Alexander McQueen's tall order: Towering 12-inch boots on Paris catwalk that were NOT made for walking...



These bizarre shoes would be a tall order for any woman to walk in.



They may be the height of chic, but it’s unlikely that British designer Alexander McQueen tried out his own creations ahead of their unveiling in Paris last night. Instead he left it to his models to gingerly make their way along the catwalk in crystal-studded shoe-boots with 12-inch elevations.

The platform shoes were part of a collection inspired by Charles Darwin’s The Origin Of The Species.



The height of fashion: Alexander McQueen sent models down the catwalk in 12-inch-high shoe-boots

But the fantasy fauna inspired fashion didn't end there.

Models with their hair teased into devil-like horns, strutted the catwalk in minidresses decorated with all manner of colourful, elaborate skins.

Ruffled hemlines were frilled to resemble feathers, and vibrant fabrics were printed to resemble amphibian-like breastplates.

The high-tech show set then morphed into a prehistoric underwater scene, lending something of an otherworldly feel.

Animal magic: Alexander McQueen's spring 2010 collection was inspired by Charles Darwin's Origin of Species

The weird and wonderful mood was heightened by the models' shaved eyebrows and gills painted on their temples.



Shimmering stud and crystal-embellished designs played on the models' glossy skin, while elliptical, serpentine jackets made for a graphic contrast to the detailed prints.

The exclusive invite-only catwalk show was intended to be streamed live to an audience of six million last night, but the Showstudio.com website, on which it was due to be shown, crashed thanks to none other than Lady GaGa.

The eccentrically-dressed pop princess, who provided the music for McQueen's show, had tweeted that her new single, Bad Romance, would be premiered at the show, citing the website as a source from which to hear it.



Fantasy fauna: The eerie mood was heightened by models' shaved eyebrows and gills painted on their temples



Otherworldly: The show morphed into an underwater theme, with iridescent fabrics and ethereal make up









