10 Things I Screamed At My Screen During The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2026

There are very few things that can turn me into a perfectly reasonable person’s worst nightmare faster than the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. One minute, I’m sitting on my bed with my laptop, ready to appreciate some lingerie and a few elaborate wings. The next, I’m pausing every 30 seconds, sending screenshots to my friends and behaving as if I have personally invested in the brand’s success. And honestly, after growing up watching these women turn a runway into an entire cultural event, can you blame me?

Admittedly, there is something faintly absurd about caring this much about enormous wings and a diamond bra at a moment when the real world feels particularly difficult to ignore. But perhaps that is part of the appeal. The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show has never pretended to be anything other than spectacle: excessive, escapist and occasionally ridiculous. Whether that kind of fantasy still works in 2026 is another question entirely.

The 2026 edition had plenty to talk about. The return of the Fantasy Bra, familiar Angels back on the runway, Indian models giving us a moment of representation and enough celebrity appearances to keep the internet occupied for days. There were things I loved, things I questioned and a few moments when I genuinely needed the camera director to understand that I was here for the clothes.

Here are 10 things I couldn't stop thinking about while watching the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2026.

1. Alex Consani And Those Wings!!!

Alex Consani could walk down a corridor carrying a takeaway coffee, and I would probably call it a runway moment. Give her a pair of wings, a Victoria’s Secret outfit and a runway to work with, and suddenly I’m considering whether my life has any purpose beyond owning something equally dramatic.

There is something about Consani’s irreverence that makes her such a compelling presence on the runway. She has the walk, the personality and the kind of confidence that makes even the most elaborate look feel like an extension of herself. And those beautiful golden wings? I need them delivered to my house immediately. I have no occasion to wear them, but that has never stopped me from wanting an outfit.

2. Shut Up, They’re Playing ‘Nicole Kidman’. Adéla Performing This Would Have Slayed.

The second ‘Nicole Kidman’ came on, my brain immediately started casting an imaginary performance. Adéla on that runway? The theatricality, the attitude, the potential for a slightly unhinged pop-girl moment? I fear I would have needed to be physically removed from my screen. The fact that they then panned the camera to Nicole Kidman was not exactly subtle.

The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show has always understood that the right musical pairing can make a good runway moment iconic. And while I’m not saying I should be in charge of its entertainment bookings, I am saying that this was an opportunity for the kind of performance that would have had everyone editing fancams before the show had even ended.

Dear Victoria’s Secret, my ideas are free. You’re welcome.

3. I Have Mixed Feelings About The PINK Segment.

I understand the brief. PINK is supposed to be the younger, more playful sibling in the Victoria’s Secret family, and the segment is meant to feel different from the rest of the show. But sometimes, the distinction between playful and predictable gets a little blurry.

I want the colour, the cheekiness, the unexpected styling and the sense that the girls are having the time of their lives. I just don't want it to feel like someone opened a separate Pinterest board titled ‘everything you find on social media these days’ and decided that was enough. There is a difference between knowing what a younger audience likes and understanding what makes them excited about fashion.

KATSEYE brought the energy, and the PINK aesthetic has its place. I just wanted a little more fashion fantasy and maybe some fresh faces. Is that too much to ask?

4. Why Is Kylie Jenner In The Fantasy Bra?

Before anyone comes for me, I understand that Kylie Jenner is a cultural force. She has built a beauty empire, understands the internet better than most people understand their own jobs and can generate headlines simply by existing in a room. Victoria’s Secret clearly wanted a pop-culture moment, and Jenner delivered one.

But the Fantasy Bra? I have questions.

The Fantasy Bra has been part of Victoria’s Secret history since 1996. It became the ultimate runway prize, a piece of extraordinary jewellery that turned the model wearing it into the centrepiece of the show. Gisele Bündchen wore the $15 million Red Hot Fantasy Bra in 2000, while Elsa Hosk wore the last one to appear on the runway in 2018, valued at $1 million.

After an eight-year hiatus, the Fantasy Bra returned in 2026 on Jenner. Created with Jacob & Co., it reportedly features more than 4,400 natural diamonds centred around a 75.54-carat yellow diamond and is valued at an eye-watering $50 million. It is, by the brand's own measure, the most expensive Fantasy Bra it has ever produced.

And yes, even by Victoria's Secret standards, $50 million for a bra is an objectively absurd sentence to type in 2026.

My issue isn't that Jenner wore lingerie on a runway. It's that the Fantasy Bra has historically been so closely tied to the mythology of the Angels that I wanted its return to feel like a celebration of that legacy. With her, the moment became as much about celebrity casting as it was about the garment itself.

Perhaps that's precisely the point. In the age of viral moments and internet fandom, a $50 million bra needs someone who can make the entire world stop scrolling. Still, a tiny part of me misses the days when the Fantasy Bra felt like the ultimate supermodel achievement.

Don't say it. Don't say it. Don't say it. I guess you're doing amazing, sweetie.

5. Brown Girls On The VS Runway!!!

I need everyone to understand that this was not just another runway moment for me. Seeing Indian model Ravleen Varghese make her runway debut for Victoria’s Secret healed a very specific part of my childhood that I hadn't even realised needed healing. 

Growing up, the Angels felt like an entire universe of their own. I remember the wings, the elaborate lingerie, the impossibly long legs and the feeling that these women belonged to a world that existed somewhere far away from mine. And while the show has evolved over the years, seeing an Indian model become part of that fantasy feels particularly special.

It is one thing to admire someone on a screen. It is another to see someone who shares something of your own cultural context occupying a space you once thought was reserved for someone else. The latter quietly changes what you imagine is possible. And no, representation doesn't magically fix everything. But visibility can still matter, even within an institution whose own history around beauty standards is complicated. For that alone, this was one of my favourite moments of the show.

6. Candice, Karen Mulder, Adriana Lima And Alessandra Ambrosio Back On The Runway? My Heart.

Listen, I am all for new faces, new energy and fashion moving forward. But the moment Candice Swanepoel, Adriana Lima and Alessandra Ambrosio appear on a Victoria’s Secret runway, I become the most sentimental person alive.

These women helped define an era of fashion entertainment. Their walks, their wings and the way they carried the entire production made the show feel larger than life. And the nostalgia isn't simply about wanting things to be the way they were. It's about remembering what made the spectacle so compelling in the first place.

Karen Mulder's name brings another layer of history to the conversation, reminding us that the Victoria’s Secret legacy stretches back well beyond the social media era. Seeing familiar supermodel names return makes the runway feel connected to the generations that came before.

Of course, the show shouldn't have to rely on its past to remain relevant. But when its past looks this good, I'm going to allow myself a little emotional moment. Someone, please pass me a tissue. Preferably one with angel wings embroidered on it.

7. Barbara Palvin-Sprouse's Return Deserves A Different Conversation

Barbara Palvin-Sprouse returned to the runway just six weeks after giving birth, and predictably, much of the conversation immediately became about her body.

It is easy to understand why. She is a model appearing in lingerie on one of the world's most scrutinised runways. But perhaps the more useful response is not to ask how she ‘got her body back’. She gave birth six weeks ago. Her body did not go anywhere.

There is something uncomfortable about turning an extraordinarily individual postpartum experience into another benchmark women are expected to measure themselves against. Palvin-Sprouse looked incredible, but that does not make her appearance a blueprint, a fitness challenge or evidence of what recovery is ‘supposed’ to look like.

Let the woman walk the runway without collectively turning her abdomen into a public referendum on motherhood.

That said, am I still going to ask for the routine? Obviously. Am I going to pretend I won’t save the first fitness video she posts? Absolutely not.
Mrs Palvin-Sprouse, if you’re reading this, the girlies remain respectfully curious. No pressure.

8. Can KATSEYE Stop Blocking Our View?

I love KATSEYE. I love a good performance. I love the intersection of fashion and music. What I don't love is feeling like I need to conduct an archaeological excavation to find the outfit underneath all the choreography.

KATSEYE brought their pop-star energy to the PINK segment, performing ‘Pinky Up’, ‘Animal’ and more; the group's presence made sense for a show that has increasingly positioned itself at the intersection of fashion and fandom. 

But here's the thing: this is still a fashion show. I want to see the models, the clothes, the lingerie and the details that somebody has spent weeks designing. If the performers, camera cuts and choreography keep taking over the frame, I start wondering whether I'm watching a concert with lingerie interludes.

This isn't a criticism of the girls doing their jobs. They came to perform, and perform they did. My grievance is with the visual balance. Let the singers have their moment, absolutely, but please give the clothes a moment, too.

I shouldn't have to replay a clip at 0.5x speed to appreciate the craftsmanship of a runway look.

9. Tate McRae Really Ate With Her Performance!

Tate McRae and the Victoria’s Secret runway make a lot of sense to me. She has the dancer's instinct for movement, the pop-star confidence and that slightly dangerous performance energy that makes you want to get up and do something dramatic in your bedroom mirror.

Her performance was one of those moments when the music and the runway felt like they belonged in the same universe. Rather than simply providing background entertainment, she brought a physicality to the show that matched its theatrical nature.

Somewhere between watching her and trying to copy a 'Housewife' dance move that my hips have absolutely not approved, I remembered why I love a good live performance.

10. Give Me The Elsa Hosk Wings.

If there is one thing the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show has taught me, it is that I will never be normal about wings. You could give me the most beautiful dress in the world, but add a dramatic pair of wings and suddenly the dress is an afterthought.

Elsa Hosk knows exactly how to sell that fantasy. She wore the Fantasy Bra in 2018, the last time it appeared on the runway before this year's return, and she was back for the 2026 show. 

And while the Fantasy Bra may have stolen the headlines this year, I'm still thinking about the sheer scale of the wings. The craftsmanship, the drama, the way they transform a look from lingerie into an entire production. There is something gloriously excessive about them, and excess is precisely what makes this show fun when it gets things right.

Would I wear a pair to a dinner party? Yes. Would I wear them to the airport? Probably. Would I have to turn sideways to get through every door? Almost certainly. But these are sacrifices I'm prepared to make.

And perhaps that is the only sensible way to watch the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in 2026: with a little nostalgia, a little scepticism and enough self-awareness to know that none of this is particularly serious. The brand is still trying to reconcile its very specific, very complicated legacy with a generation that expects a broader idea of beauty and fantasy. Sometimes it works. Sometimes you end up staring at a $50 million bra and wondering how exactly we got here.

But for an hour, there were enormous wings, ridiculous diamonds, supermodels from several generations and pop stars occasionally blocking our view of the clothes. In a news cycle that rarely gives us much reason to switch off, perhaps there is room for something this gloriously inconsequential.

The world may be on fire. I can still want the wings.

Also, Read:

Kylie Jenner Walks The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2026 In The $50 Million Fantasy Bra