Left World Book Day preparations until the last minute? Nicola Warren shares some easy to put together costumes for Thursday.

It’s that time of year again, when mums and dads across the county wave their children off to school or nursery dressed as book characters for World Book Day.

I’m sure there are many parents out there who have been planning for the event, which takes place this Thursday, for weeks, meticulously constructing the perfect outfit.

But for those of you like me, who get round to things at the last minute, you might be starting to panic.

Fear not! Here are some costume ideas you can put together in minutes with items you already have.

Bewitching outfits

If you bought or made Halloween costumes last year, you may already have an outfit for World Book Day.

Got a skeleton outfit? Then hey presto your cherub can be the little skeleton from the beloved book Funnybones by Janet and Allan Ahlberg.

Or they can dress as Meg from Meg and Mog, by Helen Nicoll and Jan Pienkowski, with a witch’s dress and hat. (Optional extras: Cauldron, broomstick and cat).

Splendiferous fun

Take a look at the Quentin Blake illustrations in Roald Dahl’s books and you’ll find plenty of inspiration.

Little Matilda just needs to wear a blue dress and carry a stack of books under their arm, for example.

Print out a golden ticket and your little one can be Charlie Bucket from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, dressed in blue trousers, white t-shirt and beige jacket.

Quentin Blake also illustrates David Walliams’ books, which feature many characters that are easy to find costumes for too.

There’s Dennis/Denise from The Boy in the Dress for example. All your child needs to do is wear a dress and hold a football.

Be spec-tacular

If your little one wears glasses and wants to make a feature of them as part of their outfit, dress them up as JK Rowling’s Harry Potter. They can wear their school uniform – just add a cape and wand and a lightning shaped scar on their forehead drawn on with a bit of makeup.

A red and white stripy jumper (or Christmas pyjama top!) can transform them into Where’s Wally, or his friend Wilma, from the books created by Martin Handford, meanwhile.

Animal magic

If you have any animal costumes, you may also have a World Book Day outfit.

The Tiger Who Came to Tea, for instance, which features in the book of the same name by Judith Kerr.

Or, if you have a toy Mog, your little one could dress as one of the Thomas children from the Mog stories by Kerr.

Put them in a pair of bunny ears, pack them off with a toy bunny, and, using a bit of poetic licence, they could be Big Nutbrown Hare and Little Nutbrown Hare from Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram.

Toy story

Make the most of your little one’s toys to bring their costumes to life.

Fans of Handa’s Surprise, by Eileen Browne, can wear a pink dress and carry a basket of toy fruit to be Handa, for instance.

Or dress them in one of your old nighties or shirts – the tattier the better – and a crown from a Christmas cracker, and give them some toy people and animals to carry, as George, the main character from The Smartest Giant in Town by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler.

Who are your children dressing up as this World Book Day? Send your pictures to us, including details of where you’re from, and we may share your photo in one of our publications.