The Force

I had errands to do in Bingley that coincided with the Christmas Market and the Christmas Lights Switch-on. It was difficult, however, to get any decent photos. For one thing, there were inevitably lots of children around and I'm always very wary of including recognisable children in my photos. It was safer on the whole not to bother trying. I did manage to snap a few Star Wars characters wandering around. Not that I recognise them, having never been a real fan of the series. I do recognise Darth Vader! 

 

Elegance

During the course of my career I used to have to dress quite smartly in business suits (remember those very wide shoulder-padded jackets of the 80s and early 90s?) and dresses. Now I'm retired, I only own about three dresses and a couple of jackets. I'm invariably dressed in casual wear: jeans, trousers, T-shirts and sweaters, walking gear. So I can't really go complaining but I do somewhat regret our societal slide-down, away from the elegance of some earlier eras. When I lived in my old house, built in 1901, I often used to wonder what it must have felt like to have to go up and down the steep stairs in long skirts, as would have been the norm then. 

It was interesting to me to see some of the historical outfits displayed in the Bankfield Museum. You have to marvel at the detail, much of it, I should imagine, stitched by hand. The exhibition was showing how modern costume designers study historic clothes in minute detail to work out how they're made, down to the details of the stitching, buttons and everything. 

I think the 1930s was a very glamorous time. I loved the two evening dresses (above) from that period, one midnight blue silk velvet and the other jade silk with gold embroidered beading, both bias cut to emphasise the natural curves of the body. I think you'd feel very elegant in those, even move differently perhaps. I imagine actors wearing costumes that are historically accurate must find they help with the characterisation and movement of the performance. 

The sketches were examples of how designers research dresses, fabric and patterns. 

The mushroom coloured coat with concealed buttons, above, is a 1930s original. The day dress is modern but heavily influenced by late 1920s style. 

 

"Gentleman Jack' costumes

Like the Bradford and Saltaire areas, Calderdale is justly proud of its reputation as a location for film and TV shoots. There have been several high-profile and successful series filmed in the area, including 'Gentleman Jack', the story of Anne Lister, a lesbian diarist and landowner, who lived at nearby Shibden Hall. The Bankfield Museum is building a permanent collection of film memorabilia, some of which is on display. Here is a bonnet worn by Sophie Rundle (Ann Walker in Gentleman Jack Series 2 in 2022) and Gentleman Jack's top hat, worn by Suranne Jones  in the same series. 

Upstairs in the Textile Gallery there was an interesting exhibition detailing the process of creating clothing based faithfully on historical dress. It profiled several significant designers and makers, including the costume designer for 'Gentleman Jack', Tom Pye. It had sketches and photographs showing reference costumes, designs and the fittings involved with the actors. 

I was particularly interested to read about Gentleman Jack's greatcoat, and how it was carefully designed to swing as she walked. (In the TV episodes, she habitually walked very fast and the coat flaring around her was a signature statement.) You'll perhaps remember that some of the series was filmed in Saltaire. I was lucky enough to catch a photo of Suranne Jones in the coat, being filmed striding out from the mill (see below).

Other costumes and sketches on display included an outfit worn by Lydia Leonard as Mariana Lawton, and two dresses worn by Sophie Rundle, who played Ann Walker, Gentleman Jack's partner. The print of the checked dress was taken from a swatch in an 1830s pattern book in the Bankfield Museum's collection. 

I've always had a mild interest in historical costume (dating back, perhaps, to those pre-teen days of playing with my best friend. We used to design and make clothes for our 'teenage dolls'.) I found it very interesting to see how designers go about researching the details to make the costumes, not only the overall look and the undergarments, but noting the tiny details like the buttons used and the types of seams. 

No swooning!

One of the recent additions to the Bankfield Museum's permanent textiles collection is this white linen shirt. It was famously worn by Colin Firth, who played Mr Darcy in the 1995 BBC adaptation of Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice'. In an invented scene, Fitzwilliam Darcy stripped to his breeches to take a cooling dip in a pond. Emerging wet and with his shirt clinging, he then encountered Elizabeth Bennett,  who had previously turned down his proposal of marriage. Suffice to say, that was a turning point in their relationship. (Well, you would, wouldn't you?) 

The shirt was one of a number of costumes auctioned for charity in 2024 by Cosprop, the theatrical costumiers. It was bought by Calderdale Museums for £25000, from their Works of Arts Fund, funded by public donations and bequests. 

Now then...  No Swooning! 

Steampunks

I hopped over to Bradford Industrial Museum the other weekend, partly to have another look round because I find it so fascinating, and partly because there was a Steampunk event advertised. It was a freezing cold day so those taking part were all huddled indoors chatting. It made it a bit difficult to take photos as the light inside is inevitably quite poor. Busy backgrounds and narrow galleries added to the challenge.  I always feel a bit rude interrupting people and asking for a photo too, even though that's really why they are there. All in all, a bit of an ordeal! Haha. But it's good to force myself out of my comfort zone occasionally. 

Steampunk is 'a sub-genre of science fiction that incorporates retrofuturistic (!) technology and aesthetics inspired by 19th century steam-powered machinery.' Its vibe sits very well with the Industrial Museum, which is of course full of references to our local industrial past - the mills, machinery and transport of that era. The participants often have really elaborate costumes, adorned with weird paraphernalia like metal cogs, lots of medals and chains. They usually look very smart and the gentlemen often sport facial hair that is precisely trimmed and twisted. I didn't know 'beard brooches' were a thing! (see left and below!) 

All good fun anyway; the steampunks seems to be enjoying the event. 

Below stairs at Harewood House

I've recently been doing a fair bit of research on my family tree and have come across a couple of female ancestors who worked 'in service' as housemaids or nursemaids to wealthy families. It was one of few avenues open to young, unmarried women to earn a living, before the two World Wars began to change everything. The families they worked for were not nearly as well-to-do as the Lascelles of Harewood House. Nevertheless it was interesting to get a glimpse 'below stairs', at the kitchens with their huge ranges and gleaming copperware, the sculleries and the servants' hall, where the servants would have had their meals, men at one table presided over by the Butler and women at another, under the watchful eye of the Housekeeper.   

There are two call bell systems, one a Victorian system of wires and pulleys and an electronic one from the 1930s, which the gentry used to summon their servants. 

There are also cupboards of exquisite china and glassware on display. I just loved this delicate painted glass. 

There are a few costumes displayed too. This is Princess Mary's wedding dress (or at least a replica of it, since the original is too fragile to have on display), dating back to her wedding to Viscount Lascelles (later the 7th Earl) in Westminster Abbey in 1922. 

Harewood House is often used for TV and film productions, from Victoria to Mary Berry to Downton Abbey, as well as the long-running TV soap, Emmerdale, which has a permanent set on the estate. HRH Princess Mary and her husband actually featured in the Downton Abbey movie, along with the fictitious Crawleys of Downton. It was partly filmed here in 2018, so some of the costumes and a table setting are from that. You can see the place settings for Lady Mary Crawley and the Earl of Grantham: