Audrey Hepburn’s turn as the diamond-adorned, Givenchy-clad eternally glamorous Holly Golightly is arguably one of (if not, the most) iconic roles in cinema history. The film is filled with brilliant moments that make it, in its entirety, a stone cold classic. But the part of the film that we’re hyper fixated on? The house party. Hepburn is dressed in a black Givenchy gown and covered in more diamonds than you could count. Her hair is fixed in the kind of glamorous updo that is simply impossible to recreate. Glamorous guest after glamorous guest arrive in suits and ties and silk and fur ensembles that would have given Zsa Zsa Gabor a run for her money, as they fill up her barely finished, lowly New York City apartment. Old school jazz music plays out over the scene and everything about it is so glamorous. One thing is for sure: Holly Golightly was the original It girl, and this film will never get old.

There’s a reason the Roaring Twenties and The Great Gatsby remain on our moodboards a century later. Because that period put the icon in iconic. A fever dream of decadence, a surplus of glamour, and parties that were thrown with complete and utter abandon. Which is exactly what the massive house party depicted in Baz Luhrmann’s 2013 adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel. Best described by Tobey Maguire, aka Nick Caraway, as a “kaleidoscopic carnival,” the term ‘party’ doesn’t really cut it. Cue women swinging from the ceiling, an abundance of girls in glittering flapper dresses, guests spilling into the pool and vintage racing cars speeding up to the mansion. The fact that Gatsby threw all these parties in the hopes that Daisy would one day attend? Kind of a bummer. So, we’ll take the party at face value and run with it. After all, A little party never killed nobody.

Arguably the most notably entry into the cultural zeitgeist in recent years, we’ve fallen hard for Euphoria for so many reasons. A raw, gritty, an often bleak portrayal of youth, the show is packed with a plethora of iconic part moments. And at the top of that list is the New Year’s Eve party that opens the show’s second season. Starting with ‘Hypnotize’ by Biggie Smalls blaring over the speakers, a spotlight spins around the party, illuminating the various iconic members of the Euphoria cast (read: Zendaya, Hunter Schafer and Alexa Demi). There’s a frenzy of people flying past, cutting to clips of Maddy (Alexa Demi) speeding through the halls in a cut-out dress and gladiator sandals, partygoers in metallic trousers sitting on top of the roof and, of course, there’s that scene with Sydney Sweeney in the bathtub. Basically, it's a fever dream of the abandon of youth, Y2K fits and complete and utter debauchery. If you’ve not already seen it, enjoy.

“In the regular world, Halloween is where children dress up and beg for candy” …. We’re willing to bet you can finish the rest of that quote. Few films occupy the space in the zeitgeist that Mean Girls does. And the beyond-iconic Halloween party is a big reason why. There’s Lindsay Lohan beyond mis-reading the room with her scary costume, Amanda Seyfried’s ‘I’m A Mouse, Duh,’ moment and Regina George being well, Regina George. Extra credit goes to the pumping bass, red cups, high school Halloween decorations and doses of teen drama. Let’s just say, it’s iconic for a reason.

California, here we come. Quintessential teen drama The O.C. is packed with iconic moments, from the outfits and the soundtrack to the unbelievable plot lines. But one that sticks out? Is the house, or rather hotel, party at the end of season one. Titled The Countdown, the episode follows Marissa (Mischa Barton), Ryan (Ben McKenzie), Summer (Rachel Bilson) and Seth (Adam Brody) on New Year’s Eve. The party is in the penthouse of a hotel (very relatable for a bunch of sixteen-year-olds), Marissa dons a black cut-out slip dress, which honestly wouldn’t be out of place in 2023, and the bit that really takes the cake? Ryan running through the hotel as ‘Dice’ by Finley Quaye plays over the speaker to kiss Marissa just in time for it to hit midnight. Corny? Yes. Classic? Absolutely. As far as we’re concerned, it’s a ten out of ten.

Want to feel nostalgic? Stick on a John Hughes flick. Specifically, Sixteen Candles. Molly Ringwald’s memorable turn as Sam Barker has gone down in the cultural cannon for obvious reasons. But the film’s house party? That’s next level. From the girl having half of her (very ‘80s) blonde hair chopped off to free her from a door she’s trapped in, to a set of weights falling, smashing through two floors and revealing a basement filled with popping bottles of champagne, it’s the epitome of teen carnage. Which it turns out, is the perfect recipe for an on-screen party scene.

The party begins at the Capulet mansion… Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of the little-known Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet features arguably one of the most iconic house party scenes in cinema history. Well, if you can call it a house. The scene opens on the insanely luxurious Capulet (i.e., the family of Juliet) mansion with a highly dubbed remix of Donna Summer’s I Feel Love. Queue brilliantly timed subtitles, oh-so-camp costumes, trippy visual effects and Young Hearts, Run Free blasting through the party. Oh, and a young Leonardo DiCaprio in a suit of armour. Oh, wherefore art thou iconic party?

Raucous, messy, delirious: Skins is the blueprint. You just need to hear the jangling sound of the theme tune to be transported straight back to the hey-day of indie sleaze. And the grimy, gritty, grungy house party in the pilot episode? It follows the team of teenage reprobates as they turn up at the ‘posh girl’s house party’. The early-aughts outfits are so bad it’s painful (read: Michelle’s diagonally striped black and white dress, Abigail’s fruit-printed halter top and the less-than-hygienic outfits donned by the male members of the cast and a particularly unfortunate denim mini skirt and leggings combo), and it’s packed with details that take you straight back to being a teenager; like the host insisting everyone take their shoes off. Not to mention the teenage DJ in a pink pop-collared shirt who opens his set by saying “okay, yeah, this is MC. Hugo on the decks and we’re going to have a tremendous time. So, let’s shizzle on this dizzle and party down.” Cringe aside, the chaos that ensues puts this firmly in the house party hall of fame.

The most talked about film of the moment, Saltburn has captured the attention of the public for a few reasons, many of which we won’t talk about here. What we will talk about, however, is that house party. Or palace party might be more accurate. Set to the theme of A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Shakespeare and house parties have a surprising amount in common) the party unfurls over the sprawling mansion that is Saltburn. Opulent, luxurious, delirious, the party features a huge hedge maze, classic Y2K bangers and so many fur coats. Honestly, the scene is worth a mention just on account of Jacob Elordi’s angel wings. It’s a murder on the dancefloor…