Secrets of the Museum

Inside every museum is a hidden world, and now, cameras have been allowed behind the scenes at the world-famous Victoria and Albert Museum in London. 
Only a small part of the two million wonders in the collection are on display to the public. But in this new series we go behind closed doors to explore all the treasures of art, design and performance the museum has to offer. 
We follow experts and conservators at work in this treasure trove of the nation's favourite objects, as they breathe new life into fragile marvels, uncover hidden stories, and battle to keep the past alive.
In this week's episode we follow the charming story of a hand-made children's toy - Pumpie the elephant. Pumpie was made a hundred years ago by the Cattley family in west London. The children whose beloved stuffed toy he was made special outfits for him, painted his portrait, and took him with them on holiday. But Pumpie has suffered major moth damage over the years, and now needs urgent restoration. 
Curator Will takes the treasured toy to head textile conservator Jo, who dyes new felt to patch up Pumpie's moth-eaten trunk, darns his miniature admiral's outfit and restores his original brass buttons so that he's shipshape to go out on loan for a special exhibition. 
But before Pumpie packs his trunk, a relative of the family who once owned him is invited into the conservation workshop to meet him for the first time.
Meanwhile curator Charlotte is on the case of a missing woman. The face of a beautiful 18th-century aristocrat has been meticulously painted in enamel on an ornate gold and enamel snuffbox. But nobody knows for certain who this mysterious woman might be. 
Charlotte is determined to get to the bottom of this question with a visit to historic Ham House. She compares large-scale portraits and other miniatures with the snuffbox to establish the identity of Lady Frances Carteret.
Behind the scenes of the spectacular Christian Dior exhibition, we uncover the expert skill involved in creating bespoke mannequins to display the gowns. Each mannequin is sculpted by textile conservators Lillia and Lara to exactly fit the dimensions of each dress's original owners. Pamela Mann, the original owner of a spectacular raspberry-pink cocktail dress, comes in to the Museum to see the results of the team's labours, and tells us the story of how her husband - a former physician to the Royal Household - bought Pamela the dress from Harrods in the 1950s.
In the performance galleries, rock and pop curator Vicky and conservator Susana take us inside Kylie Minogue's dressing room, which is on display as a time capsule of the star's 2007 tour. As they check the condition of the dresses, shoes and make-up, we discover the significance of the objects from this moment in Kylie's life - after her treatment for breast cancer. 
Finally, paper conservator Anne gets to grips with a colourful Victorian curiosity called a paper peep-show. This folding paper marvel was made as a souvenir of the Great Exhibition in 1851, and is made up of a series of hand-painted cardboard plates that magically open like an accordion. 
But the 170-year-old paper object is so delicate that it's in danger of falling apart. We follow the careful surgery required, using tiny pieces of Japanese paper and wheat starch to restore the beautiful piece so that visitors will be able to take a peep into the past and see the Great Exhibition for themselves.

Behind the scenes at the Victoria and Albert Museum, priceless Raphael paintings give up their secrets. Keeper James gets hands-on with Beyonce's ring and Queen Victoria's coronet.

Inside every museum is a hidden world, and now, cameras have been allowed behind the scenes at the world-famous Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Only a small part of the two million wonders in the collection are on display to the public. But in this new series we go behind closed doors to explore all the treasures of art, design and performance the museum has to offer.

We follow experts and conservators at work in this treasure trove of the nation's favourite objects, as they breathe new life into fragile marvels, uncover hidden stories, and battle to keep the past alive.

This week, we join curators Steph and Jenny as they plan a major new exhibition celebrating the work of innovative British fashion designer Mary Quant. They want to illustrate how the designer shook up women's fashion in the 1960s with clothing that liberated women from decades of corsetry. Although the museum has a big archive of Quant dresses already, Steph has a critical gap in the collection. After an appeal to the public, a woman from Yorkshire comes forward with a dress that could be perfect to show how off exactly how Quant hiked hemlines higher than ever before.

Jenny Fenwick was 17 years old when she bought her mustard-coloured Mary Quant mini-dress from the Sheffield branch of Topshop. But after years of hard partying, the dress will need all the love and skill that conservator Frances can muster in order to make it exhibition-ready.

When the Quant exhibition opens, Jenny arrives to see her dress in pride of place - and is moved to think that these dresses meant freedom for her, and a whole generation of women.

Meanwhile, curator Julius is delving deep into the stores to uncover some of the very first objects ever given to the museum. He tracks down a hand-painted writing case, made in Kashmir in the 1850s, that once belonged to Queen Victoria, who donated it to the museum. We'll see inside the beautiful handmade piece, including the original knife and scissors the Queen used to cut and sharpen her quill pens. The writing case will join a spectacular serving dish, or salver, made from fine silver and gold filigree, in a special display to mark 200 years since Victoria and Albert were born.

The museum also receives donations today, just as it did when it first started. A woman from west London, Shalaleh, has offered the V&A her treasured family collection of rare saris, dating back to the 1930s. Shalaleh's grandmother was part of the Indian aristocracy in the days of the Raj, and travelled to Paris in order to buy fabrics from the top fashion houses of the day for her saris.

These beautiful chiffons and silks are a welcome addition to curator Divia's collection. With no daughters to give the saris to, Shalaleh knows her grandmother would be delighted to see the saris join the museum for the public to enjoy.

But modern-day objects are just as important as historic items to the museum's collection. We'll see Rapid Response curator Corinna hit the streets as she gather the most significant designs of today - that could become the treasures of tomorrow. The team have are hoping to acquire the flags and logo of climate change activists Extinction Rebellion. When they join the collection, these contemporary pieces will sit alongside other emblems of social change now - such as an umbrella from the Hong Kong protest movement, and a burqini.

We'll also follow conservators as they prepare for the return of a huge Victorian masterpiece to the galleries. ‘The Pilgrim Outside the Garden of Idleness', by renowned Pre-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones, is from 1898. But the heavy and extremely valuable artwork is in its delicate original frame and calls for careful conservation to preserve the fragile gilt construction. For 100 years the museum has kept the painting safe, but it's now down to tech services Allen and a team specialists to manhandle the artwork up several flights of stairs to its original place on the gallery wall.

Inside every museum is a hidden world, and now, for the first time, cameras have been allowed behind the scenes at the world-famous Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Only a small part of the two million wonders in the collection are on display to the public. But in this new series we go behind closed doors to explore all the treasures of art, design and performance the museum has to offer.

This week, we meet curators and conservators trying to preserve some of the finest examples of craftsmanship in the world.

Deep in the museum stores, curator Keith is trying to breathe life into an object of extraordinary craftmanship – an original Stormtrooper costume from the Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back, from 1980. He's hoping to exhibit the costume in a refresh of the V&A's Theatre and Performance Display. But when he and conservator Susana unpack the moulded-plastic body parts, a key piece is missing – the Stormtrooper's helmet.

Unable to display the costume without the helmet, Keith contacts a group of prop-makers who specialise in making replicas of movie costumes. The prop-makers agree to make a replica of the original helmet, using the exact techniques pioneered by the Star Wars costume department in the 1970s. But the challenge for Keith's prop-makers is to turn this box-fresh helmet into an authentic match with the original decades-old costume.

Meanwhile, two of the largest galleries in the museum, the Cast Courts, are undergoing a renovation. These galleries are home to one of the world's largest collections of 19th century hand-made casts - replicas of some of Europe's finest sculptures. As few people then could afford the luxury of travel, art works could be brought to them with these painstaking replicas. Now it's the job of senior sculpture conservator Victor to give these precious casts a facelift.

The final part of the epic renovation is cleaning a piece representing the Assumption of the Virgin, made in 1890. This plaster cast depicts the Virgin Mary ascending to heaven surrounded by angels. It's a perfect plaster copy of one of a number of 14th-century sculptured panels made for the exterior of the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. Now the plaster cast will be given its first deep clean since it was made 130 years ago.

The importance of these fragile replicas is brought into sharp focus with news of a terrible fire at Notre Dame. Although many artefacts are destroyed there is relief that the original cast of the Assumption of Virgin has been spared.

The news highlights the importance of preserving the V&A's delicate cast. But Victor and fellow conservator Adriana discover a crack in its structure, that could prove fatal. Over hours of careful conservation, the team work on supporting the fracture - but the real test will be when they try to hang it back on the gallery wall.

In the Rock and Pop archive, curator Vicky is examining a photograph donated after the V&A's David Bowie Exhibition. It's a rare print, known as ‘David Bowie is watching you', taken in 1973 as part of a series of photos by photographer Brian Duffy to become the album cover for Aladdin Sane. The picture was donated by the photographer's son Chris. Vicky wants to know more about the print and invites Chris to the museum. Chris remembers visiting the photoshoot when he was a teenager, and meeting David Bowie.

In paper conservation, senior preservations conservator Simon is dealing with a very different kind of photograph – a 65-metre-long Victorian photograph of the medieval Bayeux Tapestry. This unique photograph was commissioned by the British Government in 1871 and was one of the V&A's first interactive exhibits, displayed on a moving roller so audiences could spool through the panorama of the battle.

The last time it was on display was over 100 years ago. But years of manhandling have taken their toll. Now, the rolled-up photograph has been summoned to be part of a new V&A exhibition, filled with new images by legendary fashion photographer Tim Walker, inspired by objects from the museum's collection. But first conservator Simon needs to assess if the fragile piece is robust enough to be displayed again.

In the Rapid Response Department, curators Corinna and Johanna feel there is one important everyday object missing from their 20th-century collection. They have been offered a very British piece of graphic design – a road sign, made in 1961 by graphic designer Margaret Calvert. Before collecting the sign, they visit Margaret at her home, filled with familiar road signs…

We also follow fashion curator Oriole, who alongside colleague Susan, is on a mission to acquire a piece representing the best of contemporary British craft. They visit fashion designers Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi, known as Preen, at their workshop. Oriole and Susan have the difficult task of choosing one single piece to represent the designers.

Inside every museum is a hidden world, and now, for the first time, cameras have been allowed behind the scenes at the world-famous Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Only a quarter of the museum's objects are on display to the public - the rest lie deep in the stores. Now, after decades at the same site, the museum's stores are being relocated to a brand new, high-tech home. It's the job of curator Jane to make sure the 3,000 costumes in the Theatre and Performance collection are fully catalogued before the move.

First on her list is a costume specially designed by Bob Mackie for Elton John's Jump Up tour in 1982. She also unearths dresses worn by usherettes at the premiere of The Beatles' A Hard Day's Night in 1964.

Meanwhile, hidden in the stores is one item that has been lying dormant for decades and that has now been summoned to star in a new sci-fi exhibition. Frankenstein's Monster is a rare survivor from one of early cinema's greatest movies – The Bride of Frankenstein. Curator Keith needs to find out if Frankenstein can be brought back to life. After a series of X-rays, it seems the 85-year-old monster is held together only by a few rusty nails. And Frankenstein's clothes - originally worn by actor Boris Karloff - have seen better days. After weeks in conservation trying to breathe life back into this six-foot monster, Frankenstein's future looks uncertain, and Keith is faced with a difficult decision.

An unusual item has been spotted by curator Lucia – a vintage Louis Vuitton trunk that came to the museum merely as a container for a number of haute couture dresses and was then put aside. Lucia is curating a new exhibition called Bags: Inside Out and wants to unlock the trunk's secrets. She discovers that it was owned by one of America's most famous mistresses, a woman named Emily Grigsby, who spent millions of her lover's money on a lifetime of adventure. Curator Lucia believes the trunk deserves its rightful place in the V&A archive.

The V&A holds over a million precious books, from illuminated manuscripts to first editions. Many of these are loaned out to exhibitions around the world, so every effort is made to keep them in pristine condition. One of the most important books in the collection is an original Shakespeare First Folio. It's been requested for a new exhibition elsewhere, but before it can leave the building, it's the job of paper conservator Ruth to ensure the tiny tears in the 17th-century paper are repaired.

The museum's enormous stores contain many extraordinary collections, but one of its most prized is a treasure trove of early photographs. Curator Kate is interested in photographs taken by Lewis Carroll for a new exhibition about Alice in Wonderland. The Alice of the book was based on a real person, and now Kate has invited in her great granddaughter, Vanessa Tait, to help her chose photographs of her great-grandmother for the exhibition.

Inside every museum is a hidden world, and now, cameras have been allowed behind the scenes at the world-famous Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Only a small part of the two million wonders in the collection are on display to the public. But in this series, we go behind closed doors to explore all the treasures of art, design and performance the museum has to offer.

We follow experts and conservators at work in this treasure trove of the nation's favourite objects, as they breathe new life into fragile marvels, uncover hidden stories and battle to keep the past alive.

In this instalment, we join Catherine Sargent as she prepares a new exhibition devoted to cars. She must ensure these large objects are displayed at their best, but as with all the vehicles arriving on loan from around the world, it's imperative that each one is moved into the museum without a scratch.

One of the largest and trickiest to transport is an extraordinary 1962 Chevy Impala, known as ‘Tipsy', arriving from Los Angeles. It's a unique car, that's been painstakingly customised to turn it into a ‘low-rider'.

With its low-slung chassis, gleaming paintwork and personalised motifs, the car was a six-year labour of love for owner Tomas Vasquez. Seeing Tipsy up close before it's moved into the museum, Catherine has some concern that it will be a tight squeeze getting it into the exhibition space. And with the added pressure of the owner flying into the UK to give his pride and joy one last loving polish before the opening, she has to ensure the move runs without a hitch.

Meanwhile, some of the finest of the V&A's one-off objects are in the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert collection, and curator Alice Minter is choosing a selection of her favourites to be displayed in an upcoming exhibition that will tour around the world.

She's found one rare masterpiece in storage that she thinks is going to be the star of the tour. It's a tabletop decorated using a technique known as ‘micromosaic', in which thousands of individually coloured pieces of glass are set into a pattern producing an effect like a painting. The process of making a micromosaic is so intricate that this tabletop would have taken a craftsman years to finish.

But Alice discovers that her beloved table is going to struggle to make the tour, as conservators have discovered cracks and swellings on the surface. X-rays reveal the full damage inside, with holes and corrosion making this object too vulnerable to move anywhere. Conservator Mariam makes the brave decision to conduct an experimental operation to save the tabletop from falling to pieces. She injects grout into the micromosaic, in the hope of gluing together its internal structure. Alice hopes this life-saving surgery will give this masterpiece a chance of going on display and being admired by the public.

Other rare survivors are unearthed in the Rock and Pop archive, as curator Vicky picks out the latest acquisitions for the V&A's collection of objects relating to The Beatles. She's interested in some of the animation cels from the groundbreaking movie Yellow Submarine. One of the film's animators, Malcolm Draper, has been invited in to explain how they were made. It's important for Vicky to understand the whole story of these objects to help keep alive the craft of drawing animation cels by hand.

Over in textiles conservation, a rare men's kimono is being repaired so it can be displayed in an upcoming exhibition. Worn by a samurai feudal lord in the late 18th century, Elizabeth-Anne Haldane has discovered rips in its fine inner silk lining near the waist that may have been made by a samurai sword. To have any chance of displaying the chequerboard-patterned kimono on a mannequin, she must delicately dye a patch and sew it into the torn areas.

In the jewellery galleries, conservators and curators are excited to take delivery of a rare buried treasure – a medieval jewel discovered in a field in Northamptonshire by a metal detectorist. The extraordinarily rare ‘cluster brooch' is made of gold and set with diamonds and a reddish stone called a spinel.

With only seven of its type ever found in the world, this is a special piece. Experienced conservator and gemologist Jo Whalley has the task of giving it a deep clean.

Using a mixture of spit and polish (as saliva contains enzymes that help to degrade soil and dirt), Jo must delicately remove the earth embedded in the jewel to reveal once more the full beauty of this miniature treasure.