Vin's career has taken her from Covent Garden to Hollywood and back, working across classical ballet, the Batman films, and with names including Lady Gaga, Gary Oldman and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Creativity runs in the family: her parents were both actors, her sister Lal d'Abo (Caroline Burnham, class of 1970) is a leading ballet costume maker, and her brother Tim Burnham (class of 1967) runs Tempest Lighting in Los Angeles. 

Looking back on her school days, Vin recalls... after the freedom of the seemingly endless summer holidays, Vin — the wild child that she was in the swinging sixties — was somewhat reluctant to start the new academic year! But after the hurdle of the first day back, and seeing her best friends Fen, Cheryl, Helen, Nanci and Bink, she was soon back in the swing and looking forward to Bonfire Night (they never did much for Halloween in those days), and further ahead to the Christmas Fair which was an exciting and sparkly day - any excuse to use glitter was always welcomed! 

Vin may not have appreciated going to Michael Hall at that time but really appreciates it now! She loved the fact that it was so multi-cultural - there were pupils from Tibet, Africa, all across Europe and the US and Canada, and the different age-groups mixed so easily. She loved the grounds, which offered space, nature and architecture - and places to explore and hide! The Midsummer Festival was (and still is) when the valley field becomes the dramatic background to the torchlit procession, the bonfire and the open-air madrigal concert (class 12 singing). 

Vin says she was no scholar but somehow was able to harness her creativity and combine it with the dedication and hard work that was needed to have a successful creative career and attributes this in part to her family of actors, musicians and writers, but also to the time she spent at Michael Hall and the emphasis on creativity and non-conformity. The school seemed to welcome and value people’s individuality, and in Vin’s case, this was a big plus to finding the workplace which was a good fit for her with like-minded people. She started in the theatre and expanded into the world of film, advertising, and even the music industry. The entertainment world is packed with extraordinary and diverse creative characters - just like at Michael Hall! Both were places where she felt she could truly belong. 

Link to book: Get Into Costume: Design, Make and Manage for the Stage and Screen: Creative Careers Vin Burnham Bloomsbury Visual Arts - Bloomsbury Whether your ambition is to work in design, making, styling, illustration, textile arts or supervision – Get Into Costume will help you bridge the gap from education into that vital first job in the industry and become a sought-after member of the costume team. 

DISCOUNT CODE: Use code BURNHAM25 to save 25%. 

Link to Vin’s website, learn more: www.vinburnham.com
Instagram: @vin.burnham