Anti-establishment icon and one-time messy bed occupant Tracey Emin is the surprising new face of Marks & Spencer's autumn campaign.

A glossy ‘Meet Britain’s Leading Ladies’ shoot by the renowned Annie Leibovitz sees Emin modelling the retailer's upcoming autumnwear collection, alongside a host of other women who are famous for excelling in their respective professions.

In a significant departure from previous bright and smiley, misty-lensed M&S campaigns featuring Myleene Klass and Twiggy, Dame Helen Mirren and Grace Coddington join lesser-known personalities such as Helen Allen, Nurse of the Year, 2011, in a series of atmospheric, quintessentially British settings.

Posing on a boat in front of a gloomy-looking River Thames, and in a wintery countryside setting, Emin is typically straight-faced, but the artist was delighted to have been asked to take part in the campaign, she told The Independent.

"I said yes straightaway. I shop a vast amount at Marks & Spencer, and I spend half my life in its pyjamas. I've got a Marks & Spencer credit card. I liked the fact the campaign was all about different women. It's not about what you look like, it's about what you do.”

Steve Sharp, Creative Director at M&S, said: “We wanted to mark this moment with a confident statement about UK style. The British have a history of being creative and pioneering and these women represent just that.”

M&S Autumnwear's leading ladies:

Nicola Adams, Olympic Gold Winning Boxer

Monica Ali, Award-Winning Author

Helen Allen, Nurse of the Year 2011

Darcey Bussell, Retired Principal Ballerina at The Royal Ballet

Grace Coddington, Creative Director of US Vogue

Karen Elson, Supermodel and Singer

Tracey Emin, Artist and Professor of Drawing at the Royal Academy

Ellie Goulding, Multiplatinum global recording artist/Brit Award winning Singer/Songwriter

Helen Mirren, Multiple Award-Winning Actress

Laura Mvula, Breakthrough Singer/Songwriter

Katie Piper, Burns survivor, television presenter and charity campaigner

Jasmine Whitbread, CEO of Save the Children International

Words: Anna Pollitt. Images: Marks & Spencer, Rex Features