Anita Dobson's Elizabeth I Costumes
After reading the script of the drama sections of Armada, I started my research in the National Portrait Gallery looking at portraits of Elizabeth I at different stages of her life. I visited all the Costumiers in London and decided Angels had the best choice for the Elizabeth I costumes, and Cosprop for many of the other characters.
The director, Tim Dunn, told me he would like Queen Elizabeth I to wear a total of 3 dresses, plus nightwear and also rags for the nightmare sequence. When I first chose the costumes the part had not been cast and I took the risk of choosing 4 dresses that ideally I would like the actress to wear, without knowing her size. These had been primarily made for Helen Mirren and had a very tiny waist.
Most exciting of all there was finding a recreation of the black dress from the 1588 portrait - painted to commemorate the famous victory over the Spanish. This costume had been created, apparently 40 years ago for an exhibition of Kings and Queens and I was delighted we could use it.
Anita Dobson was cast and had a fitting day at “Angels”. We had prepared underwear of the period. This would, unusually, have to appear in front of the camera, for the dressing scenes, so must look fit for a Queen - a selection of silk and lace chemises, an embroidered corset, a Spanish farthingale to hold the skirt out and two French farthingales to accentuate the hips and make the waist look smaller. There were also embroidered stockings, period shoes in pretty colours, a selection of ruffs - from small to absolutely enormous, Elizabethan headpieces decorated with pearls, lace and gold, to fit over her red wig, and ropes of pearls and pearl drop earrings.
Anita was as excited as a child with a dressing up box! She loved everything and enthusiastically tried it all on. For me it was a dream fitting, as all the dresses that I chosen fitted Anita’s trim figure, with no alterations necessary. The hardest part was narrowing it down from 4 beautiful dresses to the 3 we needed : The first, an embroidered golden yellow silk, button-fronted dress for when Elizabeth was relaxing with her ladies-in waiting. The second, more formal, for when the Queen is speaking to Burghley and Walsingham. The third for the final, triumphant scenes, after the victory over the Armada.
