The rumours were true: John Galliano will recommence his design career as the new creative director of . 

'Margiela is ready for a new charismatic creative soul,' Renzo Posso, President of OTB, the company which owns the label, told WWD ahead an official announcement expected today.

'John Galliano is one of the greatest, undisputed talents of all time – a unique, exceptional couturier for a masion that always challenged and innovated the world of fashion. I look forward to his return to create that fashion dream that only he can create, and wish him to here find his new home.'

His appointment is all the more surprising given Margiela's habitual insistence on keeping its head designer anonymous – designers don't come much more profile than Galliano. Despite a brief stint in the studio with Oscar de la Renta last year, this role will be his first permanent design gig since he was unceremoniously dismissed from Christian Dior after the designer was recorded making racist and anti-Semitic remarks in a Paris bar in 2011. He is also creative director for Russian perfumery chain L’Etoile. 

He will assume creative control of all Margiela lines, including the couture and women’s and men’s ready-to-wear collections. He is expected to show his first designs for the house in January during Paris Couture Week.