A US TV show that details the lives of the youthful rich on New York's Upper East Side has become a fashion sensation. But does it amount to more than a cynical exercise in product placement for top designers?

Think tartan skirts. Think pearls. Think piped blazers and the ker-ching of cash registers across the UK as the latest US fashion phenomenon sweeps down through our TV and broadband cables and rolls out on to our high streets.

Gossip Girl, the most talked about American teenage television drama and, perhaps, the most cynical product placement exercise in history, is set to transform British teenage girls into preppy Manhattan Upper East-Siders.

Such is the hype that it's a trend too irresistible for fashion retailers to ignore. With the series now airing on ITV2, designers have already taken their cue and the high street will follow. 'As far as teenage fashion is concerned, they have definitely hit the ground running,' said British style and fashion commentator Charlie Porter.

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