In 1879, Thomas Burberry invented gabardine, a tightly woven, weatherproof fabric that was more breathable than the rubberized rainwear of the day. The trench coat followed, becoming standard issue for British officers during the First World War, then making its way into civilian wardrobes. It has remained in production ever since, worn by Humphrey Bogart, adopted by punks, revived by Christopher Bailey, and continually reinvented. The V&A traces that evolution in an exhibition that features Burberry catalogue pages from the 1930s and 40s and some of the trench’s more unusual incarnations: Hardy Amies’s personalized 1979 car coat; a pink metallic-silk version from 2013; and a fringed, baroque-print coat from 2025. —Elena Clavarino