Costume and Play aims to voice the UK’s individual movement of Costuming providing beautifully delivered content alongside features and events. What is cosplay?
Cosplay is derived from the terms ‘Costume and Play’. It consists of individuals effectively ‘dressing up’ as their favourite characters, but it is the individual components of ‘cosplay’ that make it so unique. The ‘Costume’ element when crafted leads into several different skill-sets such as prop making and sewing. The ‘Play’ or ‘Performance’ element with either a made or purchased costume leads
to spectacular shows such as a cosplay masquerade. What does Costume and Play do? With such a vibrant community and so many individual elements making up the art form that is ‘cosplay’ navigating around this can be tricky, Costume and Play provides services to help companies understand the multiple benefits of cosplay such as its incredible audience engagement, while rooting itself firmly in the community to help grow it. How do I get involved? Cosplay encourages you to dress and be a character you love – be it from Anime, Gaming, TV, Film, it doesn’t matter if its brought or handmade, as long as its a fandom you love. If your a community member you can follow and share our community section, social media channels and of course attend the events we’ll be present at! If you're a company, you can take a look at our services section and contact us directly to learn how we can help you.
23/08/2025
Worcester Comic Con
Hi, I'm Laura! I've been cosplaying for 10+ years and have almost 30 handmade costumes in my collection. I make all my cosplays from scratch and am passionate about learning new skills; I could talk about crafting techniques for hours! I have a few awards under my belt, including a craftsmanship honour at Fantasy Forest, second place at Insomnia’s i72’s community masquerade, and more recently, I won first place in Hyper Japan ‘25 cosplay masquerade. I'm looking forward to meeting you all and chatting about cosplay!
Hi! I’m Ash aka extinctcosplays, a 22yr old cosplayer who has been cosplaying for 2 and a half years. I’ve always had an interest in the world of cosplay as my sister, when we were younger, would sit and craft new things at late hours of the night for fun! My first comicon experience was the small little con of Cosexpo where i decided that I wanted to involve myself in the cosplay community to pick up new skills and engage with lovely and interesting people. I particularly enjoy helping and making wigs for not just myself but other people too. I’ve taken a few commissions to challenge myself with intricate stylings where I’ve had to create a wig nearly from scratch so that I can broaden my wig making skills and improve my craft with time and experience!
Cosplayer:
Photography Credit:
Worcester Comic Con
Bolt Events
21/08/2025
Worcester Comic Con ANNOUNCEMENT!
Hello everyone! My name’s Kalum, a level 28 cosplayer from central UK. My cosplay journey began back in 2016 at my first large convention where me and a friend cosplayed from MiB. It was a simple, yet effective cosplay that put us on the map, and made me realise that I had a real passion for the scene. Since then I have invested more into cosplaying and even intertwined other hobbies such as martial arts to bring true to life sword combat in character I which I have displayed at some shows and fairs. Recently I have also tapped into my creative side, hand crafting props for cosplay and making some costumes from scratch allowing me to bring some more of my characters to life and helping others elevate their cosplays with commissions I have completed for them!
Worcester Comic Con – Sun 31st August 2025
Costume and Play are BACK with exciting news!
We’re partnering with the amazing Bolt Events team at Worcester Comic Con!
We’re beyond excited to announce that Bolt Events Worcester Comic Con is once again bringing the cosplay magic to life! This is your chance to celebrate everything that makes you and your cosplay amazing.
Mini Masquerade – Tailored for our brilliant younger cosplayers aged 13 and under, this event welcomes families and is a fantastic way to step into the world of cosplay. Whether it’s your very first time or you’re already a mini superhero!
Signup to the event in advance - Mini Masquerade: https://www.costumeandplay.co.uk/portfolio/worcester-comic-con-mini-masquerade/
Cosplay Community Masquerade – Open to all experience levels aged 13+, this vibrant and inclusive masquerade is a celebration of everything that makes cosplay special—community, creativity, and your favourite characters. No matter your experience level, the Cosplay Community Masquerade is your chance to celebrate everything cosplay.
Signup to the event in advance - Cosplay Community Masquerade: https://www.costumeandplay.co.uk/portfolio/worcester-comic-con-cosplay-masquerade/
Are you ready for ? Don't forget there is still time to sign up for the masquerade and buy tickets! Link in bio
05/07/2025
Who says masquerades have to be boring? A while ago we ran a gaming based masquerade IN MINECRAFT! It was great fun seeing everyone dress up for the special occasion. If you are coming to to game or to cosplay (or both!) we will be here for you!
02/07/2025
Welcome to your brand new comprehensive guide for masquerade audio - thanks to our house cat *cough technical wizard snow!
"So you’ve built your Cosplay, chosen the Masquerade you want to enter, planned your stage skit and everything is looking amazing. Then you spot a request on the entry form for an MP3 file or YouTube link. What are you supposed to do with that?
Creating an audio track, like any creative process, can be done in a variety of ways."
601st Cosplay Group! We are a passionate team that specialise on fantasy and Warhammer 40k cosplay. Our props and weapons are primarily hand crafted from foam. Our members include mages, fighters, rangers, and even the occasional angelic warrior. We believe that cosplay is for everyone, no matter their background, body type, or gender identity. Our main goal is to encourage personal expression and to enjoy this wonderful hobby together
Coraxion, also known as Corax, has been cosplaying since 2019. His second costume and first attempt at a full build was a full-scale suit of Warhammer 40k Space Marine armour.
After really catching the cosplay bug in 2023, he has been to many conventions in the UK and Europe, performing on stage and competing in cosplay competitions. Always aiming to improve, he has developed skills in foamwork, sewing, 3d printing, and modeling while also judging competitions at several events.
Featuring costumes from 40k to Anime, he is always open to talk about cosplay in general and especially about engineering and techniques behind builds.
18/06/2025
Guest Announcement: Hyper Japan
Guest introduction
Hi I'm Jazzichan, A UK cosplayer and seamstress with 15 years of cosplay experience! I’ve been attending conventions since 2010 and have been competing competitively in cosplay qualifiers since 2016, recently participating as the 2024 UK representative for the World Cosplay Summit in in Japan alongside my teammate and sister Hwanni. I’ve also previously been a finalist at Eurocosplay in London, the International Cosplay League in Madrid and the Epic Cosplay Gathering and France!
I have a first-class honours degree in historical dress and work as a seamstress back at home, occasionally working on local theatrical shows from time to time. I take great interest in learning new skills and experimenting with different techniques when making costumes. My goal is to inspire others to keep following their passions and continue developing their skills in the world of cosplay and crafting!
When I'm not sewing, I’m usually playing games, especially Fromsoftware games such as Dark Souls, Bloodborne and Elden Ring! A large majority of my cosplay wardrobe is filled with characters from those games!
Looking forward to meeting you all at Hyper Japan 2025!
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These movements, values and ideology have been wrapped up and held mostly in secret, but they burn within the hearts of all the Cosplayers. Publishing the slogan ‘The Home of Cosplay’ several months ago to aid in the launch of a convention was one of the boldest moves I’ve ever made, yet it harmonised with all the people I’ve been lucky enough to work closely with over the past few years.
I open up to you now and step forward, presenting you with the values I carry in regards to Cosplay, you’ll learn about the changes within the Masquerade formatting that have now spread across the UK. How the ‘Cosplay star’ concept was formed, the wider picture of ‘Careers from Cosplay’ I started a year ago and most importantly who the Costumers are, the values they carry and Britain’s individual voice on the Cosplay movement as part of the global phenomenon.
Costuming and Play serves a few purposes;
To stand for each individual Cosplayer within the community and to voice the UK’s individual movement of Costuming. To harness the amazing skill set built into each cosplayer and present them with further opportunities and goals within the Costuming and theatrical profession. To reveal the heart of Cosplay itself and present a full and honest account of the scene. We’ll cover tutorials, masquerades, Cosplayers themselves and take a look into the professional world of Costumes and Drama. Most importantly this goal and mission will be achieved together as a community wanting and willing to strive for more, for better and for Cosplay to conclude to a recognised artistic form. My thank you’s span out to all those that have and still do support me through my goal to create a scene for everyone. It’s your voices that shape what the scene does, I’m just here to make sure that is heard.
