This velvet gown was created by costume designer Joan Bergin for use in the 2007 first season of Showtime’s The Tudors, where it was worn by Maria Doyle Kennedy as Katharine of Aragon. When filming for The Tudors ended, Bergin chose to purchase back several of her creations rather than part with them. In a Fashonista article about the re-use of costumes, Bergin stated:

“I couldn’t bear to part with the pieces,” she said. “So much work had gone into them.” Bergin stores her designs from “The Tudors” in The Costume Mill, her small rental shop in Dublin. “I have rented out some of them,” she said. “But in many ways they were so distinctive that people kind of hesitate to use them on principal [actors].” 

When Bergin worked on designing the costumes for the 2014 film A Little Chaos, she pulled several of her previous creations from The Tudors for usage. The gown worn by Maria Doyle Kennedy was re-purposed for use on Paula Paul as Madame Princess Palatine, though the sleeves have been adjusted to give the dress a slightly different look.