I like dressing up about as much as any normal man should do, e.g. for fancy dress parties when you…read morego the whole hog, or if you're re-enacting The Rocky Horror Show down your local pub of a Saturday night. I've never been into this half-arsed university fancy dress thing though, which basically ends up being a competition by girls to see who can look the most slutty (not that I'm complaining about scantily-clad females, honest). However when entering Maghull's Fancy Dress Box, it's hard not to get carried away and dress up in the various and wide-ranging costumes they have both on sale or to hire. The outfits there are generally of a decent standard and certainly better than any local Smiffy's would have and they also stock various other bits and pieces for nights like stag and hen dos or birthday celebrations that can be very useful (they advertise themselves as a "1 Stop Party Shop"). They also have bouncy castles available for hire for just thirty pounds, perfect for those kid's parties where all the adults are waiting for the kids to tire/go to bed so they can all get on the bouncy castle. A very weird and wonderful place to go for any fancy dress or party needs.

I am a bit of a connoisseur of fancy dress, but tend to steer away from fancy dress shops,…read morepreferring to make my costumes myself. Obviously, not everyone can be bothered to do the same, and dressing up is one of those British traditions that seems particularly prevalent in Liverpool - on any given weekend you can find girls in tutus and guys in capes. Most of the time it's either university- or stag/hen do-related, although some girls honestly think going out in a tutu or corset is fashionable... Smiffy's is ideal for last minute dressing up needs, or, in my case, if doing a stage show and you realise the costume department is somewhat lacking. However, I find it quite pricey for the mass-produced stuff it offers. Ok, the prices vary, and maybe I'm fussy because I'm more of a DIY person, but still. Especially specialist stuff, like Snazaroo makeup, but then I guess you pay special prices for special stuff. I don't mean to be negative, because this really is a good shop and they have a huge variety of products. A definite life saver if in dire need of fancy dress.

When you walk down Bold Street, it is often hard not to notice the red shop that is Smiffy's. It…read morecertainly does stand out and thats what it needs to do for all those planning a fun night out. In the display window, there is usually the 'pick of their bunch' costumes that tend to be humerous and eccentric which is what most fancy dresses are supposed to be like! Inside the store, they have further seductive and contoversial costumes, other odd items and joke products. Smiffy's is a popular place with students as one would expect and I can remember a big queue on Halloween day last year. This would be the primary source to lend that ideal costume but be prepared to pay an often pricey cost.

Whenever I need a fancy dress outfit for either Halloween, Christmas, New Year or just for the sake…read moreof it; I always go here. This shop has most defiantly grown over the years and now had their own website business as well as the shop. Who doesn't enjoy going having a look at the costumes or accessories here? It really is top-quality stuff and if they do not have it in store, then order it for you. You can try the stuff on too, so you know if it fits. You could seriously spend the whole day in here.

It comes as no surprise to me that that Gaga lady spent 3 hours in Afflecks last week. Weird yet…read moreindelibly wonderful is an apt description for it. Having said that, I must make a more pronounced effort to frequent this magnificent Manchester location more often. Yes, it can be a bit daunting at first, a maze of weird and wonderful stalls and shop fronts. But its worth getting lost here every once in a while, why? Because you'll find private vendors here who have a genuine passion for their respective products and services and the corporate whore in them has yet to emerge. It's refreshing. My first ever visit to Attic was unfortunately without a license to roam. I was missing a single item for my Halloween dressage and was told Attic had it in stock, thus this was a last minute dash and grab job. The meandering nature of the shop floor plans didn't help much but the fact that it wasn't rammed like most other shops before 5pm was a huge bonus. First thing of note, the customer service was incredible! Out of breath having run to the top floor headless chickenly looking for the joint armed with a sweaty quizzical facial expression I was kindly approached almost immediately and offered help. A mere five minutes later I was a sent packing a calm and happy customer back running down the stairs headless chickenly once more. What great service eh? Now five minutes equates to an hour in Inception time (See Nolan's brilliant 2010 scifi flick Inception) so thinking Inceptionly, I discovered that this place caters for pretty much ALL your fancy dress needs. Whether you have a Lord of the Rings fetish, or you're a self confessed Star Trek geek there's something here for everyone. They also have fabrics and other random tools and tricks of the trade perfect for creating your very own costumes (If buying the readymade ones isn't your cup of tea) Ultimately venturing into Attic is journeying into another world of sorts, which is both scary and exciting. The former because a longer than necessary amount of time spent here prompts the thought "hmmm I wish it was fancy dress all the time." It really is a literal form of escapism manifesting itself into a physicality. Which as it turned out this Halloween, is heaps of fun! I for one will definitely be returning and discovering more about this place as research for my next film project. The place is a production costume design gold mine. For the rest of us, it definitely is a one stop shop for all your fancy dress needs.

Huge huge selection of fancy dress here. I challenge you to find any costume/character that is not…read morein this attic shop- truly amazing! Going into this shop made me wish my friends were not becoming convinced they are older and mature now-opting for a dinner party of a fancy dress occasion. I will fight on and pursue a night as a Smurf soon..all with this shops help :)

This particular Wizzard Cards & Gifts shop in St. Helen's sells a terrific variety of bits and…read morepieces which are ideal for small presents and special celebratory occasions. In addition to offering a selection of ornaments, scary and cute looking toys as well as holographic artwork, they also have a small fancy dress section towards the rear of the shop and sell a range of cheeky adult toys. So, if you pop into Wizzard, you might be in for more than what you bargained for after a wonderous browse! Expect a contrasting variety of cards and gifts from the innocent and cute to the downwright naughty and scary! Overall, the shop has friendly staff as they kindly helped me look for the card I was searching for and at affordable prices, you can't really go wrong.

This has to be the ultimate gift shop! If you need a present…read morefor someone, special or otherwise, you are most likely to find something here. they have gifts from mugs to t-shirts to jewellery.the list seems to be endless, but probably isn't. They even have the cards, tags and wrapping paper to finish off your present.

Pretty decent place to get any fancy dress stuff from. I've bought a few things from here in the…read morelast few years for parties and other things. I bought a 'female gangster' outfit from here nearly 5 years ago for a friend's birthday when we went out on a night out. Everyone who went out for the night out all had a brilliant night and people who had seen us all in the fancy dress had a pretty awesome night as well

Great family run fancy dress/ joke and dance shop in Stockport, great variety- nice to browse…read morethrough, staff are lovely. It does attract the alternative kids as there isn't much else like this in Stockport. Stairs to the basement are quite steep, gets really busy before halloween!