We interrupt this runway show...

When the lights go down and a runway show is about to begin, designers have a captive audience. And this season, they're figuring out a new way to work it. I went to two shows back-to-back this week where TV ads for new fragrances were previewed before the models started coming out.

At Emporio Armani, on a huge screen at the top of the runway, Beyonce channeled her inner Marilyn singing "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" to hawk the Diamonds fragrance.

At Gucci, screens were suspended on either side of the runway so we could watch the making of a TV spot by David Lynch, followed by the ad itself. A very retro, 1970s take on a fragrance ad, it featured models writhing around uncomfortably to the tune of "Heart of Glass" while trying to appear passionate about the Gucci by Gucci perfume.

By now, everyone knows that runway collections aren't as much about showing clothes to buyers as they are about putting on a show for the press, and creating an image to sell accessories and fragrances, which drive sales.

But screening TV ads marked a new level of Hollywood-style marketing on the runway. The least they could have done was serve popcorn!