Irn-Bru with a twist for Burns Night — plus more trends to know now

Find out what’s heating up (and cooling down) in our weekly barometer of trends from fashion to pop culture…

Something’s Bruing

When stocking up on whisky for this year’s Burns Night celebration next Sunday, don’t forget Scotland’s other national drink. Born as Iron Brew in 1901, AG Barr’s Irn-Bru is known for its fluorescent hue and tongue-in-cheek (former) slogan “Made in Scotland from girders” — but if you’ve been giving the spicy-sweet pop a wide berth, you might want to see what tastemakers are doing with it now. In Edinburgh, Social by Matto mixes an Irn-Bru whisky sour, and over in St Andrews, Jannettas Gelateria turns it into a limited-edition sorbet. London is leaning in for Burns Night too: Ria’s, the cult Detroit-style pizzeria in Soho and Notting Hill, will be serving Irn-Bru ice cream paired with a deep-fried Mars bar, while Julie’s restaurant in Holland Park has an Irn-Bru daiquiri.

Bottle of Big Jim's Irn Bru & Whisky Hot Sauce.

Big Jim’s Irn-Bru and Whisky Hot Sauce

To get involved at home, order a bottle of Big Jim’s Irn-Bru & Whisky Hot Sauce (£5; it’s a regular sell-out on the gastro platform Delli), and the Aberdeenshire-based Angus & Oink’s Iron BBQ spice rub, which is a honey-chipotle ode to the fizzy drink. And of course no table will be complete without a proud bottle of the orange stuff — and we don’t mean skin-contact wine.’

Collage of a smartphone with ribbons, an actor making a peace sign, a person in a blue sweater, and a pasta seasoning tin. Going upWinter sunglasses
On red carpets, on windswept beaches, on the school run — instant cool even if it’s cloudyGoing ‘Janalogue’
The new dry January. Instead of cutting out booze we’re going Awol from our phonesPasta seasoning
Herb and chilli blends to sprinkle on spaghetti are the latest deli desirableV-necks
Looking fresh again. Wear over a white T-shirtGoing downSelf-identifying as a people-pleaser
Keep that for your therapistPortrait orientation
Gen Z now take photos landscape-style — just like granny and grandadMilitary jackets
Be careful: it’s giving Cheryl’s Fight for This LoveBeing tasteful
We’re seeing a lot of Pat Butcheresque styling lately — and we like it Collage of a woman in a red blazer, a woman crying, an older woman with a leopard print top, and a person holding a phone with the Eiffel Tower on its screen. Agatha Christie style is trending Collage of a woman on left in a green cardigan and plaid skirt with a woman on right in a green cardigan and brown skirt.

A country house, a murder, a plucky detective and some great moustaches: how can we possibly resist Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials, which arrived on Netflix on Thursday? This month marks 50 years since the author died, and there’s plenty coming up to thrill her fans, including a UK tour of The Mousetrap, the Agatha Christie Festival in Devon in September, and an exhibition at the British Library from October.

• Our fashion editor’s guide to the hot catwalk trends for 2026

Two people, a man in a suit and a woman in a blue coat, speak to each other on a street.

Netflix’s Seven Dials

NETFLIX

British mystery writer Agatha Christie wearing a hat and cardigan, posing for a portrait.

Agatha Christie in 1926

HULTON ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES

It’s also a good time to channel the great writer’s style, as per the Fendi and Chanel spring/summer 2026 collections. Think tweedy suits, cardigans, brooches and the type of below-the-knee skirts Miss Marple would approve of — which you could also pick up at Jaeger (via Marks & Spencer), Vinted or your local charity shop. It’s a look that achieves the almost impossible, in being elegant but also relaxed — leaving you plenty of headspace to solve a few mysteries.

Collage of two models on a runway wearing skirts and jackets.

From left: Fendi and Chanel

Taking the biscuit

If you like your interiors cosy, consider a biscuit. We’re talking colour here (though also feel free to open the digestives), because the latest trend is for paint that lies somewhere between honey, afternoon sunlight and what Prue Leith would describe as a perfect bake. “Biscuit is the ideal base colour,” says Ellen Cumber, cofounder of the interior design studio Golden, who recently used this shade on the ground floor of a townhouse in Highbury. “It is full of natural warmth, so even in the context of layered neutrals, which sometimes risk being flat or cool, it will feel welcoming, yet it can also hold its own and isn’t overpowered by bold, strong colour.”

• Colour psychology: how can paint colours affect your mood

Collage of three interior home scenes with warm yellow walls.

From left: biscuit shades in Golden’s design for a house in Highbury; Farrow & Ball’s Hay in Sarah Corbett-Winder’s home; Octavia Dickinson’s use of Edward Bulmer Paint in Cinnamon

She recommends the archive Farrow & Ball colour Biscuit — which is made to order — or a shade from Paint & Paper Library’s Canvas family. “These pair particularly well with reds, olive greens and warm blues, and are the perfect foil for natural timbers and fabrics such as woven sisal or hessian rugs.” Farrow & Ball’s Duster and Hay shades create a similarly golden effect in the Welsh home of the stylist Sarah Corbett-Winder, while Octavia Dickinson’s design of a Gloucestershire farmhouse uses Edward Bulmer Paint in Cinnamon. The result is rather delicious, and creates a mellow light you’ll love to come home to.

• Read more expert advice on property, interiors and home improvement

One more thing An artistic arrangement of cucumber slices and peels forming a face, with under-eye patches labeled "CHANEL."

PHOTOGRAPH: SAM NICKLIN. EDIT: FLOSSIE SAUNDERS

If the bags under your eyes are by Chanel, then there is nothing to gripe about. In the dreary depths of January, address dark circles, dehydration and puffiness with superchic patches of serum-infused goodness. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed indeed. Chanel Le Lift Flash Eye, £86 for ten pairs of patches, chanel.com

Additional words: Victoria Brzezinski