Young people worked with Real Time to create films, stage fashion shows, research the history and interview older people to tell the stories behind the clothes.

The images and films made will form a digital archive of the Costume Service’s heritage collection.

The project, supported by Wokingham Borough Council and Young Roots, Heritage Lottery Funding, was launched with a promo film ‘Top Hat’ created by young people.

In all over a hundred young people from many groups in Wokingham borough took part in the project which involved workshops, location filming, drama documentary and lots of dressing up. Several fashion shows were staged and filmed with various groups and interviews with the elderly gave young people the chance to find out the real stories behind the clothes and to uncover some of their history. 

Young people also undertook photography to help to create the digital archive to ensure the clothes are recorded for posterity.

Each group was encouraged to respond creatively to the costumes and to use video to create and the many different interpretations that emerged during the process of making the films.