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'My thumb almost delayed a Batman film'

Piers Hopkirk,near Crowboroughand
Joshua Askew,South East
News imageBBC A woman with blonde hair, wearing a dark blue jumper. Behind her is a giant head of a lion and a plaster Batman head on a pale table.BBC
Vin Burnham has worked on multiple BBC productions

Vin Burnham has made a name for herself as a costume designer behind some big Hollywood blockbusters and hits on both the stage and screen.

And her decades-long career has seen her collect a rich seam of stories, including the time she nearly accidentally delayed the filming of a Batman movie.

Burnham helped create the iconic Batsuit worn by Michael Keaton in Tim Burton's Batman, which she later refined for the sequel Batman Returns.

On the very first day of filming Batman, she said she was in the dressing room getting the cowl ready when she mistakenly put her thumb through the front of it.

News imageA plaster model of Batman's face. He is wearing a cowl over his eyes and forehead, which has pointy ears.
Burnham helped design Batman's distinctive mask

"There was only one and that is a complete crime," Burnham added.

However, Keaton had forgotten his contact lenses, which gave her time to make the necessary repairs, she said.

Burnham, who lives near Crowborough in East Sussex, has also designed Aslan for the BBC's The Chronicles of Narnia, alongside costumes for the BBC's Wind in The Willows.

News imageVin Burnham A black and white photo of a giant lion's head costume with a woman pressing her face on the costumes left side. The woman is looking into the cameraVin Burnham
Burnham designed the Aslan costume

She said she was "very, very fond" of Aslan.

"To me he's a bit more golden retriever than a lion," Burnham continued.

Children used to write fan letters to him, she told BBC South East.

Burnham says on her website that after starting out in the props department at the Royal Opera House as a trainee, she has since "dyed, painted, stitched and glued [her] way up through the ranks".

News imageVin Burnham A man and a woman standing for a photo with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Schwarzenegger is stood on the left side of gthe photo wearing a suit that is being stitched together around him. A woman wearing black is stood to his left. Behind them is a man wearing a suit. All three are smiling at the camera. Behind them is a white wall with a brown door in the centreVin Burnham
Burnham has worked with numerous stars in her career, including Arnold Schwarzenegger

Among her proudest achievements is designing Lady Gaga's "living dress" for the Monster Ball World Tour, besides her work for the BBC.

"Everything about a costume is as important as a word in a script," she said.

"The whole point of theatre and film is storytelling - and costume designers are storytellers," Burnham continued.

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