London Games, Haute Couture and Harry Potter

London, soaking in the bright sun for the fifth straight day, is now a potpourri of high fashion, entertainment and glamour. The London Olympic Games Organising Committee seems to have reserved its best as curtains go up on the opening ceremony at the Olympic Stadium later on Friday evening.

The British capital could not have asked for a better ‘mix’ as glamour, Haute Couture and sports rub shoulders at every nook and corner of the Games arena. If Amitabh Bachchan lit up the city centre on Thursday morning in the penultimate leg of the Torch Relay, the daughter of musical legend Bob Marley is grabbing the spotlight as much as Usain Bolt. So is Paul McCartney's daughter, Stella and of course, Ralph Lauren!

A slew of sportspersons have accompanied the hi profile relay, but it seemed to be in the cusp of the safest pair of hands on Wednesday when the torch was carried by England goalkeeping great Gordon Banks at the scene of his greatest victory. The 74-year-old Banks was cheered by huge crowds as he ran with the flame outside Wembley Stadium, the venue of England's 1966 World Cup victory.

Harry Potter star Rupert Grint and former decathlete champion Daley Thompson and Prince Charles were among the Who’s Who as the flame made its way across north London from Harrow to Harringey.

Even as celebrities criss-cross London city, one name that is making the rounds is Cedella Marley, a children’s author, actress (starring opposite Denzel Washington in The Mighty, singer and designer.

Marley’s eldest child, Cedella, who runs a globally successful brand -Catch a Fire-has designed the official dress of the Jamaican Olympic outfit. Commissioned by Puma, Cedella grew up soaked in reggae and it is no surprise that Olympic designs have a musical touch.

Usain Bolt will among other ‘super’models and the Olympic Stadium shall be the universal ramp on Friday night when Cedella’s dresses expose the Jamaica of the Seventies. There will be a rich reference to the country’s flag and to Marley himself. The singer, who died in 1981, is never far away. Jackets are called ‘Satisfy My Soul’ and ‘Buffalo Soldier Button Down’. The words ‘Positive Vibrations’ are stitched into collars.

The uniforms for the opening ceremony are a mix of army green, short-sleeved button-front shirts with skinny black ties and an embroidered Jamaican flag patch on the right breast for men. Women wear black and yellow allover leaf print, knee-length skirts and military-style jackets.

Interestingly, Great Britain’s uniforms have been designed by the daughter of another singing great, Paul McCartney. Stella McCartney, the second child of Beatles bassist, is a professional fashion designer. She created the Adidas outfits for the British athletes.

It will be quite a photo-finish as Jamaican and Britain ‘clash’ for the first ‘gold’ medal of the 30th Olympiad, that for the Best Dressed Team in the opening ceremony!