Meet the costume designer thanking Liverpool ‘for helping me think big’

Former stylist and now costumer designer Holly Rebecca has worked with huge names in music, TV and film across the globe – but it was coming to Liverpool which helped her ‘think big’.

After more than a decade in London, the 40-year-old arrived in the city to work on the Channel 4 drama Help with Stephen Graham and Jodie Comer.

That was five years ago – and she’s called it home ever since.

She said:

“I’d never been before and I didn’t want to leave. It was the people. It was during lockdown and everything was closed; no fabric stores or retailers were open which made it a challenging job.

“But everyone I met instantly made me feel welcomed and understood in way they never had in London, or even growing up in my hometown of Barnsley.

“Liverpool had a spirit which I connected with and felt settled with.”

Holly’s gone on to create a massive costume archive and community space, Unit 27, in the centre of Liverpool which has evolved and grown even in the short space of time she’s been here.

And she adds:

“I don’t think it could have happened anywhere other than Liverpool.

“Here I felt I could have a voice, find my space and find my path. It gave me room to grow and explore. Liverpool helped me think big.”

Holly studied at the London College of Fashion before realising that fashion design was a ‘lonely’ process and she wanted to be involved in ‘something that was bigger than the sum of its parts’.

Her first job was at Harper’s Bazaar magazine where she ended up transcribing an interview with the stylist for Florence + The Machine, Aldene: “I thought her process and approach to styling was really interesting, so I pocketed that information. When I left Harper’s Bazaar, I emailed Aldene and asked if I could learn from her and was she was looking for any assistants.

“She said her assistant had left the day before. I got straight on the train and met her and ended up working with her for four years before continuing on my own.”

Holly went on to travel the world styling artists like Florence, Solange, Ellie Goulding and the Sugababes for tours, red carpet events, album promotions and more:

“It was intense. Full on. But I got to work across the globe. I learned a lot.”

But it was when she was convinced to take on the role of costume designer on a short film that her career took a new turn, going on to enjoy the role permanently in TV and film.

“I find film fascinating. I love being able to get lost in these worlds that are created; worlds that live on forever. They’re pieces of magic.

“I became hooked on the process of researching characters, researching their worlds, their history, and interrogating their psychology. Only then can you start to piece together who they are, what clothing they would wear and how.”

The more she did making, sourcing or customising designs, Holly developed a huge archive of costumes that outgrew her London home and, eventually, the studios she moved into: “At the end of each project you get to keep a lot of the stock because productions don’t need it so costume designers often end up building considerable archives that are really useful for themselves and others.”

Looking for a new space led to the idea of leaving the capital to house her archive properly and allow it to expand: “I was hedging my bets on Glasgow because I’d worked there a few times and I loved the mentality and atmosphere,” explains Holly.

But Help in 2021 made her rethink:

“I knew Liverpool was home and I had no intention of going back to London once the job had wrapped.”

Holly, who lives in South Liverpool, established Unit 27 and it became more than an extensive collection of costumes from her work on TV and film.

As well as an extensive archive that’s available to hire, she has developed a space to allow productions to develop desk areas, fitting rooms, workshops and more, as well as providing washing machines, cutting tables, and pressing equipment: “Too often you have to buy that and it really eats into your budget, so I thought I would have it as an option for people coming in to the city to use and it can be their immediate base.”

She also welcomes students from Liverpool John Moores University and LIPA so they can get hands-on experience. For while she still travels across the world – Holly has worked on His House for Netflix, Sky Atlantic’s The Death of Bunny Munro starring Matt Smith and, recently, musical horror Stuffed, again starring Jodie Comer – Liverpool is her focus and her passion.

“It’s that full circle,” she smiles, “and I find everyone has so much to offer.

“I work with young people for many reasons. I feel it’s important to pass on what I’ve learned and I’m interested in their eye and what they have to say. There’s so much to be created, understood and learned from bringing together such a range of minds.

“It couldn’t have happened anywhere other than Liverpool. Apart from financial reasons, in London you’re one of a million people, you become a number.

Holly said:

“In Liverpool I instantly felt human because people treated me so,”

“People in Liverpool have a very good work life balance. I think that’s why they are such happy souls. I was terrible at that – it would be work, work, work with a smidgen of life in between.

“Liverpool is teaching me it’s important to slow down, to give yourself that space, and see what you want rather than trying to catch a break and running with it. It’s giving me the breath to think what else could I do, who else could I meet, and opening up my sights.

“Liverpool is a good fit and it’s my home, and now I can look forward to evolving even more, professionally and personally.”