Easy Halloween Costumes: 7 simple fancy dress ideas for Halloween 2026 - including Claudia Winkleman
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From Traitors puppetmaster Claudia Winkleman to Mr Worldwide, here are 7 easy Halloween costume ideas for 2026.
From DIY masterpieces to store bought outfits, there is always a mixed bag of costumes whenever Halloween rolls around.
From scary, horror-inspired looks to those which are decidedly less frightening, such as animals or pop culture references, there are so many excellent ideas to choose from.
If you’re looking for something nice and easy to pull together for Halloween this year, here are 7 easy costume ideas - for both adults and children.
Claudia Winkleman
The final episode of The Celebrity Traitors series two is out on Friday, October 30, which makes dressing up as Claudia Winkleman the perfect 2026 Halloween costume.
Suitable for both adults and children, it is also a relatively easy outfit to pull together. Dark clothing, chunky boots, heavy eyeliner and perhaps a dramatic cloak, will help get you most of the way there.
Key to the look is Winkleman’s signature fringe, which could be achieved with some fancy styling or by acquiring a black wig. Some fingerless gloves wouldn’t go amiss either.
If you have a favourite outfit of hers from the Traitors, you could always base your costume on that too.
Fancy adding an extra layer of drama? Buy the officially licensed Traitors cloak or get your own Claudia-inspired wig. There are even kids’ sized cloaks available.
Wednesday Addams
Another great easy Halloween costume which only requires dark clothes and a signature hairdo is Wednesday Addams. Suitable for children and adults, Wednesday is always a popular choice, especially since the release of Jenna Ortega’s Netflix series.
There are a number of ways to dress up as the notoriously gloomy character depending on which iteration you are basing your look on, from the original series or the 90s version to more recent adaptations such as the animated films or Netflix’s young adult show. You can choose from simple dresses, a school uniform or even one of the many outfits worn by Ortega’s character.
If you don’t want to piece together an outfit with clothes you already have on hand, there are plenty of officially licensed costumes out there.
But all you really need to become Wednesday Addams is a dark dress, preferably with a white collar, and black braided hair. Other bonus items include a disembodied hand to play Thing.
There are plenty of suitably gothic Wednesday-inspired wigs out there for adults and children.
Pitbull
If you’re after a funny, but still easy, Halloween costume then why not dress up as Pitbull? It is an outfit which anyone can pull off, regardless of age or gender.
All you need to turn into Mr Worldwide is to slap on a bald cap with a white shirt, black trousers and some aviators if you have them. If you’re looking to nail the star’s signature look, they you can always take some eyeliner and draw yourself a goatee and add a blazer and tie to your ensemble.
Otherwise, it’s a relatively simple look to pull together and could make a great group costume.
If you aren’t already bald, there’s no need to shave your head. You can find bald caps here, and in case you have long hair, wig caps.
Vampires
While there are plenty of specific fictional vampires to take inspiration from, keeping things generic can make for a really easy Halloween costume.
If you can scrounge up some red lipstick and pair it with a vaguely gothic outfit you have a cheap, simple and low-effort vampire costume for anyone - young or old.
For those pulling together an outfit for a child, at this time of year most supermarkets will have fake vampire teeth in stock, as well as fake blood and cloaks. These additions are an easy way to elevate what can be simply a stripped back school uniform, or dark trousers and a t-shirt.
You can also jazz up this simple costume with some face paint, which can be used to create a widow’s peak, a bat shape, dark under eyes or as a fake blood substitute.
If you wouldn’t mind buying a full vampire costume for your wee one (or yourself) supermarkets such as Tesco have options for girls and boys.
Witches
As for witches, like vampires, this is a costume which can be anything. Generic witches can have long pointy hats and wands, with regular clothing. There are also spooky witch costumes available to purchase, as well as accessories.
For those after a specific type of spellcaster, such as wizards like Harry Potter, there are easy ways to achieve this especially if you have clothes which resemble a school uniform. No glasses? If you have some eyeliner, you can fake it without leaving the house.
In addition, there are hundreds of guides to help you make your own hat at home or you can take inspiration from film such as Practical Magic which are essentially just regular clothes.
Much like vampires, you should be able to find a hat in supermarkets at the moment too. If not there are plenty online.
Shaun of the Dead
Anyone looking for an Halloween costume which is still easy to achieve but has a slightly more specific origin should look no further than Shaun of the Dead.
Edgar Wright’s critically acclaimed horror comedy stars Simon Pegg as Shaun and Nick Frost as Ed, with the cast also including Lucy David, Bill Nighy and more. Pegg plays the titular character, a downtrodden salesman, who finds himself having to deal with a zombie apocalypse in the middle of London.
To become Shaun, all you need is a white shirt - one you don’t mind being ruined - black trousers, a red tie and fake blood. From there, choose which part of the film you’re interested in recreating.
Your tie can either be around your neck or used as a bandana, with fake blood smeared over your shirt. No fake blood? Any red substance such as lipstick could do the same job. A cricket bat would be a nice extra, but is best left at home if you’re going out.
This costume may be one for younger children to give a miss, though it is worth noting that Frost and Pegg both reprised their roles for an animated cameo in Phineas and Ferb in 2014.
Ready to have a nice cold pint as Shaun? There are costume kits with inflatable cricket bats online, or you can source yourself a nice red tie.
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Traffic Cone
Finally, if you don’t mind spending money, the easiest possible Halloween costume for 2026 is a traffic cone.
During the World Cup, the Tartan Army were spreading Scottish traditions with the rest of the world, including our many alternate uses for the humble traffic cone.
The easiest way to achieve this Halloween costume is to buy either a traffic cone hat or outfit online. If you’re attempting to figure out a last minute Halloween costume, there is always the option to DIY your own hat (preferably not a real traffic cone).
As we’ve already mentioned, there are lots of guides on how to make your own witches hats at home. You can take the same principles and apply them to orange coloured materials to DIY a traffic cone hat.
If you’ve left yourself enough delivery time, you can treat yourself to a full size traffic cone costume or settle for a soft traffic cone hat instead.
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