Roger Furse (1903-1972). British painter and designer

Born in Ightham, Kent, Roger Kemble Furse studied at The Slade School of Fine Art and designed his first stage production in 1934. He created the costumes and armour for Laurence Olivier’s film version of Shakespeare’s Henry V in 1943 and won two Oscars for his work on Olivier’s 1948 film version of Hamlet. Furse collaborated with Olivier again, alongside Marilyn Monroe, on The Prince and the Showgirl in 1957. In ballet, Furse is most remembered for the designs he created for Ninette de Valois’ The Prospect Before Us in 1940, and Robert Helpmann’s Adam Zero in 1946, both danced by the Sadler’s Wells Ballet.