From Thursday 20th to Sunday 23rd August we welcome back the best event of the summer. Bournemouth Air Festival is returning with a huge and impressive line up of shows and displays to look forward to!  Now, we Brits don’t need much of an excuse to hit the beach, but Bournemouth Air Festival can draw a crowd from far and wide. Since it began in 2008, the air festival has not stopped growing. Not only do the organisers give you a spectacular show year in, year out, they also help raise money for charities chosen by the armed forces. This infamous event has even been voted the best tourism event in the country and was voted gold by Visit England. Continue reading →

It’s time for America to wave their flags high and sing out their national anthem as Independence Day is near! On Saturday 4th July the USA will be alive with celebration of their most famous national holiday! Why The 4th July? The 4th July is a holiday known all across the world and is a celebration of American independence. In 1776 the second continental congress met in secret to vote on the resolution of independence to separate them from the rule of Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence was written up by Thomas Jefferson with the help of other members of the comity and signed on 4th July that year. Continue reading →

Totton goes around the world! This year’s Totton and Eling carnival is going to be a very colourful display with participants representing countries and cultures from all across the globe! Each year Totton Carnival Committee along with local volunteers put on a spectacular show for their community and this year will certainly be no different. On Saturday 20th June the people of Totton and Eling will be treated to a fantastic array of parade floats all dressed up in an “Around the World” theme. Expect some very extravagant costumes for this one! What To Expect at Totton? The parade will kick off at 4pm from Calmore industrial estate, heading down Salisbury Road and then into the Eling recreation grounds. As always the SO16 Troopers and Nerdageddon team will be joining the fun, we can’t wait to see if they will tie in the parade theme! Waiting at the end of the parade will be a variety of stalls selling food and other interesting nick nacks. Better still there will be a fun fair full of exciting rides that all the family can enjoy, it will be open from 2pm on the day so you can even go for a quick spin before the parade starts! Continue reading →

It’s time for the biggest end of year blowout on the South coast! We bring you SUBU Summer Ball 2015 and it is set to be HUGE! You've gathered your friends; you've got your tickets now all you need to do is get your costumes! Summer Ball! Having fun in fancy dress is what Summer Ball is all about so make sure you get yourself ready as soon as possible. There is no set theme for Summer Ball fancy dress so you can literally be whoever and whatever you choose! The possibilities are endless and there is no limit on how creative you can be. As you can imagine, we've seen some really great Summer Ball costumes over the years and are proud to say that we've contributed to a lot of what you see while you’re partying it up! We thought it was only fair to give you some ideas and pointers to help you choose your fancy dress for this year’s SUBU bash. Continue reading →

On the 23rd May Eurovision will be back! This year’s hosts, Austria have a big task ahead to beat last year’s glittering show in Denmark which saw their star Conchita Wurst win! A Little Eurovision History This will be the 60th anniversary of the Eurovision Song Contest which first aired on 24th May 1956. Since then it has remained a strong TV favourite all across Europe and even gets views worldwide in places like Hong Kong, Australia and the US. The contest has been broadcast every year without fail since it began, making it one of the longest running TV shows in the world! An impressive achievement for a show that began before satellite television existed. To mark the 60th anniversary of Eurovision, this year Australia has been invited to take part in the song contest as a special edition to the celebrations. Eurovision has been broadcast in Australia for over 30 years and seeing as Austria’s theme is “Building Bridges” it seemed only right to invite our good friends from overseas! Continue reading →

Thursday 23rd April marks the day of England’s Patron Saint, St George, the dragon slayer. It is a day when English people across the globe join together and celebrate their heritage. Although it is no longer a national holiday, the English still celebrate it with pride by wearing a rose, which is our national symbol and hoisting the St George...

We all feel that ache in our legs at the end of a long night out. Too much dancing, too much walking and maybe a little too much drinking... Don’t you just wish you had someone there to take away the burden? Now you can, just say “Carry Me!” Here at Hollywood we have the most hilarious new range of...

Top of the morning to you all! We hope you’ll be joining us to raise a pint of Guinness to St Patrick on Tuesday 17th March. Who is St Patrick? St Patrick is one of Ireland’s patron saints, best known for having converted thousands of Irish Pagans over to Christianity. It is believed that at the age of 16 he...

Here in the UK our year is already off to a flying start, but for the Chinese, their New Year is just about to begin! Chinese New Year is the biggest of all Chinese festivals and a public holiday in many parts of the world where there are Chinese communities. Celebrations often last for 15 days, but traditionally they would begin on the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month and end on the 15th of the first lunar month. Modern society makes it much harder to hold such long festivities, but both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are always alive with celebrations. Thursday 19th February marks the start of the year of the goat on the Chinese lunar calendar; it may also be viewed as the year of the ram or sheep due to different readings of the Zodiac animals. While China adopted the Georgian calendar in 1911, traditions have always remained. After switching calendars “New Year” did not seem a fitting name for the celebration so it became known as Spring Festival. Continue reading →

On the 21st January one of the greatest musicals of all time, The Sound of Music returns in an all new magnificent production to The Mayflower Southampton. The Performance Playing the role of Maria von Trapp is Danielle Hope, who captured the hearts of the country when she won BBC Television’s Over the Rainbow and made her professional debut as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz at the London Palladium. Danielle has since played Eponine in Les Misérables in London’s West End and Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Based on Baroness Maria von Trapp’s 1949 autobiography, this production tells the story of the Von Trapp family’s flight across the mountains and works its magic for all ages. The unforgettable score features some of the most memorable songs ever performed on the musical stage, including Edelweiss, My Favorite Things, Do-Re-Mi, Climb Ev’ry Mountain, and of course, the title song The Sound of Music. Continue reading →

What is St Andrew's Day? On November the 30th the world celebrates St Andrew's Day, Scotland's national holiday day. There will be amazing parties everywhere, especially in Scotland. St Andrew's day is a feast day of St Andrew. In 2006, the Scottish Parliament designated St Andrew's Day as an official bank holiday. It is also a national holiday in Romania. Saint...

NEW IN AND EXCLUSIVE! Leg Avenue has arrived with new and wonderful costumes andaccessories, perfect for any occasion! Here at Hollywood we have new lines of Leg Avenue exclusively available in our Bournemouth branches so if you want a costume that will be high quality and gorgeously unique, look no further. For any ladies that want to dress to impress...

Air Festival From the 28th-31st August the seafront will be alive with the excitement of the Bournemouth Air Festival, one of the biggest local events of the year with people coming from far and wide to see the best aircraft displays our country has to offer. As always the infamous Red Arrows will be gracing us with stunning displays and...

  Throw your very own Summer/Hawaiian themed party! With the summer well and truly here, why not make the most of this gloriously sunny weather and get your party on?! Seeing as Party is literally our middle name we’d like to think we know a thing or two about how to put one together. So here we have a few...

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 50th Birthday In 1964 one of the greatest children’s stories ever told was released in book form and it is still going strong to this very day, I am, of course, talking about Roald Dahl’s “Charlie and the Chocolate factory” It’s a true classic that has been seen, heard and read by every generation since...

Trooping the Colour 2014 Calling out all patriotic Brits or any proud-to-be British person, trooping the colour is upon us! The Queen's Birthday parade will be held on 14th June 2014 on Horse Guards Parade. This is a special and honoured tradition held every year to honour the current King or Queens' birthday, their Unofficial Birthday, mind you. Trooping the...

Summer Ball 2014 With tickets for this year’s Bournemouth Summer Ball all sold out there is only one thing left to do… COME TO HOLLYWOOD! Whether you’re a fresher or a seasoned summer ball goer you will know that it is the biggest fancy dress event on the student calendar which makes it all about the costumes. Just a glimpse...

Thursday 8th May is a date for everyone’s diary because The Real Brothers are back! For those of you aren't quite sure on who these delights are they host the biggest and best parties around! Celebrate and help fund-raise with this brilliant Real Brothers RALSA Fund raiser! Here at Hollywood we love hearing these guys are back in Bournemouth, filling Cameo with students, fun and the best music around. Continue reading →

We have an exciting new sale rail at our Castle Lane Store! This fantastic 'Vintage Hire Costumes Sale Rail' is located on our bottom floor at our Castle Lane Branch, on Castle Lane West. This genius new rail is not only a BARGAIN but a brilliant way to get your hands on an authentic/ vintage fancy dress costume! These fabulous and...

Do you have your Geek Costume for the Student Traffic Geek Chick night at the old fire station (Bournemouth) on 10th April (Tomorrow) yet?! Completely Nerd out in style with our fantastic Geek and School day accessories and costumes! This fantastic night is for students and one of the most memorable nights of the year! https://www.facebook.com/events/1476715729208513/ So grab a friend...