Exhibition: Costume Drama - From Halifax to Hollywood
The film credits continue to grow for Calderdale, West Yorkshire. Successful television series such as Happy Valley, The Gallows Pole and Gentleman Jack have brought the area national attention and made it a cultural destination. Add in films such as To Walk Invisible and Peterloo and one appreciates the ‘Hollywood of the North’ reference in Costume Drama, this year’s exhibition at Bankfield Museum Halifax. Featuring costumes made for major historic dramas alongside original garments from Bankfield’s collection, the exhibition explores the history of fashion through the context of its remaking for film and television.
Jessica Brown Findlay's costume as Lady Sybil in the TV series 'Downton Abbey', 2010 designed by Susannah Buxton, Cosprop. Photo: Kerry Taylor Auctions
It is not an easy task to combine real and reproduction exhibits in a way that honours and enhances both, yet Costume Drama manages to do so. There is a richness to the selection of material and the information shared which makes this an insightful as well as an entertaining visit. Making use of the light, spacious Victorian architecture of Bankfield’s fashion gallery, the garments are grouped to echo key scenes or moments from dramas that also include Pride and Prejudice, Downton Abbey, The King’s Speech and Emma. Each vignette is contextualised by either historic examples (some 18th century accessories to drool over) or information on the design process of their production.
Colin Firth as Mr Darcy in the 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.
One comes away with a sense of the costume designers respect for the heritage of their craft, and an increased awareness of their contribution to the telling of a story through the choice of a colour palette, the texture and drape of cloth, and the structure of a garment. Costume Drama also left me questioning my assumptions of what constitutes a ‘real’ object. These reproductions have their own history, a life shared communally on big and small screens. When Colin Firth’s ‘Darcy’ shirt is described as ‘a piece of costume history’, it is hard to disagree.
Written by June Hill
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Further Information:
Costume Drama is on now until 20 December 2025 at Bankfield Museum, Halifax, UK.
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Image Credits:
Lead Image: Ruth Gemmell as Lady Violet Bridgerton and Phoebe Dynevor as Daphne Bridgerton. Image courtesy of Netflix. Daphne Bridgerton's dress is on show at Bankside.
All other images as credited in the photo captions.