Forget rising inflation. The stewards were on the lookout for rising hemlines as they policed their strict new dress code on the first day of Royal Ascot today.

Economists have been warning of the risk of recession as food and fuel prices soar and Britons see the value of their homes tumble. This morning the governor of the Bank of England had to write to the Chancellor to explain a spike in the cost of living.

But none of that appeared to matter as the highlight of the summer season kicked off on a bright sunny day.

For the first time this year the prize money on offer to jockeys over the course of the five-day meet in Berkshire has reached £4 million. Punters' champagne bills will cost about half that much, or £2 million. Last year they managed to consume 10,000 lobsters, 5,000 oysters and 18,000 punnets of strawberries in between races.

Times Archive, 1911: Dress for Ascot

Doubtless the debutante will wear her skirt just off the ground, if it suits her, but the majority of dresses will just touch the ground

• Beautiful gowns, 1922

• Ascot to permit trouser suits, 1977

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The Queen and fellow members of the Royal Family paraded the course in horse-drawn landaus, as they do before the first race every day of the festival.

Accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh and the Duke of York, she wore a cream-coloured coat with black pattern and trim with matching hat and waved to racegoers as the royal procession made the traditional arrival up the course’s straight mile.

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie travelled in the second carriage for their first formal visit to Royal Ascot. Beatrice wore a white and black Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy hat while Eugenie was dressed in a cream Collette Dinnigan dress with electric blue Philip Treacy hat and blue jacket.

The pair were accompanied by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall who

wore a pale green jacket and matching feathered hat.

After confusion over the definition of “formal day dress” in 2007 the Ascot authorities have reworded the dress code for women.

In now states: “For ladies, only formal day dress with a hat or substantial fascinator will be acceptable. Off the shoulder, halter neck, spaghetti straps and dresses with a strap of less than one inch and/or miniskirts are considered unsuitable. Midriffs must be covered and trouser suits must be full length and of matching material and colour.”

Skirts must be no more than two inches above the knee.

For men the matter is somewhat simpler. Morning dress including waistcoat and top hat is the only permitted attire for the top-level of enclosure at the course.

Jodie Sykes, 26, a shoe designer from London, turned heads when she arrived wearing a striking beige hat with umbrella and matching dress with she picked up from a bric-a-brac store in Italy.

She said: “There are eight of us here and it is our fourth year at Ascot. We love it because it is so much fun and we always try and make a big splash. My friend always makes our hats for us and they are always fabulous.”

Another racegoer Rebecca Branwell, 21, from Wigan, Lancashire, arrived for the day wearing a purple dress and matching hat adorned with betting slips, designed by Nigel Raymond.

She said: “This is my first time here and I can’t wait. I am looking forward to seeing all the fashion - and there is the betting, of course.”

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