6 Halloween events to scare yourself silly at
Step into a horror movie at the London Bridge Experience
The London Bridge Experience is spooky enough all year round – this interactive tour takes you underground into the capital’s historical vaults, with live characters like Jack the Ripper bringing the chills. At the end of the tour you can choose to go even further underground to test your nerve against zombies, spiders and butchers in the scare maze in the lower vaults. And for Halloween there’s also a special evening scare show, Dreadflix at the London Bridge Experience, running on certain dates until 2 November. If facing the scariest horror characters from the 80s and 90s sounds like your idea of fun, get those tickets booked ASAP.
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Tiptoe around GlasGLOW at Glasgow’s Botanic Gardens
Glasgow’s Botanic Gardens take on a whole new look after-dark this autumn, as GlasGLOW comes back to the Scottish city for another year until 10 November. This interactive light and sound trail clocks up 10 spooky realms – including Clownland, which isn’t for the faint-hearted – and takes about an hour to walk around. Plus, there’s a gourmet street food village serving up things like wood-fired pizzas, fresh churros and loaded fries along the way. Looking for something to do afterwards on Halloween itself? Try the Halloween Secret Rave at the University of Glasgow – a 10-minute walk from the Botanic Gardens.
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Catch a scary movie in a cave in Bristol
Bristol Film Festival hosts events all year round, but there are some extra-special movie screenings for Halloween from 23-31 October in some very cool venues around the city. Watch movies like The Descent, Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Children Of The Corn in the eerie setting of Redcliffe Caves. Or sit down to sci-fi classics like Event Horizon in the Planetarium at We The Curious – after a tour of the Solar System, of course. The wine cellar at Averys Wine Merchants is another venue on the list, as it Mount Without – a former church where you’ll watch a movie in a Grade-II listed nave complete with atmospheric stained-glass windows.
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Meet monsters in Manchester city centre
Manchester city centre really goes to town at spooky season, particularly across the weekend before Halloween. Halloween in the City includes a special music stage at Exchange Square, team trick or treat games at New Cathedral Street and a Halloween market selling all things scary at St Ann's Square. At set times throughout the weekend there’s also a procession of giant monster puppets through the streets, complete with a five-piece band. Look up after-dark and you’ll spot more of these larger-then-life characters on rooftops across the city up until 31 October.
Take a spine-chilling tour around Edinburgh
A tour is a great way to get your bearings in Edinburgh, and there are some spooky options that run all year round – but work particularly well at Halloween. The Vaults Tour, for example, takes you below the city’s streets to explore the darker side of the Scottish capital’s history on foot, and by candlelight. If you’d rather stay above-ground, hop on a Ghost Bus from Edinburgh Lawnmarket and you’ll be taken to spooky sights including Edinburgh Castle and The Old Town. And while you’re in town, pay a visit to The Edinburgh Dungeon – it takes about 70 nail-biting minutes to walk through this interactive tour, and it includes a stop-off at The Vaults.
Search for ghoulish sights on the streets of Durham
For a totally different – and budget-friendly – twist on a spooky walking tour, try a free small group ghost walk in Durham. Run by Durham Paranormal Research Group, these take place on the first Sunday of every month and set off at 7PM from Durham Market Place. You’ll uncover spooky goings-on around the city, from poltergeist reports to UFO sightings. The group also organise £5 walks on dates and times of your choice, and you can choose the Ghost Hunter, Horrid History or Pubs & Prisons itinerary. When you’re done, raise a toast to Halloween at The Shakespeare on Saddler Street – said to be Durham’s most-haunted pub.
