Bring history to life with our fantastic costume loans and talks
Exciting educational resources that
will awaken a love of learning in adults and children alike
All the costumes and accessories can be loaned to schools, may be handled by staff and children, and cover many cross-curricula topics, including geography and art
We can offer you a Talk in a Box using accessories or a Costume Talk using two costumes from our range. A lively and entertaining presenter will come to your school for a day to run one or more workshops. There is plenty of scope for pupils to handle items and ask questions.
The standard day offers two 45-minute sessions. A third session may be added or a longer bespoke session arranged. Please contact us to discuss your ideal day.
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Tudor lives
Clothing accessories and some everyday items which may be handled by children, and which provide a contrast between the lives of the rich and poor; may also include a full costume.
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Victorian lives
Containing everyday clothing accessories and one or two objects to represent middle class life in Victorian times, with an emphasis on education and childhood; may also contain a full costume.
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Dressing Queen Elizabeth
A spectacular recreation of one of the Queen’s gowns. Requires two presenters, one to be the Queen and one in costume to dress her. Can only be offered as a single session.
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Making of a Tudor Gown
This demonstration features a reproduction “Anne Boleyn” style velvet gown. The costume starred in the Channel 4 documentary Hampton Court Palace. It offers a glimpse inside the royal wardrobe of the 1540s.
Costumes
The costumes are all exquisitely made reproductions of period clothing. While it is possible to run a successful session using one costume, we suggest that you consider hiring two, as we have designed pairs of costumes to provide a contrast, in terms of male and female and/or rich and poor.
All the costumes have been worn and show the same signs of wear that clothes from the past would have. Where possible, we advise you to dress someone in the clothes (approximate sizes are indicated), but if you have no one available, we could arrange for a clothes dummy to be delivered with the costumes.
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Planning your session
The costumes cover three periods of history: the reigns of Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, and Victoria. All costumes come with a complete inventory and teaching notes to help you plan your teaching session.
The children will get most out of the session if you are able to dress someone in the clothes, whether a member of staff or one of the bigger children. Where possible we have given approximate sizes, but do contact us if you require further information.
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Victorian
A pair of costumes, one male, one female, available singly or together:
Railway engineer - a working man’s clothes in wool and cotton (would fit a tall boy).
Governess - cotton plaid dress with corset (approximate size 8, just over 5 feet tall).
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Henrician
There are five costumes available which may be hired singly or in any combination of two:
Henry VIII - a sumptuous man’s costume with gold and jewels (would fit a medium-build man of above average height).
Anne Boleyn - a silk French gown and hood, edged with pearls (approximate size 8, just over 5 feet tall).
Nobleman - a suit of apparel in silk, but plainer than the King’s, such as a courtier would wear. This costume includes a sword with scabbard (would fit a tall boy).
Lady-in-Waiting - an Italian gown and bonnet, as favoured by Katherine Parr, in silk velvet and damask (approximate size 8, just over 5 feet tall).
Serving man - a plain set of clothes in wool, showing a working man’s wardrobe, in stark contrast to the others (would fit a medium-build man of above average height).
Please note that the photographs shown here are just a selection of what is available for hire.
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Elizabethan
There are six costumes available which may be hired singly or in any combination of two:
Nobleman - a suit of apparel in silk (would fit a tall boy).
Lady-in-Waiting - a charming silk gown in fashionable carnation colour with the wide French farthingale (approximate size 12, above average height).
Male courtier - a suit of apparel in silk and velvet as worn by a man in attendance on Elizabeth (would fit a medium-build man of above average height).
Maid of Honour - a pretty blue gown with embroidery and the wide French farthingale (approximate size 8, just over 5 feet tall).
Sea Captain - a plain suit of woollen clothes for an Elizabethan seafarer (would fit a medium-build man of above average height).
Merchant or Shakesperean actor – a fancy woollen doublet and venetian hose with a cloak, tall hat and rapier (would fit a medium-build man of above average height).
Learning Objectives
These loan items have been designed with the QCA history objectives for KS2 in mind, especially:
Why did Henry VIII marry six times?
section 2: What was Henry VIII like as a person?
section 3: What did Henry VIII do all day?
section 4: Why did Henry divorce Catherine of Aragon?
section 5: Did marrying Anne Boleyn or Jane Seymour solve Henry’s problems?
What were the differences between the lives of rich and poor people in Tudor times?
section 2: How comfortable were the lives of rich Tudor people?
section 4: What was life like for poor people in Tudor times?
What was it like for children living in Victorian Britain?
section 1: Who were the Victorians and when did they live?
section 2: What was life like for a poor child in the 1840s?
section 4:What was it like going to school at the end of the nineteenth century?
What were the effects of Tudor exploration?
section 3: How did people explore the world in Tudor times?
section 4: Why did Drake circumnavigate the world?
section 7: What impact has Tudor exploration had on our lives today?
While we have concentrated on the KS2 Learning Objectives, we are also able to tailor our sessions to KS3 & KS4. Please contact us with your requirements.
About Us
JMD&Co specialises in costume research for reconstruction of historic dress and training for front-of-house staff at historic attractions. The company also undertakes visitor studies and evaluates interpretation progammes, specialising in those presented by guides and costumed interpreters.
Clients
These include Buckingham Palace, The Queen's Gallery & Royal Mews, Clarence House, Windsor Castle, the Palace of Holyrood House, The National Trust, the Royal Albert Hall, Historic Scotland, English Heritage, Rochester Cathedral and the Roman Baths in Bath.
Prices
- Single hire (one costume)
- one day
- £100 + VAT
- one week
- £150 + VAT
- one month
- £175 + VAT
- Hire for two costumes
- one day
- £170 + VAT
- one week
- £255 + VAT
- one month
- £297.50 + VAT
- (This includes a 30% discount for the second costume)
- Talk in a box
- 2 x 45 min sessions
- £225 + VAT
- Dressing Queen Elizabeth
- £550 + VAT
- (A third session will be provided at no extra charge; if you prefer, a single longer session can be provided)
- If this number of sessions does not meet your requirements, please contact us for a quote.
- Refundable deposit against damage
- £100 per costume
Contact
If you have an enquiry or would like to make a booking for your school, please fill in this contact form and we will call you back to discuss your requirements.