Ireland's fashionistas were out in force at Cork City Hall last night as Danish supermodel Helena Christensen graced the catwalk for the Brown Thomas spring/summer show in aid of the Chernobyl Children's Project (CCP).
Christensen and top British model Jodie Kidd waived their catwalk fees for the event, which raised €150,000 for the charity. Speaking at a pre-show press conference, Adi Roche, founder of the CCP, said that all monies raised would go towards two key projects - the Homes of Hope Fostering Project and the Medical Care Cardiac Programme.
The Homes of Hope Fostering Project is a new strategy undertaken by the charity and involves shutting down orphanages and placing children in a family environment in newly-built foster homes. Money raised from the fashion show will fund the purchase of three new homes and provide education and counselling workshops for the families to assist them in the transition process.
Ms Roche said that 2006 was a significant year for the charity, as it moved away from "band-aid emergency relief" to more long-term strategic developments.
Christensen, who jetted in to Cork for last night's event accompanied by her parents, said she it was an "eye-opener" to find out the extent of the damage caused to Chernobyl and its people 20 years ago.
Last night's event involved the unveiling of the spring/summer collections of top designers Chanel, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Alexander McQueen, Roberto Cavalli and Stella McCartney. The sell-out show was hosted by RTÉ presenter Gráinne Seoige, who introduced Irish models including Miss Ireland Sarah Morrissey, and Glenda Gilson to the catwalk.
Acting as honorary male models for the night were TV presenter and actor Keith Duffy, singer Gavin Friday, 2FM presenter Dave Fanning and celebrity gardener Diarmuid Gavin. They were assisted by well-known faces from the Munster rugby team and local talk show host Neil Prendeville from Cork's 96FM.
The 650 guests were serenaded during the interval by tenor Paul Byrom. They included Minister Micheál Martin and his wife Mary; lord mayor of Cork Cllr Michael Ahern and his wife Eileen; CCP patron Ali Hewson; actor Colin Farrell's sister Claudine; and Anne Achieson, wife of U2's Larry Mullen.