Get the look: Unusual icons

This week fashion designer Donatella Versace revealed her new muse: the Pope's private secretary Father Georg Gaenswein. The BBC News website looks at some of the more unlikely fashion icons of the 21st Century.

GEORG GAENSWEIN

The Pope has also been known to follow fashion

The Italians already call him "Don Giorgio" or "Gorgeous George", and he has apparently made quite an impression on Ms Versace. High-buttoned black jackets with crisp white shirts were seen on the catwalk this week, inspired by the Pope's private secretary.

Father Gaenswein can hardly be credited with inventing the look, but many would say the 50-year-old German wears it rather well. As a fashion icon, he is in good company. His boss Pope Benedict XVI has a penchant for Prada slippers and Gucci sunglasses.

MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD

The controversial Iranian president usually sports a circa-1970s fawn-coloured coat, which even he now refers to as the "Ahmadinejad jacket".

The Iranian president also calls it "the Ahmadinejad jacket"

At the height of his popularity, entrepreneurs were ordering copies of the garment from China to meet the demand from his supporters at local bazaars.

And the jacket is still generating headlines. A US political analyst sparked some heated debate recently when he playfully compared presidential hopeful Barack Obama's choice of coat with that of Mr Ahmadinejad.

HAMID KARZAI

The Afghan president fuses the traditional with the tailored

Gucci designer Tom Ford dubbed the Afghan president "the chicest man on the planet" when he emerged onto the world stage. His style of loose, often colourful robes, worn over a well-cut Italian suit, made an impact on the Milan catwalks in the autumn/winter of 2002.

Four years on, the Afghan president still looks as well turned out as ever, although his country remains one of the world's poorest states.

THE QUEEN

Prada and Westwood are thought to be admirers of royal style

The Italian fashion designer Miuccia Prada has expressed her admiration for Queen's Elizabeth dress sense and Vivienne Westwood is also thought to draw inspiration from the 80-year-old monarch.

While some foreign fashionistas declare her a fuddy-duddy, many observers feel she cuts a fine figure on the world stage.

Her clean lines and formal elegance mean she can carry off both pastels and more daring colours.

EVO MORALES

The Morales jumper became a hit

Since being elected Bolivian President, Evo Morales has carried out many official engagements in a cosy-looking red, white and blue woolly jumper.

Apparently inundated with calls from fans wanting to emulate their leader, one Bolivian retailer set up a new "Evo fashion" line in sweaters.

However, the jumper appeared to have been left in the wardrobe when he attended this week's inauguration of the Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa. But the mild temperatures may have made it an impractical choice.