt buckle – when she left the group, but differentiated her style with long blonde hair.
2018
The former Spice Girl wore a floor-length satin blue dress to walk the red carpet at the 2018 National Television Awards.
2020
A far cry from her lively Spice Girls days, Geri wore a classic white and black boucle jacket to attend a Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey in 2020.
1999
Gary who? Ginger Spice looks like a carbon copy of Shakira in 1999 at the MTV Europe Music Awards, with long wavy blonde hair and a messy, embellished floor-length dress.
2019
Geri wore a blue and red medieval-style strapless dress to the Spice Girls reunion tour in Dublin.
2021
Geri looked every bit the international star in a Marilyn Monroe-esque white dress with a plunging neckline and Hollywood curls in her hair as she walked the blue carpet at the 2021 FIA Awards with her husband Christian Horner , Red Bull Racing in Formula 1. team director.
1997
Geri wore a blue and white showgirl outfit for one of the many times the Spice Girls met Prince Charles in 1997.
2012
Geri paid homage to her original Union Jack dress in a red corset dress, which featured bits of the flag in a ruffle at the back of the dress for the Spice Girls’ closing ceremony medley performance at the Olympics 2021 in London.
1998
Geri chose a bright red and white showgirl-style outfit for a performance with the Spice Girls in 1998. The two pieces featured a vest jacket and shorts, with matching platform boots.
2007
Geri returned to her Ginger Spice ways for The Return of Spice Girls world tour in a red corset bodysuit and white knee high boots.
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