Elie Saab returns to his destroyed Beirut home after blast: the top fashion designer from Lebanon has dressed Kate Middleton, Liu Yifei

Although his home in Beirut was wrecked by the massive August 4 explosion, the first thing fashion designer Elie Saab wanted to know was if anyone was hurt

Saab has dressed royalty including Britain’s Kate Middleton and a host of A-list celebrities, among them actresses Halle Berry, Helen Mirren and Liu Yifei

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The August 4 port explosion disfigured huge swathes of Beirut – and though his home (pictured) was badly damaged, the first thing fashion designer Elie Saab wanted to know was if anyone was hurt. Photo: AFP

Published: 2:15pm, 21 Aug 2020Updated: 1:06pm, 18 Feb 2021

The heritage building of one of Beirut’s best-known residents, fashion designer Elie Saab, badly damaged in the huge explosion that devastated the Lebanese capital, is one of the emblematic images of the disaster.

“Thank God everyone is OK,” Saab told his team on his first visit to the house almost two weeks after the blast, as he picked his way through glass around a damaged marble-top table.

Saab, one of Lebanon’s most famous exports, has dressed royalty including Britain’s Kate Middleton and a host of A-list celebrities. His gowns have been worn on the red carpet by actresses including Halle Berry and Helen Mirren, and, more recently, Liu Yifei at the premiere of Mulan in March 2020.

His elegant home overlooking the main street of Beirut’s trendy Gemmayzeh district was frequented by celebrities from Lebanon and abroad.

The damaged facade of fashion designer Elie Saab’s Beirut home. Photo: AFP

Saab’s home was badly damaged in the explosion. Photo: AFP