Try

http://www.ukclimbing.com/

 There are lots of posts in the forum about gear for beginner's

In terms of climbing shoes I would go for something that is designed for beginners as it will be much more comfortable. There are some very technical climbing shoes on the market that are very uncomfortable to wear and are totally unnecessary for anyone other than a climber attempting fairly advanced technical routes. As with all footwear you need to buy shoes that are comfortable for you. I like evolvs but it is very individual and some people will find that they just don't suit their feet. Go to a reputable shop and try on as many pairs as you can. Don't let them sell you high end technical shoes that will cripple you. Comfort is really important when you're starting out. Some people will tell you that climbing shoes should be very tight on your feet and advocate things like buying two sizes smaller than your normal shoes. Again, bear in mind that you need comfort. Climbing shoes should be close fitting but they shouldn't be so tight that they crush or bend your toes or make you hobble and wince.

In terms of a harness, it depends a lot on the type of climbing that you are planning to do. And when you're very much a beginner it can be a bit hard to know that. Again, try lots on (some shops have an attachment hanging from the ceiling that you can use to sit around in the harness to see how comfortable it is) and try and aim for comfort. Harnesses vary in many ways but two ways in which they vary in particular are how adjustable they are and how many gear loops they have. Personally, I would always go for a very adjustable harness as you don't know what you might end up doing with it and if you have a very adjustable one you've got the option of making it fit over lots of clothes or relatively few. I also would advise getting one with plenty of gear loops on it. You may not think you need a lot of gear loops just now but if you find that you start leading routes within the lifetime of your first harness (which could be about 5 years depending upon how much you use it and other factors) then you will possibly need more gear loops. Also, if you ended up doing long multi-pitch routes and want to attach more stuff to your harness (camera, drink bottle, guidebook case, trainers for walking off the route, windproof jacket or whatever) you would be glad of the extra gear loops. Spare ones that don't get used cause you no bother but not having enough when you need them can be a pain in the a*se. There have been a few threads on here recently about harnesses so if you search you may be able to find those threads and have a read.

Firstly you need to decide if indoors or outdoors climbing.

If indoors you will only need harness, shoes, chalk bag, karabiner and belay device.

If outdoors, all the above and also helmet and gear removal tool.

Basically everything needs to fit comfortably and there are too many designs to give an opinion on and prices range by loads.  My best advice is to go to a climbing shop and try loads on to see how it feels.  It may even be that your local climbing wall hires equipment for sessions and this would be a good way to try some in practice.

You said you've been with a friend, go round some climbing shops with them to look at also.

Have a look here,

www.urbanrock.com