Peek-a-Boo: My Week with Marilyn and a Tufted Heaven

After leaving the new film "My Week with Marilyn", I feel as though I am walking around in a daze... With a cast to rival all others, stunning cinematography, direction and acting from the entire cast and including the very mesmerizing Michelle Williams, I needed to share this post with you on today's Peek-a-Boo.

One magical week in London in 1956 - a very eager and wide eyed young man, Colin Clark was swept away by Marilyn Monroe while filming the "The Prince and the Showgirl" with Sir Laurence Olivier.

Colin, a recent Oxford grad and son of the scholar and author Sir Kenneth Clark, recounts his memories of that troubled film production, and of the one magical week in particular when Marilyn shook his world.

Director Simon Curtis shares this story with us and through the Production Design of Donal Woods and Set Decorator Judy Farr SDSA [Oscar nominee for THE KING’S SPEECH], they re-create the making of the 1956 film and each set is a visual masterpiece.

Pinewood Studios
Marilyn’s gifts for cast & crew. Colin Clark [Eddie Redmayne]

“It was such an intriguing script,” Farr says. “Set in that dark, old-fashioned England, with old fashioned cars and everything mucky and dreary. I can’t imagine anything more awful for Marilyn than coming to stodgy post-war Britain, especially from America where everything was new and bright.”  - J. Farr (set designer)

 

Pinewood Studios
Reproduction of original set for THE PRINCE AND THE SHOWGIRL

Each detail - the color and styling of the furniture, is very much in keeping with the original film and at the same acts as an incredible background for these extraordinary actors ...

 

On their romantic escapade, Colin takes Marilyn on a tour of Windsor Castle, where his godfather is the Librarian..

Some wonderful scenes take place in these rooms, where Marilyn enjoys some good humor about her lack of education, and with perfect English manners, how she is made to feel completely at ease and welcome...



Windsor Castle Library Hatfield House stands in for Windsor Castle



even brought into this private room, where Queen Mary's "dollhouse" is opened and marvelled at with interiors nearly as exquisite as the Castle itself..


Windsor Castle
Reproduction of Queen Mary’s dollhouse at Windsor Castle

One design element that reappears often throughout the film is Tufting ..sofas, chaises and chairs with tufting..so how could I resist this chance to throw in a few shots of Tufting inspired by Marilyn's week...?

Wishing you a wonderful week..

and if you get the chance to see the movie, come back and leave a note about what you thought..

My Week with Marilyn - Trailer



Read the article in Vogue: My week with Michelle Williams here
by Adam Green | portraits by Annie Leibovitz

*All images of set design: Please visit _ Set Decorators Society of America
My week with Marilyn: set decorator: Judy Farr SDSA; production designer: Donal Woods
The Weinstein Company
* All tufting design images via my pinterest board for my details: Tufted Heaven

---

© The Weinstein Company 2011.

Scroll to Top