Off the Telly 鈥� Seven of the most iconic TV costumes
A really good costume can make a character. Whether it’s a drop-dead glamorous dress or a hole-ridden t-shirt, the right costume will tell you who someone is and how they live.
Natalie Cassidy and Joanna Page, hosts of the Off The Telly podcast, love a good costume, so they asked listeners to choose their favourites from across the world of telly. Ranging from the humble housecoats of EastEnders’ Dot Cotton to the fabulously over-the-top creations of Ru Paul’s drag queens, these are some of the most iconic looks in TV history.
Listen to Off the Telly
What are we watching? Natalie Cassidy and Joanna Page chat all things telly.
Dot Cotton – EastEnders
A great costume isn’t necessarily about looking well-dressed or fashionable, says Natalie. It’s what it tells you about the character. For that reason, one of her choices is EastEnders’ Dot Cotton. “If you were to see her dress, handbag, pinny from the laundrette, and her wig on a mannequin, you would know that’s Dot Cotton,” she says. “To me, that’s what makes something iconic.” She adds Kat Slater for the same reason. “The permanent red lip. The dripping in leopard print. You know that’s Kat Slater coming.”
Bea and Evie Eliott – The House Of Eliott
Sisters Bea and Evie (Stella Gonet and Louise Lombard) owned an always struggling fashion business in The House Of Eliott. Set in the 1920s, it was full of elegant period clothing. “They used to swish around in these amazing fashion house, art-house kind of outfits,” says Natalie. Natalie says she’d have loved to live in that time “where every woman looked immaculate and your hair was always set.” Although she does then admit her own everyday look at home tends to lean more toward “baggy tracksuit bottoms and two favourite shirts with holes in.”
Jean Milburn – Sex Education
Actors don’t come much more stylish than Gillian Anderson. As Scully in The X-Files she made skirt suits chic. Her role in The Fall started a trend for silk shirts. But probably her most striking wardrobe comes from Sex Education. Playing sex therapist Jean, she wears bold patterns, killer jumpsuits, and lots of colour. It’s the look of a woman entirely confident in who she is. As one Off the Telly listener says, “she looks fabulous in absolutely everything.”
She looks fabulous in absolutely everything.鈥�Off the Telly listener on Gillian Anderson
Andréa Martel – Call My Agent
The French Netflix hit Call My Agent follows a group of showbiz agents in Paris, including the no-nonsense, ultra-chic Andréa, played by Camile Cotin. “She’s a top agent,” says Joanna. “She’s tough, she’s brutal, she’s quite scary, and she’s very, very French.” Andréa’s always impeccably turned out, in a way that is part of her character’s armour. Her expensive shirts, razor-sharp tailoring, and heels tell the world she is not to be messed with. “And she’s always got the most amazing handbags,” adds Joanna. Keen to be a bit more Andréa, Joanna bought one of those bags shortly after having her baby. “‘I will become very French and mysterious and sexy,’” she thought. That goal wasn’t quite achieved. “I was bloated, tired, constantly hungry and feeding, and that bag was just full of nappies.”
Saga Norén – The Bridge
As fans of a casual look, the team give a nod to Saga Norén of the Danish crime drama The Bridge. Saga is busy solving murders and doesn’t have much time to be thinking about her outfits, so she sticks to a uniform of, as Joanna describes it, “skinny jeans, heavy boots… a really sexy white t-shirt that looks a bit ripped or moth eaten, with a black leather jacket and then a long coat.” If it looks good, why change it?
The Queens – Ru Paul’s Drag Race
Listener Claire from Glasgow gives her vote to the contestants from Ru Paul’s Drag Race. You won’t find anyone who goes bigger and bolder with their looks. “There are so many fantastic costumes on there,” she says, “and they make some of them themselves.” With sky-high heels, huge wigs and countless sequins, the queens of Drag Race are the ultimate in self-expression. They’re dressing unapologetically as who they are, and the Off The Telly women love it. Natalie, who was once a judge on Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK, says, “I just think they’re incredible. It’s fun. It’s joyous. I just love drag!”
Sharon Morris – Catastrophe
As played by the brilliant Sharon Horgan, Catastrophe’s Sharon Morris is a smart, interesting woman who’s just about holding her life together after unexpectedly getting pregnant. Her clothes reflect that, with loads of clashing colour and pattern and interesting shapes. Her choices might not be right for everyone, but she’s making them work. “She has this really quirky mish-mash of fab skirts or a little dress with a bit of leg out, with a cracking jacket,” says Joanna, who loves Sharon so much she bought a pair of turquoise boots worn by the character (we’re spotting a theme in her shopping here).
Claudia Winkleman – The Traitors
Natalie insists on mentioning Claudia Winkleman’s fashion choices, even if she doesn’t technically fit the theme of the episode. “I know it’s not a ‘costume’,” she says. “But for me, Claudia Winkleman on The Traitors or on Strictly – everything she does just oozes elegance and class in a really, ‘I’ve just shoved this on’ way.” She’s not the only person who’s a fan. Claudia’s knitwear on the last series of The Traitors became such a sensation that admirers were knitting their own imitations to get the look. “With The Traitors, half of us tune in just to watch what Claudia’s wearing!” laughs Joanna.
