In a new move from the retailers, Marks and Spencer will now be selling burkinis in Britain, to cater for their Muslim customers on British soil.
The company has stocked the swimsuits for the past three years in Dubai and Libya, but had yet to launch the product in the UK.
Now they're about to go on sale at the company's flagship store in Marble Arch and they're already available online.
The burkini was brought to public attention over in the UK in 2011, when Nigella Lawson took a dip in the sea wearing one at Australia's Bondi beach, with the explanation that she didn't like having to keep reapplying sun-cream after swimming.
Primarily though, the range looks set to appeal to Muslim women in the UK, who want to go for a swim without foregoing the coverage provided by the burka (or burqa).
The M&S burkini comprises of trousers, a head-covering and a long-sleeved tunic, and they come in two styles: one is blue, with a floral print across the chest (see above), and the other is black with a paisley pattern down one side.
The company enthuses that the £49.50 suit ‘covers the whole body with the exception of the face, hands and feet, without compromising on style’ and claims ‘It’s lightweight so you can swim in comfort.’
Image: M&S
