Esme Young has been putting amateur sewers to the test on the BBC's much-loved reality competition programme, Great British Sewing Bee, since 2016. Before that, the 77-year-old designer forged a successful career in the fashion world after launching her label, Swanky Modes, in the 1970s. Though little else is known about the fashion designer's life, she has been vocal about her childhood medical condition that continues to affect her to this day.
During a SheerLuxe interview in 2023, Esme revealed that she was "partially deaf" as a child and learned to read when she was seven years old as a result. "No one really understood that that was the problem," she explained. "My teachers thought I was thick and my father used to describe me as 'dreamy' – but, really, I was in my own little world because I couldn't hear anyone.
© Love Productions/James Stack/BBC"I also didn't learn to read until I was seven because I didn't know how to make the right sounds. It's still a bit of a problem today because I have to look at everything visually." While Esme admitted that her hearing is still "a bit of a problem", she hasn't let it hold her back.
Esme's design career
Esme, along with designers Judy Dewsbury, Melanie Herberfield and Willie Walters, created the label Swanky Modes and in 1972, opened a flagship store in Camden. The label enjoyed enormous success, appearing on the likes of Cher and Grace Jones, as well as being featured in fashion magazines Vogue and the V&A Little Black Dress Book.
Esme's work has also been seen on the big screen, with her designs appearing in films such as Bridget Jones's Diary, Trainspotting, and The Beach. Esme said to SheerLuxe: "Renée Zellweger's bunny suit is probably the one outfit people want to know about."
![Esme [right], with her Swanky Modes colleagues, Judy Dewsbury and Melanie Herberfield](https://images.hellomagazine.com/horizon/original_aspect_ratio/73d7ed42e78d-esme-young-swanky-modes-colleagues.jpg)
"She wanted it tighter and tighter to emphasise Bridget's figure. I made a pretty intricate corset, and she couldn't sit down in it in the end. I also made the pink suit Dale Winton wore in Trainspotting. I loved having a bit of input in all these films."
The new series of Great British Sewing Bee 2026
Esme, who has been a judge on Great British Sewing Bee since 2016, has returned for a twelfth series. Joined by fellow judge Patrick Grant and new host Sophie Willan, the star brings decades of fashion and costume design expertise to the 2026 edition of the competition.
© Alamy Stock PhotoEsme shared a taster of what fans at home can expect from the series in a new interview with Simply Sewing magazine. "The person who eventually won was great, but we didn't know how it would all end up. You certainly couldn’t tell from the beginning who’d be there in the final. It was such a rollercoaster. It was often down to such a small margin, when it came to sending one home, that any of them, really, could have won in the end."
"Well, it’s always fun. And the sewers are getting better and better. Every year, I love how they help each other, but – in this series – they have to actually work together. There was a transformation challenge in Sports Week where they had to work in pairs to make a two-piece from a windsurf sail.
© James Stack"And another – in Music Week – where they had to work in a team to create outfits for a pop trio. I think they enjoyed collaborating, but it’s different. At Central Saint Martins [the world-renowned arts and design college where Esme teaches], the students sometimes do this. Some of them really like it and some of them hate it."
