Doctor Who - Season 21 (1984)

(I do not know if any of the period costumes seen in 'The Awakening' were custom-made for that serial, or were just wardrobe hires, so I have neglected to cover it in this article!)

'Warriors of the Deep'

Costume Design by Judy Pepperdine

Several futuristic uniforms were designed and made for the serial's guest cast. Judy Pepperdine came up with a wide-shouldered, double-breasted jacket and trousers, with pockets sewn in around the elbows and ankles.

Each uniform had strips of fabric around the shoulders, with a panel of white fabric embroidered on the back.

Partly to help the audience tell the cast apart, the speaking roles all had their uniforms in unique colour schemes. Tom Adams and Ian McCulloch wore blue uniforms as the senior officers Vorshak and Nilson, while Nitza Saul and Martin Neil wore paler hues as the technicians Karine and Maddox.

Nigel Humphreys wore a bright orange uniform as the security officer Bulic, while Tara Ward wore a beige uniform with green and red strips to differentiate her from the extras' similar beige jumpsuits.

A similar uniform was made for Ingrid Pitt as the base's doctor Solow, consisting of a futuristic labcoat cut in the same fashion as the standard uniform, with panels of blue-grey material.

The extras playing the security guards were all outfitted in identical beige hazmat suits. These 'hazmat suits' were made in the BBC Costume Department, and not merely actual hazard gear bought in bulk. The way the suits are cut gives away that they aren't protective in any meaningful way!

(I do wonder what the transparent 'hoods' orignally were, though.)

Costume Reuse Note: The faux hazmat suit 'hoods' were reused in the serial 'The Caves of Androzani' the same year, with the beige parts repainted grey.

The Sea Devil's leatherette armor, inspired by samurai, were designed by Pepperdine, but the actual construction was outsourced to a freelancer. The helmets were fabricated by Richard Gregory's special effects firm Imagineering, but I am unsure about the rest of the armor costume.

'Frontios'

Costume Design by Anushia Nieradzik

The guest cast in this dystopian serial all had to be clad in uniforms. Two futuristic Prussian-style grey and red uniforms were made for Jeff Rawle and William Lucas as the Plantagent and his aide Range.

More simplistic single-breasted uniforms were made for Peter Gilmore as the security chief Brazen, and Lesley Dunlop as the officer Norna.

A set of jumpsuits were made for the extras playing the colony's soldiers. The jumpsuits are in the same hue of grey as the other uniforms, with similar red panelling on the shoulders, and red flaps for pockets.

Costume Reuse Note: The helmets were reused Federation trooper helmets from Blakes 7, with the faceguards removed.

'Resurrection of the Daleks'

Costume Design by Janet Tharby

Tharby designed a set of futuristic jumpsuits for the guest cast and extras playing the prison station personnel. At least one unique uniform was made for Rula Lenska as the station's doctor Styles, consisting of a short-sleeved white top with black lining around the collar and sleeves.

The uniforms followed the colour-coded ranks established by Star Trek; olive with dark green lining for security, orange with red lining for technicians, and white with black lining for medics.

The jumpsuits had flaps of fabric around the waist, giving a slightly kilt-like appearance, embroidered patches on the sleeves, and were worn with a futuristic version of a side cap.

Tharby also designed the uniforms of the Dalek troopers, coming up with leather-lined jumpsuits also following a colour-coded rank system. The jumpsuit worn by Maurice Colbourne as commander Lytton had gold lining, his subordinates sported red, and the grunts yellow.

The jumpsuits are also briefly seen being worn with a futuristic spin on a forage cap, with coloured lining indicating rank yet again.

The jumpsuits were worn with a futuristic armored chestplate and helmet fabricated by Richard Gregory's Imagineering, with the visored helmet designed to resemble a Dalek.

Costume Reuse Note: Several costumes in 'Resurrection of the Daleks' were reused from earlier BBC scifi productions.

The jumpsuit worn by Rodney Bewes as Stein in the serial's first half is a jumpsuit originally made for the Blake's 7 episode 'Traitor', but heavily distressed.

The jumpsuit worn by William Sleigh as Galloway was also reused from the Blake's 7 episode 'Hostage'. The 'Hostage' costume had its chest panelling removed, and tubing added on for its appearance in 'Resurrection'.

The costumes worn by the extras playing the escaped prisoners in the serial's opening sequence were all reused from either Blake's 7 or Doctor Who. Among them are;

- a 'Crimo' jumpsuit originally made for the Blake's 7 episode 'Hostage'

- a flightsuit with sports armor originally bought for 'Earthshock' with a helmet made for 'State of Decay'

- a Muto jumpsuit made for (yet again) 'Hostage' worn with a helmet made for 'The Pirate Planet'

- a Vila jumpsuit and vest originally made for the fourth season of Blake's 7, worn with a Time Lord skullcap made for 'The Invasion of Time'

- a distressed UNIT uniform originally made for 'Spearhead from Space', still worn with a tan beret

- a spacesuit originally seen in (and presumably made for) 'Carnival of Monsters' worn with a helmet I haven't identified

- and one mysterious white costume with studded leather lining that, as of now, I still haven't determined where it was from, or if it ever appeared in any science-fiction production at all!

'Planet of Fire'

Costume Design by John Peacock

When creating the look of the Sarn people, John Peacock drew from both Ancient Greek and Middle Eastern clothing. A unique costume was made for Edward Highmore as Malkon, with embroidered strips of fabric over his vest and shorts.

Peacock made a set of costumes for the other performers playing the Sarn, in particular Peter Wyngarde as Timonov, with most of them having a more plain, grubby feeling. These were, I feel, custom-made, rather than reused wardrobe stock as they don't match any historical or Middle Eastern clothing I've seen!

A futuristic spacesuit, inspired by the silver fire suits used by volcanologists, was also made for the production, with a custom-made helmet. I suspect the helmet was made by Richard Gregory's Imagineering.

(In-Vision's issue on 'Planet of Fire' erronousely claims that the silver spacesuit was 'hired from a costume warehouse'. Uh-huh. Yeah, sure.)

At least two futuristic uniforms were also made for the serial, consisting of jumpsuits with a bib-like collar over the shoulders. The commanding officer's uniform had pink lining, while the briefly seen junier officer's jumpsuit had teal lining.

'The Caves of Androzani'

Costume Design by Andrew Rose

Andrew Rose designed and made a set of colour-coded futuristic uniforms for the guest cast playing the Androzani soldiers. These uniforms consisted of trousers and button-up collarless jackets, with blocks of colour around the shoulders and sleeves.

The colour-coding works exactly like it did for the Starfleet uniforms in the original Star Trek, with a commander in gold, subordinates in blue, and grunts in red. At least two blue-coloured uniforms were made, with the secondary one in a darker shade. The helmets were hard hats painted silver.

(In-Vision claims that the uniforms were all minimally altered industrial wear. As of now I don't think I've seen any industrial wear of any sort that looks like this specific cut or fabric, nor does the uniform look protective in any fashion! Where did In-Vision's writers even get half this stuff?)

A set of rudimentary 'hazmat' jackets, with strips of shiny material around the sleeves, were also made to be worn over the uniforms, alongside 'hazmat hoods' reused from 'Warriors of the Deep'.

Another set of futuristic uniforms was made for the cast playing a squad of mercernaries; the mercernary costumes are made of a pale beige, with flaps acting as extra pockets on the sleeves, and quilted padding on the trousers. Maurice Roeves as Stotz is distinguished by wearing a bandana, while his cronies wear berets.

(In-Vision claims that Stotz and his mercernaries were also just in minimally altered industrial gear. Once again, I highly doubt this was the case!)

A more 'space age' costume was made for John Normington as Morgus, made of a dark copper fabric with tubing around the collar, and heavily ribbed sleeves. Shots of the back show that the jacket could be zipped up from behind.

A similar costume was made for David Neal as Androzani's president, made of a yellow fabric with gold patterned fabric around the collar and elbows.

A wide-shouldered futuristic dress was made for Barbara Kinghorn as Timmin, with embroidered lining around the sleeves. A case where videotape quality really doesn't let costume intricacies show as well!

Most elaborate of the serial's costumes was Christopher Gable's as the crazed scientist Sharaz Jek. Honing in to the script's homage to The Phantom of the Opera, Andrew Rose came up with a mask inspired by a Nuba tribesman's facepaint photographed in Leni Riefenstahl's The Last of the Nuba.

The mask was made by freelance prop and costume maker Steven Gregory (who, as far as I know, had no link to Richard Gregory). The Sharaz Jek outfit was also designed with a leather panel going over the neck and down the front, to hide where the mask's cowl went under the jacket collar.

However, despite popular conception, I don't think that Sharaz Jek's leather jacket was merely an off the rack biker jacket. While the leather trousers could have been bought or stock, the jacket doesnt have any of the telltale pockets or collar flaps that a commercial one would have, and it seems too form-fitting to be a lucky find. So for now, I feel that the evidence points to the jacket being custom-made.

Jek's androids were also a collaboration between costume and visual effects departments, with heavy canvas-like armor padding worn by the android's performers, along a sculpted cyclops-like mask.

Lastly, I do feel the hooded gowns worn by Peter Davison and Nicola Bryant for the execution scene, were also made for them.

Costume Reuse Note: The unnamed assassin Morgus sends away briefly is wearing a costume originally made for 'Underworld' a few years earlier.

'The Twin Dilemma'

Costume Design by Pat Godfrey

Many of the costumes in this infamously loathed serial were gaudy to the extreme. A pair of futuristic tunics were made for Paul and Andrew Conrad as Romulus and Remus; one costume was in green, the other in peach. Both costumes had striped belts, cuffs and epaulettes.

A similar costume in deep purple was made for Dennis Chinnery as the twins' father Sylvest, with additional strips of material going down one side of the tunic.

A set of futuristic police tunics were made for the various cast members playing Interplanetary Pursuit officers. The tunics match the tabard-like design that Pat Godfrey went with for many of the serial's costumes, with the women's costumes having a longer skirt-like cut.

(In-Vision erroneously states that the tunics were reused 1950s New York police uniforms from Bermans & Nathans' stock. Yeah, sure! The breeches and boots no doubt were hires from the wardrobe department.)

The tabard motif is seen clearly in the costume Pat Godfrey designed for Maurice Denham as Edgeworth. The gown has a tabard-like panel going over the front and back, made of a geometric golden-lined fabric.

The bird-like Jacondans wear similar costumes made of a shiny, charcoal grey material. The higher-up Jacondans have their tabard-like panels studded with metallic segments.

Another tabard-lke robe was made for Seymour Green as the chamberlain, with silver lining around the shoulders and bottom of the gown.

A very colourful wraparound tunic was made for Kevin McNally as the officer Hugo Lang after he has stowed away in the TARDIS. The tunic is asymmetrically designed, with strips of differently-coloured lame (or an imitation?) aroun the sleeves and back.

However, most garish of all was Colin Baker's costume as the new Doctor, something that producer John Nathan-Turner wanted to be 'totally tasteless'. The costume's components were made by several costumiers. The yellow striped trousers were presumably made in the BBC's Wardrobe Department.

I don't know which tailor made the asymmetrically cut waistcoat, but the gingham-lined question mark shirt was made by Harvie & Hudson, a freelance London tailor.

The infamous frock coat however, was tailored by Arthur Davey, a renowned costume maker. For Baker's initial season, two frock coats were made, with a third made for his second season a year later. Despite the 'tasteless' look, the frock coat was carefully designed with the clashing colours and patterns.

Doctor Who - Season 25 (1988)

(Note: I excluded 'Remembrance of the Daleks' as all the costumes were hired vintage clothing or military surplus, and thus no costumes were actually designed and made for that serial)

'The Happiness Patrol'

Costume Design by Richard Croft

Croft designed a double-breasted jacket and skirt made of crushed red velvet for Sheila Hancock as the dictator Helen A, the outfit complimented by the gaudy wig and makeup. The double-breasted jacket gave an authoritarian nature, befitting the character's role.

Croft also designed a set of wide-sleeved, loosely cut jackets, with lighter coloured rings of fabric around the waist (that were obscured by the belts worn with the jackets).

In-Vision incorrectly (as usual!) states that they were bought, but this auction listing for one of the jackets proves that they were made by the costumier Derek West.

(The various men's uniforms, however, were chef's jackets and trousers dyed pink with some fabric applied for their letter designations)

For the rat-like 'Pipe People, Croft designed and made a set of hooded gowns made up of a quilt of different fabrics in white, black and grey, with belts of coloured fabric.

'Silver Nemesis'

Costume Design by Richard Croft

While the serial had several characters from the Jacobean era, I feel the only period costume Croft designed and made from scratch was the silvery dress worn by Fiona Tucker as the Nemesis statue.

According to Mike Tucker in an interview with the WhoSFX blog, the dress was coated in Front Axial Projection material that would reflect any light shone on it.

I don't know about Fiona Walker's main costume as Lady Peinforte - while perhaps the black fabric jerkin was made for her, I suspect the rest of the costume's components was period wardrobe hire, as it does not match the Nemesis statue costume exactly.

Costume Reuse Note: The costume worn by Gerard Murphy as Richard was indeed a wardrobe hire, as it had first appeared in the 1983 historical drama series By The Sword Divided. Interestingly, Richard Croft was also costume designer on that series!

Croft also designed and made a set of Cybermen jumpsuits, as the ones originally made for 'Earthshock' years earlier were not fit to be reused anymore. The new jumpsuits were fastened by a zipper, and had wires attached to the cuffs and ankles to give a more futuristic element.

The helmets and chestplates were yet again made by Richard Gregory, as discussed by Mike Tucker in the previously linked WhoSFX interview.

(In-Vision's issue on the serial claims that the silver Cybermen jumpsuits were minimally altered WWII g-suits, despite that a sketch of the suit is right next to it! Yet it says Gerard Murphy's costume and Anton Diffring's uniform were custom-made? Did In-Vision *ever* get it right?)

'The Greatest Show in the Galaxy'

Costume Design by Rosalind Ebbutt

Many circus costumes were designed and made for serial by Rosalind Ebbutt, with the first being the tailcoat, waistcoat and trousers worn by Ricco Ross as the Ringmaster. Ebbutt showed me a sketch she had done for the character, with fabric swatches, confirming the costume was designed and made for Ross.

Ebbutt also designed and made a silvery clown costume for Ian Reddington to wear as the Chief Clown, with his costume made out of a shimmering metallic grey fabric.

Ebbutt also designed and made several clown costumes for the extras playing the Chief Clown's robotic minions, with her sketches published in In-Vision's issue for the serial (for once, it is actually useful about Doctor Who's costuming!)

Ebbutt designed and made the clown costumes in several styles. Four clown costumes were made as patterned one-piece garments, with some having strips of translucent material over them.

Two clown costumes were made in a wide-shouldered suit and trousers style, made of shiny patterned fabrics.

Three clown costumes were made in a waistcoat and tailcoat fashion, with a set of overtly long trousers made for the performer who would walk on stilts.

The last two clown costumes were made in a baggy shirt and pants style, both of them with comically oversized ties. Again, all the clown costumes included in this article match the design drawings Ebbutt did for the clown costumes.

Costume Reuse Note: While there was other clown costumes briefly glimpsed in the serial, these can be assumed to wardrobe hires, according to Ebbutt herself. Any clown costumes that aren't included in this article were the ones I suspect of being wardrobe hires.

For the rest of the serial's guest cast, they were all in wardrobe hires or bought clothes. However, Ebbutt made the futuristic jacket worn by Daniel Peacock as the futuristic biker Nord. The jacket was worn with a helmet modified by a propmaker to have bat ears.

The outfit also worn by Jessica Martin as Mags was also designed by Ebbutt with a look inspired by punk fashions, with a tattered vest and makeshift belt made up of strips of fabric, as well as strips of fabric over a top. The pattern evokes the fur of predatory animals, indicating the character's bestial nature.

(In-Vision claims that the sweater worn by Gian Sammarco as Whizzkid was knitted by Ebbutt, when more than likely it was a wardrobe hire. In-Vision...I give up.)