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Festival Fancy Dress Guide 2012
The sun will soon be shining & the weather is already heating up, the days are getting a little longer and all of this can mean only one thing - festival season is finally upon us! As well as lazy days in fields, world class music, and a little over indulgence the festival season also means a lot of fancy dress. That’s why at Escapade we have put together 2012’s Festival Costume Guide so you know what the best fancy dress themes are for all of this years biggest festivals.
The 2012 festival season sees huge line ups across the UK and as always some innovative and fun costume themes to boot. So whether you’re heading to Bestival in a Wild Life themed costume, dressing up in a fairytale or comic book fancy dress outfit for Kendal Calling or donning a funny fancy dress look for the perfect festival look at Escapade we have suggestions for all of biggest 2012 summer festivals.
Most festivals have unique themes that are as individual as the festival itself but everyone who has attended a festival over summers past knows fancy dress fits in perfectly with the escapism that festivals provide, which is why a lot of them have whole days dedicated to fancy dress. See below for a full list of this years festivals, their bios, headliners and their fancy dress themes for 2011, or if you’re looking for a particular theme for a specific festival just click on the map icon above. Have a great festival season and make sure you check out the festival safety tips to ensure you stay safe over the summer.
June 2012
Isle of Wight Festival: 21st - 24th June, 2012: Seaclose Park, Newport, Isle of Wight - Back to top
The Isle of Wight festival dates back to 1968 and remains one of the UK’s biggest and most influential festivals. In 1970 it was believed to be one of the biggest gatherings of people in history with over 600,000 attendees. The result was that Parliament passed the “Isle of Wight Act” preventing the gathering of more 5,000 people on the Island killing the festival off. This all changed in 2002 when the festival was revived and it has run annually ever since with some of the biggest names and icons in music playing the festival every year. As well as arguably hosting this years most iconic lineup with headliners including: Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and Pearl Jam the Isle of Wight also caters to the fancy dress fanatics among you with hundreds adopting the festivals light hearted themed and donning funny fancy dress costumes for an unforgettable weekend.
Headliners: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers / Pearl Jam / Bruce Springsteen / Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds / Elbow / Example
Ticket Prices: Adult Camping - £190, Adult Non-Camping - £160
Fancy Dress Theme: Funny Fancy Dress
Rockness: 8th - 10th, June 2012: Loch Ness, Scotland - Back to top
The Rockness festival located on the beautiful banks of the Loch Ness river in Scotland makes a boast that they possess the most beautiful natural backdrop to a festival in the world, and anyone that has ever been to this festival is more than likely to back this statement up. Winner of last years NME “Best Small Festival Award” what makes Rockness really special is a combination of a fantastic line up, picturesque surroundings, fancy dress frolics that can rival Bestival and a mythical lake monster make Rockness a sure fire summer favourite. Rockness is a huge festival for those among you who love dressing up so expect to see a few to see a few crazy fancy dress costumes this year.
Headliners: Mumford & Sons / Ed Sheeran / Noah & The Whate / The Drums / Wretch 32 / Mystery Jets / Biffy Clyro / Friendly Fires
Ticket Prices: Adult 3 Day Weekend + Camping £174.90, 3 Day Weekend + Camping £163.90
Fancy Dress Theme: Wacky Fancy Dress Costumes
Glastonbury Festival 2012 Cancelled: Worthy Farm, Pilton - Back to top
It remains the UK’s biggest and most influential festival pulling in the worlds best musicians by the bucketful and dumping them in front of an audience that constitutes the worlds largest open air music festival. Nearly 200.000 people go to see over 700 acts across 80 stages and it’s not just the creame of the crop musicians you will find at Glasto there are also; leading dance, comedy, theatre and circus acts that make Glastonbury, what it is, the ultimate festival. During 2012 the festival is on a temporary hiatus taking a well earned rest after running every year since 1996. Thousands attend the event in fancy dress and it is one of the best parties in the world. As well as having a year on year lineup that makes festival goers salivate Glastonbury also teams up with Oxfam who use the platform to promote good causes and raise awareness of the charity work that they do.
Headliners 2012: Cancelled
Ticket Prices: Cancelled
Fancy Dress Theme:Fun Fancy Dress / Watch out for organized fancy dress Flash Mob updates
July 2012
iTunes Festival: 29th June - 31st July, 2012: Roundhouse, Camden, London - Back to top
The iTunes festival is fantastic for numerous reasons; 31 days of music from some of the world’s biggest bands is the main one, however the fact that it is all completely free also helps. The iTunes Festival is Escapade’s favourite festival and this isn’t just because of the music and the fact that it is free as what we are most excited about is that this festival takes place literally a two minure walk up the road from our fancy dress superstore in Camden. If you are lucky enough to win tickets to see any of the yet undisclosed world class musicians make sure you pop into our London fancy dress store and pay us a visit before heading down to the roundhouse for some world class music.
Headliners: TBA
Ticket Price: Free
Fancy Dress Theme: Escapade Camden Fancy Dress Store
Hop Farm Festival: 29th June - 1st July, 2012: The Hop Farm, Kent - <Back to top 
After a general survey was taken where festival goers felt that they were at the bottom of the pecking list during major festivals so the Hop Farm Festival was born as an alternative to the large commercial events. There is no sponsorship and no branding , no VIP’s and children under 12 get in free accompanied by an adult. The aim of the Hop Farm festival is to bring world famous artist together with their fans by taking the music back to its basic roots. This year’s festival features a great selection of modern day icons including Bob Dylan and Van Morrison.
Headliners: Peter Gabriel / Bob Dylan / Suede / Richard Ashcroft / Damien Rice / Ray Davies / Kool & The Gang / Patti Smith
Ticket Prices: Adult Day Tickets £65, Adutl Weekend Tickets £162.00
Fancy Dress Theme: Retro Fancy Dress
The Beat-Herder Festival: 29th June - 1st July, 2012: The Ribble Valley, Lancashire - Back to top 
Heading into their 6th year the Beat-Herder festival held in Ribble Valley, Lancashire is one of the festival seasons best kept secrets. The Festival which features an eclectic mix of cliental from families to ravers has a little something for everyone. When your not crawling through tunnels and enjoying the wide array of work shops and world food you can check out the fantastic collection of music including 2011’s headliners Leftfield. Don’t forget the fancy dress themes as well as Beat-Herder has two of them: Friday Night is dedicated to Flower Power fancy dress, while Saturday is dedicated fancy dress begining with the letter "A" the organizers encourage those attending to think along the lines of the following ideas, "Animals, Acrobats, Airliners, Armchairs, ABBA."
Headliners: Orbital / Fake Blood / Death in Vegas / Aeroplane / Lee Scratch Perry
Ticket Prices: £100 Adult Weekend Pass
Fancy Dress Theme: Letter A Fancy Dress/ Fri: Flower Power fancy dress
T in the Park: 6th - 8th, July, 2012: Balado, Kinross-Shire Scotland - Back to top
T in the Park is Scotland’s version of Glastonbury & since there is no Glastonbury this year it will be the summers biggest festival. T in the Park has a great atmosphere, a huge line up, and massive crowds all mixed together with a great big fat dosage of fun. You will find everything you would expect to find at a huge festival at T in the Park including a great crowd, first rate performers, fairgrounds, cinemas and a fantastic Fancy Dress Friday where everyone who attends is encouraged to dress up in outlandish and fun costumes. The team behind T in the Park have yet to announce 2012's fancy dress theme but as soon as they do we will make sure that you are the first to know about it. Whatever T in the Park's 2012 theme is at Escapade we can guarantee that we will put together our finest collection of costumes for an unforgettable T in the Park 2012.
Headliners: Snow Patrol / Tinnie Tempah / New Order / Florence + the Machine / Kasabian / Jessie J / The Stone Roses / Example
Ticket Prices: Weekend Camping Ticket £199 / No Camping £179.00
Fancy Dress Friday Theme: TBA
Latitude Festival: 12th - 15th, July 2012: Henham Park, Southwold, Suffolk - Back to top
Founded in 2006 Latitude heads into it’s 6th year in 2012 and this boutique festival is getting bigger and better than ever before. The festival is comprised of 3 days of world class music, but has an artistic flair with comedy, art, theatre, and poetry shows that rival the best of the rest. Set against a stunning background in Henham Park, Suffolk Latitude is a family friendly festival with an edge. Make sure you watch out for the smooth tones of this years special musical guests which include: Bon Iver, Elbow & Paul Weller. Latitude festival goers are fancy dress fanatics so expect to see a wide and varied collection of fun fancy dress costumes at the festival this year.
Headliners: Bon Iver / Elbow / Paul Weller / Metronomy / Laura Marling / Ben Howard
Ticket Prices: Weekend Ticket £175
Fancy Dress Theme: funny fancy dress
Guilfest Festival: July 13th - 15th, 2012: Guildford, Surrey - Back to top
Seven stages that will be jam packed with great music, comedy and variety acts all in a family friendly atmosphere make Guilfest a great independent festival. If you need something else to do other than partaking in the world class music all day Guilfest has a 70’s themed La Discotheque, arts and crafts village, theatre stage, kidzone and farmer Giles barn dance to name but a few of the alternative activities at this fantastic festival. Guilfest has a steady building following that return year after year due mainly to the excellent atmosphere that they create. Don't forget to head to the fancy dress parade on Sunday where you will have the opportunity to parade your fun fancy dress costumes around the event with hundreds of other festival revellers.
Headliners: Jules Holland / Olly Murs / Bryan Ferry / Tulisa / The Straits
Ticket Price: Adult weekend ticket: £130 camping or £115 non camping
Fancy Dress Theme: Farm Yard fancy dress / fun fancy dress / 70s fancy dress
Secret Garden Party: 19th - 22nd, July, 2012: Cambridgeshire - Back to top 
2012 sees this now iconic festival celebrating its 10th birthday and this year the organizers behind the festival are pulling out all of the stops to put Secret Garden Party 2012 in contention for the best UK summer festival of the year. Set near a stunning Georgian farm house with regal gardens and it’s own lake the Secret Garden Festival is one of the UK’s most innovative, fresh and alternative festivals. Those who attend are referred to as “gardeners” and spend 4 days in a creative haven of live music, artists, performers, mud wrestling, writers, workshops and skinny dippers all gathered to share creative energy. The theme for 2012's Secret Garden Party is "Standing on Ceremony". The organizers of the festival encourage those attending to look for inspiration in everything from the Olympics to the birth of the seventh billion human and the mass collective moments that have come to define society as we know it. At Escapade we have a great selection of historical costumes that are perfect for celebrating this year’s Secret Garden Party festival and celebrating the accomplishments of human kind.
Headliners: Orbital / Soko & hundreds more
Ticket Price: Adult Weekend Ticket £195
Fancy Dress Theme: Standing on Ceremony / Historical fancy dress
Kendal Calling: 27th - 29th, July 2012: Lowther Dear Park, The Lake District - Back to top
Set in an idyllic setting in the Lake District at what used to be the home of a wildlife theme park the location of the Kendal Calling festival alone make it an experience it itself worth visiting, even if they didn’t offer a venue jam packed with world class music. However, Kendal Calling is no stroll through the Lake District, the line-up for the festival in 2012 is jam packed with a wide variety of talent ranging from Dizzee Rascal & Maximo Park to James and Feeder. Kendal Calling also has a fancy dress following that can rival Bestival and creative theme who come up with innovative themes every year. This years fancy dress theme is Fairy Tales & Comic Books which opens the door to thousands of fancy dress opportunities. At Escapade we have a huge collection of both fairy tale and comic book themed costumes for the perfect Kendal Calling festival experience.
Headliners: Dizzee Rascal / James / Maximo Park / Feeder / Shed Seven
Ticket Price: Adult Weekend £105.00
Fancy Dress Theme: fairy tale fancy dress / comic book fancy dress
Camp Bestival: 26th - 29th, July 2012: Lulworth Castle, Dorset - Back to top
With a plethora of UK Festival Awards Camp Bestival is the family focused version of big brother Bestival. Set against the picturesque back drop of Lulworth Castle Camp Bestival sees a marriage of leading music acts, circus & variety show acts with a family friendly atmosphere and plenty of things to do for the kids. The festival also features boutique babysitting ensuring that even of the parents want to let their hair down Camp Bestival is guaranteed to be an event enjoyable for the whole family. In 2010 Camp Bestival attempted to break the world record for lazrgest ever Mad Hatter Fancy Dress Tea Party and this years fancy dress theme is Silly Olympics we have an entire wardrobe of fun ready and waiting to ensure that this years fancy dress party at Camp Bestival is bigger and better than ever before. Don't forget to check out the traditional fancy dress parade on Saturday!
Headliners: Happy Mondays / Hot Chip / Kool & the Gang / Chic feat Nile Rodgers / Jimmy Carr Attractions: Fancy Dress Parade / The Big Top Mania Crew
Ticket Price: Adult Weekend Camping including Thrs: £185 / Student: £170 / Age 15 - 17: £110 / Age 11 - 14: £95 / U11: Free
Fancy Dress Theme: Silly Olympics
August 2012
The Big Chill: Cancelled 2012: Eastnor Castle Deer Park, Ledburry, Herts- Back to top
Held in the grounds of Eastnor Castle the Big Chill festival provides a fantastic mix of alternative, dance and chill-out music not to mention there comedy stages which are second to none at bringing in the best comedians from around the world. Due to scheduling conflicts with the Olympics 2012’s Big Chill festival has been cancelled with the potential of hosting a more intimate indoor event still on the table. If you head down to the Big Chill festival in 2013 make sure to pack a fun fancy dress costume as The Big Chill is one of the biggest festivals in the UK for fancy dress revellers. In the past they In the past they have attempted to break a world record for the most attendees in Zombie fancy dress costumes.
Headliners: Cancelled
Ticket Price: Cancelled
Fancy Dress Theme: Funny Fancy Dress
Standon Calling: August 3rd - 5th, August 2012: Standon, Hertfordshire - Back to top
Standon Calling has a great mix of up and coming artist and established performers. Along with a musical pedigree that has seen some of the biggest up and coming bands perform at Standon is a collection of creative writers, comedians, painters, actors, set designs and even chefs. The team behind Standon Calling is well known for their eccentric fancy dress themes and after the huge success of last years “Gods & Monsters” theme they have embarked on an even more imaginative theme for 2012, “Journey to the Ends of the Earth fancy dress.” Because this theme opens up endless possibilities we decided that the best people to give you an idea of a costume to wear are the creators themselves, who posted the following message on the official Standon Calling website, “Leave the world you know behind and become a pirate queen, a freshly spliced fantasy creature, a madman armed with only his dreams and a bi-plane, a Mayan priestess braced for Armageddon in 2012 or a balloonist taking to the skies for the first time. Join Ghengis Khan’s journey to the gates of Europe or get lost in the desert before stumbling across the Sultan and his harem in their tent.” At Escapade we’ve interpreted the theme as well and put together some suggestions for the perfect Journey to the Ends of the Earth fancy dress theme.
Headliners: Beardy Man / Death in Vegas / Fat Freddys Drop / Crazy P / Willy Mason
Ticket Prices: Weekend Ticket: £99 / Two Day Ticket £78
Fancy Dress Theme: "Journey to the Ends of the Earth" / pirate costumes / historical fancy dress
Green Man: 17th - 19th, August 2012: Glanusk Park, Brecon Beacons, Wales - Back to top
The Green Man festival has come a long way since its roots in 2003 when it was a one day event with a maximum capacity of 300. It has become one of the nation’s favourite festivals and was crowned 2010's best medium sized festival. Green man features five stages, which over three days pack some of the biggest stars in Indie and Alternative music and thousands of festival goers. The festival mixes a message about sustainable living and being environmentally conscious with a voracious love of partying. Green Festival creates a fancy dress fantasy world with professional make-up artist and costumiers. They also offer you the chance to take part in a circus class to hone your finest performing skills.
Headliners: Van Morrison / Feist / Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks / The Walkmen / Jonathan Richman
Ticket Prices: Adult Weekend Camping: £145
Fancy Dress Theme: Anything Goes / Circus fancy dress / Animal fancy dress
Beautiful Days: 17th - 19th August, 2012: Escot Park, Ottery St Mary, Devon - Back to top
Hot on the heels of their 2011 success and current holders of the crown of Best Family Festival Beautiful Days 2012 is set to be bigger and better than ever before. The Beautiful Days Festival is a family focused music festival that takes place in Devon towards the end of the summer festival season. The festival is spread across 3 days with 5 stages filled with over a hundred music acts and a smattering of comedy, theatre, family camping, lots of beer and interactive art. The Beautiful Days festival is designed to provide a great weekend out for the whole family and a fantastic medium sized festival with some great headliners. This years festival fancy dress theme is hearts, so for some inspiration, check out our fantastic selection of Queen of Hearts costumes.
Headliners: Public Image Limited / Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls / Levellers
Ticket Price: Sold Out
Fancy Dress Theme: Hearts – check out our great collection of the Queen of Hearts costumes
V Festival: 17th - 20th August, 2012: Hylands Park, Chelmsford / Weston Park, Staffs- Back to top
Another one of Richard Branson’s never ending great ideas, V festival is sponsored by Virgin and is one of the biggest commercial events of the festival season. This is not a bad thing as commercial backing of Virgin ensures that V Festival year after year it brings some of the biggest acts in the music business to the UK. Over two days in August 2012 V Festival will host the likes of The Killers, The Stone Roses, Snow Patrol, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and many, many more of the finest talent in the modern music business.
Headliners: The Killers / The Stone Roses / Snow Patrol / Noel Gallaghers Flying Birds / David Guetta / Ed Shearan
Ticket Price: Adult Weekend Camping: £197.50
Fancy Dress Theme: Fun Fancy Dress / Superhero Costumes / Anything Goes
Reading / Leeds Festivals: 24th – 26th, August 2012: Leeds / Reading - Back to top
World famous bands, top comedians and hundreds of attractions pass from the North to the South of England for the Reading and Leeds festivals. Each festival is jam packed with some of the biggest names in music and comedy. The huge festivals also provide everything that you could want with large bonfires, carnival rides and thousands of other things to do in between watching the bands. Leeds and Reading festivals are fantastic opportunities to don a fun fancy dress costume. It is also a regular tradition for festival goers at the festivals to dress up as music icons so check out our music legends fancy dress costumes for some fun ideas of what to wear.
Headliners: Foo Fighters / The Black Keys / The Cure / Paramore / Kasabian / Florence And The Machine
Ticket Price: Adult Weekend Camping: £197.50
Fancy Dress Theme: fun costumes / pop & rock star fancy dress
Festinho: Dates TBA, Hinwick House, Bedfordshire - Back to top
Festino is a music festival that makes a difference. The small boutique festival combines vibrant music, Brazilian vibes with a laid back atmosphere and all profits go to support the ABC trust who work to get homeless Brazilian children and young people off the streets. There is a fantastic range of music at Festinho from rave to folk and everything in between. Find the perfect fancy dress costume for Festinho should be easy and every year they announce a fun theme in a cryptic crossword type format. When the 2012 theme is announced we will make sure that it is updated on this page with a fantastic range of costumes to suit.
Headliners: TBA
Ticket Price: TBA
Fancy Dress Theme: TBA
Shambala Festival: 23rd - 27th, August, 2012: Market Harborough - Back to top
The Shambala festival is tagged as a creative, “non-commercial, ethical and family – friendly festival with a wild side”. There is a large focus on community involvement with this festival where acts and artist from across the world are encouraged to apply to perform. At Shambala festival you shouldn't be surprised if you find a song writing sessions next to knife throwers, cabaret dancers, story tellers and poet laureates. Shambala is an environmentally conscious festival that is 100% wind, sun and Veg oil powered. The music acts are kept secret until the opening day to add to the mystery. The festival is renowned for its outrageous fancy dress and on the Saturday every year there is a customary fancy dress parade, which everyone gets involved in. This years festival theme is taken from the Bob Dylan song, “The Times Are a Changing” and the organizers behind the Shambala festival want those attending to celebrate how far we have come as a society and where we are going. Think historical costumes with a carnival twist & we recommend outfits that are free spirited and non commercial which will keep you in line with the festivals ethos.
Headliners: Secret
Ticket Price:
Fancy Dress Theme: "The Times's They Are A Changing" / historical costumes / carnival masks / fancy dress accessories
September 2012
Jersey Live: 1st - 2nd September, 2012: Royal Jersey Showground - Back to top
Jersey live is a boutique festival set in quaint countryside surrounded by the parish of Trinity on the southern most point of the British Isles. The festival overlooks idyllic sandy beaches and a great atmosphere is punctuated by world class indie / dance musicians on the main stage, a dance arena and a Wild West tease tent. This years headliners sees some of the biggest names yet to grace the Jersey Live festival including Professor Green & Primal Scream as the end of summer event helps to round out a thoroughly enjoyable festival season. When it comes to fancy dress at Jersey Live you need to think fun fancy dress and don’t forget to check out their great Wild West tent where you can don a Cowboys & Indian themed costume and feel right at home.
Headliners: Chase & Status / Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds / Professor Green / Primal Scream / The Stranglers
Ticket Price: £205
Fancy Dress Theme: funny fancy dress / Wild West Fancy Dress
Bestival: 6th - 9th, September 2012: Robin Hill Country Park, Isle of Wight - Back to top
With more awards than most of their competitors combined Bestival is fast becoming the UK’s favourite festival. It is one of the most popular festivals in the UK and for good reason; The festival features a diverse mix of some of the biggest acts in popular and dance music from across the world, Inflatable churches where festival goers can get married, has its own radio station to keep festival goers informed and Bestival is world renown for its ability to bring thousands of revellers together in fancy dress, in fact no other festival in the world does fancy dress quite like Bestival. This years theme wildlife. And because no other festival does fancy dress quite like Bestival we’ve dedicated and entire page of ideas to Bestival 2012’s wildlife fancy dress theme.
Headliners: Stevie Wonder / New Order / The XX / Sigur Ros / Friendly Fires / Nero
Ticket Price: £180 Weekend Camping
Fancy Dress Theme: wildlife fancy dress
End of the Road Festival: 31st August - 2nd September, 2012: Larmer Tree Gardens, Dorset - Back to top
One of the UK’s smaller festivals The End of the Road sees a knowledgeable base of around 5,000 festival goers head to celebrate the end of summer. The festival features a great mix of alternative music, cinema tents, great food and a chilled atmosphere that make it a perfect way to finish the festival season off and bid a fond farewell to summer. The music is indie at it’s finest with a crowd that are in the know and willing to let go for the weekend.
Headliners: Grizzly Bear / Grandaddy / Midlake / Beach House / Tindersticks
Ticket Price: Weekend camping ticket £150
Fancy Dress Theme: fancy dress accessories
Festival Safety Tips - Back To Top
1) Don’t flash your cash, avoid wearing gold, expensive looking jewelry and watches.
2) Keep items of value on your person at all times, better yet, leave them at home all together.
3) Sunburn - Yes we all love the sun but it doesn't love us back wear sunscreen so your festival isn't ruined on your first day.
4) Don’t carry more cash than is needed as most festivals will provide cash machines.
5) Dehydration - Keep hydrated, festivals are active and if the weather is good you will become dehydrated quickly.
6) Avoid drug and alcohol abuse, while festivals provide security and mediacal care adverse reactions to drug and alcohol abuse can leave you isolated and vulnerable.
7) Heat Exhaustion - Symptoms will include dizziness, nausea and potentially vomiting. If this happens get out of the sun and into a cool area where you can consume plenty of fluids and shower or sponge yourself with water.
8) Keep expensive cameras and video recording equipment safely hidden. Avoid dangling your camera which make it easy to be snatched.
