Paul Smith rides into Claridge's ballroom

Call out the hounds, Paul Smith's in the mood for horsing around

Call out the hounds, Paul Smith's in the mood for horsing around!

Showing in the uber-elegant surrounds of Claridge's ballroom this evening, Smith's new collection was just the thing for a weekend in the countryside (albeit one where the hostess is feeling kinda frisky).

With the sound of hunting horns ringing in our ears, Paul sent a stampede of lace-up pencil skirts, crocheted dresses, wax jackets and pastel mohair knits down the runway, all topped and tailed with flat caps and Wellington boots.

As always with Paul there was a rather charming story behind the vision in front of us, with a jacket from the 50s, unearthed at Portobello market, the inspiration behind the whole show.

'I based the entire collection on my imagination of that jacket,' he told reporters backstage.

'It started off quite aristocratic and quite upper-class and very much about the countryside, but then it's gone off into the naughty debutante daughter, who is up in London every weekend and parties like mad.

'She often borrows her mum's or her granny's rather elegant clothes but mixes them in a way that's very young.'

PAUL SMITH AUTUMN/WINTER 2010: SEE THE CATWALK PICS HERE