This year marks the 10th anniversary of the first Spiderman movie – the box office smash hit that shot Toby Maguire and Kirsten Dunst to worldwide fame in 2002. The first instalment in the series, directed by comic book nut Sam Raimi, raked in over $800 million at the box office and generated an absolutely huge amount of interest around the globe.
The superhero gained many new fans on the back of the Hollywood blockbuster and influenced many movie costumes based fancy dress parties in the process. The story, if you don’t know it, depicts one man’s battle between crime, love and identity after being bitten by a genetically modified spider in a scientific lab. The action that ensues is enthralling – true comic-book Hollywood class.

The sequels were equally as successful and that buzz is set to continue with the release of The Amazing Spiderman later this year. There has been a bit of controversy surrounding the making of what is billed as ‘the untold story’ – the fourth instalment of the Sam Raimi Spiderman series was cancelled due to differences between the director and Sony, so a new director was drafted in to bring The Amazing Spiderman to the 21st century. Marc Webb, best known for his movie 500 Days of Summer, has taken the reins.

E.W. Swackhamer directed the 1977 version of the story, but it was made solely for television and didn’t see the likes of the international superstardom that the modern movies have enjoyed. It remains to be seen how much of a success the new Spiderman movie will be, but it remains a dead cert that Spidey costumes will continue to liven up parties around the world.

If you didn’t gather from the title, you might be interested to know that this year represents the 75th anniversary of the timeless classic Disney film ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’. Since 1937, the beau in the flowing golden dress has been the subject of fascination and admiration for generation after generation of children.

The impact that Snow White has had on many of us over the years has cemented a somewhat child-like obsession with the Disney princess in us and not everyone likes to admit it (until a Disney-themed fancy dress party comes along…).

The creative power and commercial appeal of Disney has provided inspiration for hundreds of ladies fancy dress costumes over the years, but perhaps none more so than the very first instalment of the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. Even the men can get in on the fairy tale and nursery rhyme costumes from the Disney collection: everybody has a dwarf they can relate to, whether they like it or not.

The impact of Snow White continues through the decades to influence children, writers, movie-makers, fancy dressers and party-goers all over the world.
It’s amazing to think that the Snow White feature film, adapted from the famous Brothers Grimm fairy tale, has been around for three quarters of a century. What’s even more remarkable is that this timeless classic signalled the beginning of something truly special not just for Walt Disney and his incredibly talented team, but for us – the story-hungry, fantasy-obsessed, fancy-dress-loving public.

Cupid is about to burst onto the scene again with Valentine’s Day right around the corner. Every year, love-struck folk across Britain scrub up and don their most dapper attire to impress their partners (or, of course, potential partners) on the most romantic day of the year.

Cupid is centuries-old, dating back to the Roman times as the symbol of love and uncontrollable desire and that image continues to this day. You can’t walk through a town centre in early February without Cupid pointing his arrow at you from some shop window – love is in the cold, cold air of Britain wherever you turn.

It’s a time, for some, to look smart, presentable and altogether attractive, but don’t you think it’s all just a little bit too serious? When was the last time you saw someone walk into a restaurant or bar wearing wings and a nappy on Valentine’s Day? The answer to that question might depend on where you live, but it doesn’t happen often enough in our opinion.

Valentine’s Day Costumes can bring a bit of sexy back to Britain – and not just at this time of year. Indeed, not everybody believes in Valentine’s Day, but everybody believes in looking rather ravishing every now and again, even if it does mean risking frostbite for the sake of a good time.

So why not be a bit adventurous this Valentine’s Day and really impress the one you’re trying to impress with a sexy fancy dress costume? Ditch the dapper and start getting saucy. It might just warm you up this winter.

Fancy dress has been a favourite pastime for decades, if not centuries, but it’s taken a rather strange turn in recent times. There is one individual in particular who is probably responsible for the most bizarre popular fancy dress costumes of recent times – she goes by the name of Lady Gaga.

Gaga is notorious for some pretty, shall we say, curious costume choices and has arguably gained mainstream fame more for her wardrobe than her musical talents. There’s no doubting that she’s gifted, but she may well turn out to have as much of an influence on the world of fancy dress as she will on the world of music.

For many, her most memorable costume was the meat dress she wore for the MTV Video Music Awards in 2010. This, naturally, garnered a lot of attention for the pop star and left millions of people baffled trying to decipher its meaning. Many critics agreed that it was an anti-fashion statement, which kind of makes it ironic that Lady Gaga is such a fashion icon in the 21st century. (Unfortunately, we don’t have enough fridge-space to stock Gaga’s meat dress at the moment. Sorry).

She has donned toy frogs as a top, wrapped lace around her face and worn a lobster on her head in the past and she is certain to rock the fashion world time and time again for years to come. She has inspired many a fancy dress party and has an instantly recognisable dress sense, making her costumes the perfect choice to put the meat on the bones of any party this year.

Our Lady Gaga costumes can be found in the Pop and Rock fancy dress section of our website.

The new age of Star Wars is almost upon us with the impending release of the first episode in stunning 3D in UK cinemas.

The Phantom Menace is, naturally, the first instalment of the saga to get the 3D treatment and, while it might not be many people’s favourite episode, it certainly generated some excellent fancy dress ideas for generations to come. The Darth Maul costume is obviously the standout winner in the costume world when it comes to the Phantom Menace, but Darth Vader arguably still leads the way in terms of Star Wars costumes.

Originally released in 1999, 16 years after the Jedi Returned to our screens, the Phantom Menace is in for a return of its own. The $115 million movie was highly anticipated but it was fairly poorly received amongst film critics. The movie review website, Rotten Tomatoes, which was launched in the same year as the Phantom Menace was released, gave the instalment the lowest rating of any Star Wars film to date – a mediocre score of 60%.

However, despite its rather unenthusiastic reviews, the movie amassed nearly a billion dollars at the box office and it no doubt continues to bring in a profit in terms of merchandise.

The Star Wars franchise has created some of the best ideas for costumes ever to come out of the movie business and the 3D re-mastering of the entire series is bound to bolster that popularity.

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace 3D will be released in UK cinemas on 10th February 2012.

The 1984 film, Ghostbusters, was a top grossing film of its decade, offering audiences worldwide an opportunity to watch three eccentric scientists go into the ghost-catching business.  The film starred Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis and Sigourney Weaver.

The film was so popular that it led to a sequel in 1989, two animated television programmes, and a video game.  In 2008, Harold Ramis, who co-wrote the two films, confirmed that a third instalment of the series was being developed.  The new film will offer familiar cast members with cameos while opening up a platform to something new and fresh.

One of the great things about Ghostbusters when it comes to 1980s fancy dress inspiration is that each character provides a unique and interesting feature.  The confines of the signature costumes of Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Egon Spengler were very different.  Little touches to a costume can pronounce those differences.

The traditional Ghostbuster jumpsuit is tan, just like the ones worn in the film, and comes with an inflatable backpack.  This costume fits men with chests up to 44 inches.  The Plus Size Ghostbusters costume for gentlemen is exactly the same, only providing for chests from 46 up to 52 inches.

The Stay Puff Ghostbuster costume emulates the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man through an inflatable jumpsuit, including sailor hat and collar.

The ladies have a sexy version of the Ghostbusters jumpsuit available.  It features a one-piece hot pantsuit with belt harness, baseball cap, and a small version of the proton backpack.

So, the reunion rumour mill is running again and, this time, The Spice Girls are drawing the attention of 90s kids all over the country.

As you probably know, 2012 is due to be about as British as British gets. We’ve not only got the London Olympics to look forward to, but we’ve also got the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee fast approaching in June. Apparently, Scary Spice herself revealed in an interview with an Australian TV channel that the girls are planning a ground-breaking reunion to perform in front of the Royal Family at Buckingham Palace on June 4.

The Spice Girls are undoubtedly as British as it gets when it comes to pop music – who could forget the Ginger Spice girl costume with the Union Jack emblazoned across it?

If you could ask the nation what defined the 90s in Britain, the Spice Girls are a sure fire bet to be in the top 5. Baby, Sporty, Scary, Posh and Ginger are five words that came to dominate the pop lingo of everybody’s favourite decade.

The fact that this particular girl group dominated that decade has led to many children of the 90s seeking out Spice Girls 90s fancy dress ideas right across the country. The reunion and, of course, the out-and-out celebration of pure British-ness that’s scheduled in for June are bound to rekindle the love we all had for the girls and get us celebrating their reunion with costumes, wigs and all.

There’ll be schoolgirls mimicking the Spice Girls and wannabes singing Wannabe all June long if the reunion actually happens. It will certainly be no secret if it does.

Ever since their first television appearance back in the 1950s, the Muppets have been hugely popular with both kids and adults of all ages. Created by the legendary master puppeteer Jim Henson, they have spawned nine films, several television series and, more recently, two hugely successful YouTube videos set to Bohemian Rhapsody and Under Pressure by Queen.

Google, in recent times, has made no secret of its love for The Muppets, paying homage to Henson’s creations with everything from a Doodle on the homepage to a Hangout to promote Google+.

The loveable characters have provided inspiration for 80s and 90s fancy dress, but they are more exclusive to the whole second half of the 20th century rather than a particular decade. The 90s did, however, see what are regarded as some of the best Muppets movies ever made, like Muppet Treasure Island and The Muppet Christmas Carol.

The Muppets’ popularity looks set to continue with their latest movie pencilled in to hit the big screen in the UK this February, following a resoundingly successful autumn release in US cinemas. The successful return of Kermit and the gang, coupled with their YouTube success has once again helped to reacquaint fans with the manic but loveable characters.

As well as Kermit the Frog costume, other popular Muppets costumes include Kermit’s love interest Miss Piggy, crazy drummer Animal, hapless stand-up comic Fozzie Bear, Dr Bunsen Honeydew and assistant Beaker and Statler and Waldorf. Every fan has their favourite and we have a range of special costumes to suit every type of Muppet out there.

It’s not just about the costume either – looking like a complete Muppet all night means that you have to act like a complete Muppet all night. Jim Henson’s Muppets have brought a smile to many faces over the years and, with the new movie set to rock Britain in 2012, they are evidently enjoying an ever-growing fan-base.

A popular theme for parties is movie costumes. Film night gives guests the opportunity to dress up like some of their favourite film characters – sexy, wacky, adventurous, exciting, or spooky.

When hosting a film night fancy dress event, you are in control of how widespread or small the theme can be.  You may want to have a night where people can chose from any film of any era and genre or as the host, you may want to select the film yourself.  This can include cartoon-based films, where people can chose from costumes such as Fred Flintstone or Inspector Gadget.  Other genres include adventure films or films based upon games, like Lara Croft Tomb Raider or Halo 3.  Fantasy and science fiction genres give an opportunity for people to dress in anything from Star Wars, Avatar, or Edward Scissorhands.

In a 1970s era-based film night, costume ideas can include films like All That Jazz, American Graffiti, Star Wars, and Superman.  The 1980s films include Aliens, Back to the Future, Amadeus, and Raiders of the Lost Ark.  Any film genre can make a great film night.

To achieve an Indiana Jones look, there are two great costumes:  the Adventurer and the Deluxe Indiana Jones.  Both come with the jacket, hat and iconic whip.  To go as Lara Croft Tomb Raider, there are a few different selections, including a Teen Deluxe Lara Croft Legend Costume that is perfect for young girls.  The Lara Croft Tomb Raider Wig provides Lara’s signature long brown braid.

Tales of the Old West fascinate us.  Boys dream of being Wyatt Earp or Blondie.  Women dream of being Annie Oakley, or one of those incredible beauties who captured our attention with their voice and style in the local saloon.  Perhaps some of us even like the idea of being the Mexican Bandit, giving the likes of Marshall Jed Cooper a run for his money. 

There are a few, those who love a good bit of comedy mixed into our Old West fantasy, who favour The Frisco Kid, or Avram, the Polish rabbi.  He survives outlaws and almost being burned at the stake by Indians as he works his way across the west on his way towards San Francisco. 

All of these and many more make excellent ideas for Cowboy Costumes

For the Mexican Bandit, consider the Authentic Looking Poncho, combined with the Mexican Bandit Sombrero hat, Bandana Neckerchief in Red and the Mexican Handlebar Moustache.  To transform your Mexican into Blondie from the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, subtract the moustache and add a blonde wig and the Cigar with LED. 

To be Tommy, the Frisco Kid or just your above-average really cool cowboy, consider the Western Cowboy Costume, which comes with a three-quarter length brown coat, mock shirt front and bootlace tie.  To complete the look add the Western Wandering Gunman Hat, Western Holster and Belt, and Western Black Boot spurs. 

For those who aspire to Avram, consider the Rabbi costume complete with the robe, beard, hat with hair, and scarf.