When you are shopping for fancy dress outfits you will soon realise that there is a huge selection available to you. Out of the most popular products at the moment, 70s costumes are probably the latest addition. Over the past couple of years there has been a huge amount of renewed interest in this decade. A lot of us are old enough to remember it with great clarity and the thought of its fashions, which a lot of us actually wore, make us cringe.

Although it is not just the 70s costumes that pop stars wore that are generating people's attention, it is also the outfits that were worn be people in children's television programmes. Captain Pugwash, Hong Kong Phooey and Bagpuss are all available as fancy dress outfits. Even the characters from Rainbow can be found in some outlets. If you are invited to a 70s costumes fancy dress evening, then don't be at all surprised if you bump into Bungle, Zippy or George. Other famous children's characters that are on offer include the dramatis personae from Battlestar Galactica and that often forgotten children's classic, Rentaghost.

If you have a look at children's programmes from that period on the internet, then you will see what other 70s costumes can be bought or hired for parties. Some other firm favourites with fancy dress customers are Monkey, Barbapapa, Paddington and The Clangers. Of course, there were some shows from the time that are a whole universe of characters in themselves. One of these is Sesame Street. If you want an outfit that people are going to recognise immediately, then you can't go far wrong by choosing one from this programme. Sesame Street was enormously popular with both children and adults alike; there are very few people who would fail to recognise Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Bert, Ernie, Gonzo or The Count.

70s costumes that you may see in retailers are also sure to include characters from some of the big movies at the time. The most famous children's film was undoubtedly Star Wars. The selection of different outfits that are available from that one movie is absolutely immense. It is still one of the most popular films ever made and thousands of people still love to dress up as Darth Vader, C3PO, Chewbacca or Luke Skywalker. Another great film from the period was Superman. It is very common to see at least one 'man of steel' at a fancy dress party.

If you have been invited to a party and you need to get yourself an outfit to wear, then 70s costumes are great fun. The selection to choose from really is very varied because it covers so many different areas.

The 1970s might have had some pretty awful clothes, accessories and shoes, but it was a lot of fun. It was a time of many different ideas and styles. People who grew up in that decade look back on its television, films, games and toys with a very great fondness.