Who better to kit out a top (fictional) spy agency with exquisite British-made accessories than Deakin & Francis? Director Thomas Deakin tells us about the original collaboration and the ongoing series of Kingsman cufflink collections.
Deakin & Francis had for some time been in discussions to bring a range of gents’ accessories to Mr Porter, so when Mr P announced its upcoming Kingsman project, our storied history as England’s oldest manufacturing family jeweller made us an ideal collaborator.
The idea was to create pieces for the Kingsman films (Kingsman: The Secret Service, 2014 and Kingsman: The Golden Circle, 2017), alongside director Matthew Vaughn and costume designer Arianne Phillips’, then bring them to the public via Mr Porter.
Of course, D&F is more than just a brand. Our in-house design and manufacturing capabilities were very appealing to the Kingsman franchise, as we were able to offer tailored solutions, creating and manufacturing designs specifically for use in the films and for the accompanying merchandise.
The atmosphere of the Kingsman franchise plays to our strengths – those of British tradition and refinement. Deakin & Francis was asked to produce complementary accessories to the film’s tailored outfits, delivering the understated elegance befitting a top spy agency.
For Kingsman: The Secret Service, we produced a number of accessories.
Firstly, the Kingsman signet ring, seal-engraved with the boar crest – in the film the ring has the additional benefit of “stun gun” functionality. Also made for the film were the rose-gold Oxford oval double-sided cufflinks on a traditional chain fitting, finished with the Kingsman boar crest, and finally, the Kingsman keyring.
As with everything we do at Deakin & Francis, it all starts with a sketch. Drawing on the premise and branding of the film, the “K” logo has been incorporated into every design for the Kingsman films, from discreet branding on the reverse of items, through to using the “K” as the main design element of a keyring or cufflink. Though they are film props, we wanted to ensure the quality and look of the pieces was retained by manufacturing these items using our traditional skills and expertise: hand-crafting, stamping and finishing in our factory in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter.
Each of the pieces we have produced for the films is intended as standard-issue uniform for the Kingsman agents, alongside their tailored outfits. Our products can be clearly seen in The Secret Service on the shelves in the back room of the Kingsman tailors as Eggsy is getting kitted out by Galahad. In the final scenes, Eggsy can also been seen using the stun function of his signet ring.
For the sequel, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, we produced a range of accessories for the “Statesman” agents, including “S” lapel pins and money clips. We have also been involved with all nine seasons of the Mr Porter Kingsman offering and are currently working with them on Season 10, to be launched in spring 2019, so keep your spy specs in focus.
