We’ve never plaid it so good
Stylist’s outfits for actor Alan are huge hit in US
through the years. I had great fun looking through everything and ended up taking away way more than I needed, then I edited it down into my favourites and played with those.” The outfits seen on the show are a mix of Cumming’s own clothes and new items either acquired or made by Sam. He said: “I love that so many people have been talking about what Alan wears on the show. It was so much fun putting them all together but I never dreamed they would end up taking on a life of their own and almost become their own character. We wanted to make sure the clothes we ended up with would stand up to the surroundings of where the show wa s being filmed – the grandness of the castle and its decoration.
“If Alan had been wearing boring
clothes, it wouldn’t have worked. We wanted the outfits to have a little bit of a Sherlock Holmes vibe because the show is a murder mystery.
“But we also wanted a bit of a naughty villain to be in the designs too – the type you might find in a Bond film.”
The end resu l t se e s Cummi ng d r e s s e d in everything from a top-to-toe grey three-piece tweed suit and matching pinned scarf to a bright red tartan suit with a royal blue shawl.
Sam said: “Alan owned parts of the grey plaid suit and I went to the designer to get the matching fabric to make the scarf. We used a bumblebee brooch as a fun accessory to pull it all together.
“There was another black and grey plaid suit, which I loved too, and for that outfit I sourced a Chanel fabric to make into the over-the- shoulder shawl and paired it with a hint of colour in the tie.
“We had one outfit that was red plaid, which we paired with a royal blue beret. The end result not only looked really fun but added a lot of colour. I loved the Black Watch tartan suit – which was Black Watch on Black Watch, with a lime green tie, a navy beret and a wonderful shoulder fly plaid with an emerald brooch.
“For one look, we have him in a velvet smoking jacket, which I put his initials on.
“Then there’s the cape he wears, that he refers to as a policeman’s cape, with slits for his arm, and royal blue opera gloves that I custom-made from vegan leather.”
Sam became a celebrity stylist after discovering he had a talent for the role while helping style shoots at the fashion magazine where he had a job.
He is looking forward to working on the second series of The Traitors, which has just been commissioned, and hopes to travel to Scotland to watch filming first-hand.
For now, he is busy dressing many of the world ’ s most famous celebrities for awards season, including George of the Jungle star Fraser, who has been nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his starring role in new movie The Whale.
Sam said: “It’s wonderful working with Brendan. We are so hopeful all the attention he’s getting is going to lead to good things.
“But we actually work with so many big names and what’s great is working with them again and again.
“Being a stylist for someone is quite an intimate relationship. I started working with Daniel Radcliffe when he was filming his second-last Harry Potter and I’ve worked with him ever since. I love my work.”