John Bright and Cosprop (Part 1)

Above: bodice purchased in 1958 from the Parisian Clignancourt Flea Market.

London's Fashion and Textile Museum has a rich and wonderful exhibition of Cosprop which was created by John Myles Milton Bright (7 March 1940-). which is on display until March 6th 2026. 

Below: John Bright

Cosprop is a unique collection of costumes gathered during the last six decades by costume designer John Bright a costume library used by international film and television makers. 

Below: John Bright with the costume Uma Thurman wore in 'The Golden Bowl' 2000.

Above: Uma Thurman at fitting, Below costume Uma Thurman wore in 'The Golden Bowl' 2000.

Above: Illustration by John of 1800 jacket and Breeches for Prince Vasili Kuragin (Basil Henderson). Below: Jacket detail.

Above: costumes with a photograph from 'A Room With A View' 1985. 

Below: Detail from the costume of Miss Lucy Honeychurch worn by actress Helen Bonham Carter. 

Below: Details of the costume of Charlotte Bartlett worn by actress Maggie Smith. 

Above and Below: details of 1850's dress for Mrs Codrington  in 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' 1968 played by (Rachel Kempson). Beige Muslin and cotton with printed Voile

John Bright made this dress in a day!

"There was so much to do that I had to make a dress in an extended day. I created the bodice in the morning, the skirt in the afternoon and the trimmings and finishing in the evening, so it was a 12-16 hour day" John Bright

Above: Sketches for 1979 'Tess', costume design was by Anthony Powell (2 June 1935 – 16 April 2021) who received an Oscar for Best Costume Design.

Above: 1880's peignoir for Tess played by Nastassja Kinski. Lace over peach silk underdress, with pale green fine knitted silk overdress attached with stunning pink and green floral embroidery. 

Below: 1880's wedding dress for Tess Durbeyfield played by Nastassja Kinski. Deep cream silk with white lace and panels of ruching. 

"Tess was one of the early film productions that brought out the best in what we could do. Anthony researched every detail of the historical period to ensure accuracy, even down to the position of the buttons on the bodices." John Bright

Below: 1914 Wedding Suit for Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen in 'Out of Africa', 1985.

Two-piece cream silk, high waisted jacket with high collar with pleated net trimmed in black piping, worn over ancle length hobble skirt and hat with peaked crown trimmed with floral embroidery. 

You can see detailed archive research by the collections curators Steph, Sage, Annie and Maddie here.