Murdoch Mysteries is a sartorial delight. A crime procedural set in the late 1890s, it’s filled with natty police uniforms, billowing petticoats, and gold pocket watches that glint in the sunlight.
Alex Reda is the mastermind behind the look. Meticulously orchestrating all things natty, billowing and glinting, he’s been the costume designer for the show since its inception.
As the series readies to unveil its fourth season, I chatted with him about creating Murdoch Mysteries’ distinctive look, dressing Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and what it takes to costume thousands of actors each year.
TVGuide.ca: How do you do to get into the mind space of Murdoch?
Alex Reda: I have reference books, but I’ll also look at old store catalogs so to see what real people were buying. You don’t just need to know about costume, but also what was happening at that point in history.
TVG: Is it hard to find the clothes from the era?
AR: For the lead actors and day players, we build stuff from scratch. I come up with the drawings and source the fabrics and trims. I have a team of sewers and cutters. For the background performers, I bring in thousands of costumes from L.A. and England, Montreal and Vancouver, sourcing them from rental companies.
TVG: What are the challenges of dressing the show?
AR: Murdoch’s set in the late 1890s – it was a short-lived period, especially for women’s fashion. Often we need to add trims to make things truer to the period. With a modern-day show, if you have 200 extras, they bring their own clothing. But with Murdoch, we dress every cast member and extra from head to toe. The females also need the proper undergarments to create the right silhouette – corsets, petticoats and bum rolls, which they’re not too happy about.
TVG: What was it like dressing Stephen Harper?
AR: (Laughs.) I didn’t know until a day before because it was a big secret, so it was a bit of a scramble. He was very into it. He went through a whole costume fitting and we altered a police uniform to fit him specifically.
TVG: Will the show’s look change in the new season?
AR: Yeah, we’re coming up to the turn of the century. We’re always using new pieces to keep things interesting for the audience. In 1895 to 1899, the major thing in women’s fashion was huge sleeves, leg of mutton sleeves, and a bum roll to accentuate their behinds.
TVG: (Laughs.) The booty.
AR: Exactly. (Laughs.) In the 1900s, they got rid of those sleeves. The silhouette became much closer to the body, which is easier to carry off. But period pieces don’t often fit modern bodies. People were so tiny. A women’s waist would have been 21 or 22 inches.
TVG: (Laughs.) Yeah, I’m nowhere near that.
AR: So often we just remake them to fit modern bodies.
TVG: When I was on the set a few years ago, Yannick Bisson was walking around in his police uniform but wearing sneakers. They were out of the shot, of course, but it was so funny.
AR: We work 14-hour days and shoot in summer. Most of the clothes are wool, incredibly hot. The women wear layers of petticoats and corsets, so any chance they get they’ll be in their runners or crocs.
TVG: You do have a really cool job.
AR: It’s fun but it’s a huge challenge. We dress thousands of extras over 13 episodes. Hundreds of day players. And because it’s a murder-mystery, we build even more stuff – five or six of a suit or dress to take into account the mud or blood at different stages. And the clothes may not always be flattering, so you have to find small details that can make everyone happy.
Murdoch Mysteries launches Season 4 on Tuesday, June 7, at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CityTV.
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A bona fide beauty and fashion geek, Melissa gets a thrill analyzing all things good, bad and oh-so-fugly on television. Although she salivates for vintage stylings and brands like Roberto Cavalli, she’s equally elated to score discount duds at Winners.
Melissa is a firm believer that style should be a mix of fun, individuality and a dash of absurdity. When she’s not watching Project Runway, America’s Next Top Model or What Not to Wear, she can be found trying to whip her tangle of curls into submission. If only the “afro meets bride of Frankenstein” look was appropriate for work.
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