A dress worn by Helena Bonham-Carter in the film “Room with a View” is among dozens of stunning and intricate costumes on display for one more week at an exhibition in London.

The displays are only 45 minutes away from Southborough at the Fashion and Textile Museum next to London Bridge station.

The exhibition is a very rare chance to see close up the costumes worn by some of Britain’s greatest actors over the past 60 years in films and TV period dramas such as the BBC’s hugely successful 1995 Pride and Prejudice adaptation.

Colin Firth’s and Jennifer Ehle’s authentic clothing styles from 1810s are pictured below.

Mr Darcy’s sisters’ flamboyant frocks (below) were made to be “the period equivalent of Gucci”, so they would contrast with the simple printed dresses worn by the Bennet sisters.

The exhibition celebrates the London-based costume house, Cosprop, which was founded by John Bright in 1965 and now holds over a million costumes and supporting accessories.

Cosprop’s ethos was to develop a more authentic style of costume design based on the close study of original clothing. Examples in the exhibition range from Great Expectations (1967) to Downton Abbey and Mrs Harris Goes to Paris (2022).

Among the many highlights in the displays are replicas of the wedding outfits from the ITV series Victoria worn by Jenna Coleman and Tom Hughes. The white wedding dress popularised the lasting tradition of the bride wearing white.

A delicately embroidered 1815 dress worn by Anya Taylor-Joy when she played Emma in the 2020 film (shown below) is also available to view until 8th March 2026.

The exhibition continues Tuesdays to Saturdays . More details at:
https://fashiontextilemuseum.org/