Preliminary Inventory of the Ivor Beddoes Collection, 1950s-1970s SPEC.TRI.IB Finding aid prepared by Audrey Wimbiscus Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections
1858 Neil Avenue Columbus, OH, 43210
2026 February This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit 2026-02-10T09:54-0500 English Describing Archives: A Content Standard Ivor Beddoes Collection SPEC.TRI.IB Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections 2.776 Cubic feet 1950s-1970s Ivor William Gilmour Beddoes (1909-1981) was a British painter and sketch artist, as well as a costume and set designer. The Ivor Beddoes Collection dates from the 1950s to the 1970s, and is composed of sketches, watercolor paintings, photographs, set designs, and reference images used or created by Beddoes in his role as the assistant art director on the 1953 film "The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan," as well as scene breakdowns and research from a 1975 TV series about Captain James Cook, and drawings from several other productions. (14) oversize folders; (2) oversize flat boxes; (1) 5" legal document box English Beddoes, Ivor Arrangement of Materials

This collection is unprocessed. Materials are arranged in the order received.

 Acquisitions Information

Accession No. TRI.2026.0006: Purchased, 1991 December

 Preferred Citation

[identification of item], Ivor Beddoes Collection, SPEC.TRI.IB, Lawrence and Lee Theatre Research Institute, Ohio State University

 Access to Materials

Materials in this collection are available for use, but may be used in the Thompson Library Special Collections reading room only.

 Use of Materials

Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright, and are made available for research and educational purposes. In general, the OSU Libraries do not own the copyright for materials from our collections and cannot grant copyright permissions for these materials. The user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exceptions to the law. Works in the public domain are not protected by copyright and do not require permission to use.

 Processing Information

This collection is unprocessed. Finding aid written by: Audrey Wimbiscus, 2026 February

 Biographical Note

Ivor William Gilmour Beddoes (1909-1981) was a British painter and sketch artist, as well as a costume and set designer. He studied art at the Hornsey College of Art, followed by stints as a musician, ballet dancer, character actor, singer, and choreographer between 1927 and 1940. Beddoes was conscripted into the British Army during World War II, and served as a draughtsman for the Royal Signals Corp in the Middle East. Following an appeal for theatre professionals to join the Field Entertainment Unit in the British Army, he moved to Cairo with the unit and produced plays and revues with them until he was demobilized in January 1946.

Following World War II, Beddoes learned to be a sketch artist, and started his career in the film industry. He worked in a variety of roles including set designer, costume designer, matte painter, sketch artist, title designer, and art director. Beddoes worked on films such as "The Red Shoes," "The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan" (originally known as "Mr. Gilbert & Mr. Sullivan"), "Casino Royale," "Star Wars," and "Superman." He often collaborated with the British film production company The Archers.

 Scope and Contents

The Ivor Beddoes Collection dates from the 1950s to the 1970s, and is composed of sketches, watercolor paintings, photographs, set designs, and reference images used or created by Beddoes in his role as the assistant art director on the 1953 film "The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan." The film tells the story of the partnership of opera partners W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, and also features extensive excerpts of scenes from the original operettas by Gilbert and Sullivan.

The collection also contains items from Beddoes' preperatory work on a 1975 TV series about Captain James Cook such as scene breakdowns, research, and storyboards. Also included are drawings from film projects called "The Devil Never Sleeps," and "Seven Waves Away."

 Beddoes, Ivor Cook, James, 1728-1779 Gilbert, W. S. (William Schwenck), 1836-1911 Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900 Black-and-white photographs Composers in motion pictures Costume design Explorers--Great Britain--Biography Motion picture art directors--England--20th century Motion pictures, British--Production and direction--England--20th century Motion pictures--Art direction Opera in motion pictures Pencil drawings Sketches Storyboards Television--Production and direction--20th century "Mr. Gilbert & Mr. Sulllivan" breakdown shot list Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 1952 April 15 "Trial By Jury" storyboard drawings Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 "The Gondaliers," "Yeoman of the Guard" sketches Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 "The Gondaliers" backstage view sketches Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 Drawing book Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 "Iolanthe" fantasy sequence captioned watercolor drawings Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 "Iolanthe" fantasy sequence pencil drawing Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 "The Yeoman of the Guard" costume, scene sketches Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 Crowd outside at night watercolor painting Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 1950s Crowd around fireplace watercolor painting Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 1950s Woman in bedroom watercolor painting Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 1950s "Mr. Gilbert & Mr. Sullivan" title scenes sketches Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 "Mr. Gilbert & Mr. Sullivan" pencil drawings Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.003 circa 1952 "The Sorceror" "H.M.S. Pinafore" pencil drawings Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.004 circa 1952 Gilbert & Sullivan as putti from "Trial By Jury" program pencil sketch Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 "Iolanthe" watercolor; unidentified pencil drawings Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 "Ruddigore" costume sketch photographs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 Illustrated sheet music covers photographs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 Early opera programs photographs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 Picture resources: Gilbert sketches, press clippings, photographs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 Contemporary cartoons of Gilbert, Sullivan, Carte photographs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 Castle set construction photographs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 "Trial By Jury" set photograph Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 D'Oyly Carte Opera set photographs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1952 "Trial By Jury" brown ink with purple wash program Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 "Ivanhoe" dedication to Queen Victoria watercolor, ink, pencil sketch Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.005 circa 1952 River picnic scene menu in ink Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1952 "Ruddigore" menu sketch Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.006 circa 1952 "Iolanthe" first performance invitation sketches Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.007 1952 "Mr. Gilbert & Mr. Sullivan" scrapbook mockup sketches Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.008 circa 1952 200 performances pencil sketch Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.009 circa 1952 "Mr. Gilbert & Mr. Sullivan" set designs, plans Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.010 circa 1952 "Iolanthe" set design sketches Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.011 circa 1952 "Ruddigore" set designs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.012 circa 1952 "Captain Cook" TV series empty storyboards Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 circa 1974 "Captain Cook" TV series scene breakdowns, episodes 6-14 Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1974 "Captain Cook" TV series scene breakdowns, timeline Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 circa 1974 "Captain Cook" TV series reference Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.001 Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.002 Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.003 circa 1974 "Captain Cook" TV series scene breakdowns Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.003 circa 1974 "Captain Cook" TV series storyboards Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.003 circa 1974 "The Devil Never Sleeps" set designs Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.013 1950s-1970s "Seven Waves Away" drawings Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.014 circa 1956 Unidentified production storyboard Accession No. TRI.2026.0006.003 1950s-1970s