“The clothes are very densely, richly layered with stuff like feathers, trims and lace, and often it is imbued with ideas extrapolated from dead animals or jewels that have been mined from the ground or lace that’s taken someone ages to make,” Waddington continues. “It evokes ideas of hard work and exploitation.”

Texture was paramount in creating this rich tapestry of chaos, discovery and extravagance through Bella’s costumes. She is adorned with enormous bows on her sleeves and her tops are lined with ruffles on ruffles, which are evocative of feminine genitals.

“I wanted texture to be everywhere in the costumes… for everything to feel like it was living and breathing – from an animal or a sea creature from a shell,” she adds. “It all has a kind of organic quality to it.

“There are curvy, linear shapes, and no sharp lines. Bella’s costumes are very airy. Those sleeves are like huge lungs full of air, and she’s just been reanimated so that felt like a good thing to include. The huge sleeves also affect her body shape, which felt like a good idea, because she is more creature-like when she wears these.”

“I wanted everything to feel like it was living and breathing”: how Holly Waddington created the costume design for Poor Things