Angels Costumes
{{short description|Supplier of costumes in England}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Morris Angel & Son Limited
| logo = Angels-Costumes-Logo.png
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| foundation = 1840
| founder = Morris Angel
| location_city = London
| location_country = United Kingdom
| location = 1 Garrick Road, London NW9 6AA
| origins =
| key_people = Tim Angel (CEO)
| area_served =
| industry = Fancy dress, costume industry, film
| products =
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| num_employees = 120 (2016)[http://www.screendaily.com/awards/the-angels-and-their-outfits/5099519.article The angels and their outfits] by Sarah Cooper, 29 January 2016, screendaily.com. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
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| homepage = {{url|http://www.angels.uk.com}}
| dissolved =
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}}
Angels Costumes (previously Angels and Bermans{{cite web |title=Star Wars costume surfaces in fancy dress shop |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/sep/08/news1 |website=The Guardian |access-date=7 March 2023 |date=8 September 2005}}) is a supplier of costumes based in London, England to the film, theatre and television industries, as well as to the general public. The company, founded in 1840, is the longest-established costume supplier in the world, and has supplied costumes[https://abracadabranyc.com/ Costume Store] to 37 films that have received the Academy Award for Best Costume Design, including the 2010 film Alice in Wonderland and, most recently, The Grand Budapest Hotel.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/small-business-network/2015/feb/20/unsung-heroes-bring-oscar-winning-films-to-life|title=Unsung heroes: the creative businesses behind Oscar success stories|author=Emma Featherstone|work=the Guardian}}
Since its founding the company has stayed in family ownership for six consecutive generations, and is currently run by Chairman Tim Angel, CBE (former chairman, BAFTA; former governor, BFI) and his three children, Emma (director of fancy dress), Daniel (head of costume) and Jeremy (creative director).{{cite web|last=Laverty|first=Chris|title=Behind the Scenes at Angels the Costumiers|url=http://clothesonfilm.com/behind-the-scenes-angels-the-costumers/24939/|work=Clothes On Film|accessdate=18 April 2012}}
Early years
Morris Angel started his business in 1840 in the Seven Dials area of London, near Covent Garden, selling second-hand clothing and tailors' samples from Savile Row. Morris Angel's shop became popular with theatrical actors, who at that time had to purchase their own clothes and costumes for auditions and performances. It was a request from actors to hire rather than buy outfits for the duration of a performance that began the business model that remains in use by the company today.
Morris Angel brought his son Daniel into the business in 1870, and seven years later, the family opened a shop at 119 Shaftesbury Avenue which still houses [http://www.angelsfancydress.com/ Angels Fancy Dress] nearly 150 years later.
Cinema and the Oscars
With the advent of cinema, the Angel family made its second major diversification by supplying costumes to the new movie industry. Angels supplied its first Academy Award-winning costumes to Laurence Olivier's Hamlet in 1948. To date, 37 Best Costume Oscars have followed for work that the company has undertaken on major international films, including Star Wars, Titanic, Lawrence Of Arabia, The Great Gatsby, The Aviator, Memoirs of a Geisha and Marie Antoinette.
Angels acquired Bermans & Nathans in 1992, moving the professional hire for film, TV and theatre to Camden.
In 2015, Angels provided costumes to four of the five films nominated in this category: Mr. Turner, Into the Woods, Maleficent and The Grand Budapest Hotel, which won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design that year.{{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/inside-oscar-best-costume-design-winning-shop-londons-angels/|title=Inside Oscar best costume design winning shop, London's Angels|date=18 February 2015|work=cbsnews.com}}
Twenty-first century
The business currently has two divisions: Angels The Costumiers, based in North London, which supplies costumes to the entertainment industry, and [http://www.angelsfancydress.com/ Angels Fancy Dress], suppliers of fancy dress to the general public.
The Angels warehouse in Hendon, north London, where the majority of their costume collection is stored, houses an estimated five million items on approximately eight miles of rails.{{cite web|url=https://time.com/3710929/oscars-2015-costumes-angels-costumiers-london/|title=Oscars 2015: London Shop Behind Outfits for Most Best Costume Nominees|author=Megan Gibson|work=Time}} Angels now runs public tours twice a month.
In 2015 Angels celebrated its 175-year anniversary, and to mark the milestone decided to hold an exhibition showing some of the company's most famous costume creations.{{cite web|last1=Armstrong|first1=Ashley|title=From Star Wars to modern-day Macbeth: 175 years of dressing stage and screen at Angels|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/11923473/From-Star-Wars-to-modern-day-Macbeth-175-years-of-dressing-stage-and-screen-at-Angels.html|publisher=The Telegraph}} Dressed by Angels, held at the Old Truman Brewery in London from October to November 2015, allowed the public to view more than 100 iconic costumes from the worlds of film, TV, and theatre. As a companion to the exhibition, Angels also brought out a book, Behind the Seams,{{cite web|last1=O'Connor |first1=Tamison |title=Behind the Seams at Angels Costumes |url=http://www.harpersbazaar.co.uk/culture-news/news/behind-the-seams-at-angels-costumes |publisher=Harper's Bazaar |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20151116121519/http://www.harpersbazaar.co.uk/culture-news/news/behind-the-seams-at-angels-costumes |archivedate=2015-11-16 }} which offers readers further insight into the workings of the company.
In 2016, Angels won the BAFTA for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema.
In 2020 Angel's fancy dress shop on Shaftesbury Avenue closed due to rent rises.{{cite web |last1=Ibrahim |first1=Magda |title=West End institution Angels fancy dress shop closes after 180 years |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/theatre/angels-fancy-dress-shop-closed-london-shaftesbury-avenue-a4375766.html |website=Evening Standard |access-date=7 March 2023 |language=en |date=2 March 2020}}
Trivia
File:Replica Yeoman of the Guard state dress.jpg state dress created by Angels Costumes]]
In September 2005, the original cloak worn by Alec Guinness as Obi-Wan Kenobi in George Lucas's Star Wars film was rediscovered hanging on the rails at Angels.{{cite news|title=Obi-Wan Kenobi cloak rediscovered|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/4218226.stm|newspaper=BBC News|date=9 June 2005}} Having been unwittingly available to the general public for some time as a monk's robe as well as being used as a crowd-scene costume in films including The Mummy, the provenance of the piece was confirmed by John Mollo, who created the item for the film in 1977, and received an Oscar for his efforts.
The Obi-Wan Kenobi cloak was auctioned by Bonhams in London on 6 March 2007 for £55,000.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6309355.stm|title=Star Wars cloak in costume sale|date=29 January 2007 |publisher= BBC News}} It formed part of a sale of 400 lots from the Angels archive – alongside costumes from James Bond, Doctor Who,{{cite news |url= http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1477674.ece |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070308114537/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1477674.ece |url-status= dead |archive-date= March 8, 2007 |title= Timelord's frockcoat cleans up at auction |date=6 March 2007| work= Times Online| first=Devika | last=Bhat}} and Highlander, as well as items worn onscreen by Ava Gardner, Errol Flynn and David Niven.
In the late 1980s, fashion designer Alexander McQueen worked at Angels as a costumier, and Daniella Helayel of London fashion company uses costumes held at Angels for inspiration.{{cite news|title=60 Seconds with Issa’s Daniella Helayel|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204136404577207120787328802|newspaper=Wall Street Journal|date=11 February 2012}}
Until 1966 Angels was also the tailor to the military and diplomatic services, and now houses a collection of military and civilian uniforms.{{cite web|title=Behind the Scenes at Angels |url=http://www.offscreenmagazine.co.uk/storyboard/angels-costumiers/ |work=Offscreen Magazine |accessdate=31 January 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120319165537/http://www.offscreenmagazine.co.uk/storyboard/angels-costumiers/ |archivedate=19 March 2012 }}
References
{{Reflist|2}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://www.angels.uk.com}}
- [https://www.angelsfancydress.com/ Angels Fancy Dress Store]
- [http://www.fancydress.com Fancydress.com]
- [https://www.fancydogs.co.uk/ Fancydogs]
{{BAFTA Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema Award}}
Category:1840 establishments in England
Category:British companies established in 1840
Category:Retail companies based in London
Category:Retail companies established in 1840
Category:BAFTA Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema Award