For more than ten years and thousands of tours, Chillerblack has donned the same Shiverpool coat each and every time…
Costume is so important for an actor. It absolutely helps to get into character;
it’s the closest thing to you, it touches you
(Gary Oldman)
The coat has been the armour through which many adventures have been had and battles fought… Through the pouring rain and Ol’ billy wind, dancing in fluffy snow, the freezy winters and hot hot summers. Through failures and the magic of success; blood, sweat and tears have been absorbed into every fibre! Come what may, we’ve handled it together, quite literally arm in arm.
There’s something heroic in a flapping coat!
(David Tennant)
And so it is time to lay this torn, patched and restitched heroic coat to rest…
We met the amazing costume designer and artist Vanessa Coupe Vanessa Coupe Costume Maker (recommended by our dear friend and leather specialist, Debbie from A L Maugham & Co Ltd.) Vanessa’s work includes pieces for Poldark, Gentleman Jack, productions for our country’s most celebrated theatres and so many more and it was in her very safe hands we conjured the new Shiverpool coat.
Using affectionate reflections from the original, we have injected the design with some panache to take us boldly out into the future to continue pounding the beat of the city streets in style!
Whether it’s working with the paper master from local printers Custom Print, Map Artist Stephen Walter on the production of the Shiverpool Ghost Map, designer Gavin Wood on the animation and illustration of our visual artworks, photographers Dave Brownlee and Zaki Grant, Debbie of Maugham’s on our bespoke bags and branded attire and now Vanessa Coupe, it’s always a delight to delve into the detail of all the working parts that is Shiverpool…
So here be a few snaps of the beginning, middle and end of the maker’s process…
Starting with the old dear herself (looking a little tired but beautifully aged)
So we’ll see you on tour to envelop you in the cloak of magic that is Shiverpool as we beguile you with the city’s stories
With Love from ChillerBlack