The Oscars 2009: Oscar Fashion Disasters

The Academy Awards - an excuse for any self-respecting celeb to get tarted up to the nines and parade their zany designer frock finery in front of the world's gawping media.

But for every red carpet sensation, there's also a dress disaster. Here's our top five worst outfits in history starting with Cher's 1989 award-winning monstrosity. Rumour has it the star specifically asked her designer chum to create her an outfit that "showed off her assets". Two words, Cher, mutton and lamb.

The 'All By Myself' warbler must have got dressed in the dark, when she turned up at the Oscars in a Dior white tuxedo with matching fedora and bling diamond shades.

Instead of the sexy starlet look she was hoping for, Ms Dion just looked plain daft. Well, at least it worked in Vegas.

Up for her Best Supporting Actress role in Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous, the star made a massive faux pas with this Chloe number.

The fringed dress was truly horrid and, what with a perm that wouldn't look out of place on your Auntie Jean, the whole effect was disastrous. Poor Kate knew for next time.

A swan tutu with a matching egg on a cord?  Well, what else would quirky Icelandic popstrel Bjork wear to her first ever Hollywood Academy Awards?
Her dubious dress sense even prompted host Steve Martin to comment: "I wanted to wear my swan tonight. But to me, they're so 'last year'". Ouch.

She might have lost out to Charlize Theron for Best Actress at the 76th Academy Awards, but Diane Keaton did manage to top all the 'worst dressed' lists that year.

Sartorial criminal Di had a red-carpet emergency and was forced to borrow her hubby's outfit instead. What a shocker to end the glitzy gallery on.

With her trademark fuchsia hair, British fashion designer Zandra Rhodes arrived on the red carpet in a hideous lime green silky number, plus a rather large bangle to boot.

Thankfully, Zandra's not exactly known for her thesping skills so the red carpet has managed to dodge repeated fashion atrocities from her over the years.

Gwynnie's Oscar dress, designed by flamboyant Brit Alexander McQueen, was greeted with a roar of disapproval when she launched it on the poor paparazzi seven years ago.

Although she herself  thought the dress was beautiful, a good under-wired bra may have improved the look and reduced the influx of calls from the adult industry back in LA!

Although this over the top frilly white dress showed Geena's long legs off well, the Thelma and Louise star still looked ridiculous and not at all sexy.

Geena, and her fiery co-star Susan Sarandon, lost out in the Best Actress race to Jodie Foster the year before. But she didn't seem to mind as T and L director Ridley Scott tries his best to distance himself from her frock woe.

Stunning Charlize arrived at the 78th Academy Awards in a dark satin dress with a huge bow stuck on her shoulder.

Without the pointless bow, the Christian Dior dress could have been a winner at the event. She obviously got carried away with her Best Actress golden guy for Monster three years before.