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What To Do In London For Hallowe'en
Trying to list *everything* going on in London for Hallowe'en would be like attempting to corral a city of zombies. Instead, here's a selection of the best events to catch our attention. There's plenty more going on, so feel free to add your own tips in the comments.
Perilous Parties
London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard are having a fundraiser on Friday. Eight acts (including the puntastic 'Scales of the Unexpected) put on a haunting show at the 2 Brewers in Clapham.
Boho Bar in Dulwich present their free-entry Boo! party on Saturday. Special Hallowe'en punch, costumes encouraged and projected horror movies should set the mood.Scala in King’s Cross will be converted into
The Haunted Ballroom on
Saturday. Organisers White Mischief promise a night of ‘unique live music, curious vaudeville, vintage DJing, interactive theatre and eccentric dressed up characters’.
Tickets, however, are harder to get hold of than a spectral snake covered in phantom custard.
All Star Lanes Brick Lane hosts the Bangers & Mash’s Halloween Party on Saturday. The usual melange of fancy dress and spooky fun will be complemented by free bowling for the first 50 entries.
The Voodoo Spell party takes place at 'celebrity haunt' Trader Vic’s at London Hilton, on Park Lane on Sunday. Costume appears to be mandatory, and you'll get a mix of DJs, tarot readers, performers and, intriguingly, 'hidden cemeteries'.
Drop East on Commercial Street hold their 8th annual fancy dress party on Saturday. Entry is free.Spooky singing, fun and games courtesy of The Choir With No Name at
93 Feet East this
Thursday. The £8 entrance fee goes towards homeless charities.
Award for most unexpected location must go to the Lost Souls party (Saturday) at the London Aquarium. DJs, costumes, pirate hosts and fish. Plenty of fish.
Damnable Dining
As previously mentioned, Shoreditch store Maiden will dispense unsavoury savouries and less-than-sweet sweets from its basement from Thursday till Sunday.
Sister venues The Betsy Smith (Kilburn), The Winchester (Islington) and The Lodge Tavern (Ealing) will stage a 'Fangtasia' evening on Saturday (and Sunday in the latter case). Expect silly cocktails and garish decor.
Bermondsey Square is putting on a Hallowe'en fair (Saturday), with apple bobbing, pumpkin carving and various creepy foodstuffs.
Fang-tastic Theatre
The Insti2ute at Pleasance Islington 'is a fully immersive, scary and funny experience for Halloween' involving a guided tour through a dark labyrinth. Runs Thur-Sun.The
Hallowe'en of Crossbones on
Sunday is part theatre, part folklore and part procession. Lovably loopy John Constable leads a 'ritual drama' that culminates in a trip to Crossbones in Southwark.
Leicester Square Theatre presents Ross Lee's Scream House on Thursday, a mix of comedy and light entertainment.
The eminently scary Ghost Stories at the Duke of York's Theatre now has an extended run until February and will put on a special midnight show on Sat/Sun.
Screaming Screenings
Proto-Zom-Com Beetlejuice is showing at the Club de Fromage film club on Thursday, at the Bowery on New Oxford Street. Come in costume.
Those with the stamina might be tempted by Electric Cinema's all-night horror fest, featuring The Thing, Re-Animator, Evil Dead 2 and Poltergeist (Saturday).
The BFI IMAX has its own all-nighter on Saturday, and in 3-D. Their selection comprises The Hole 3D (2010), Piranha 3D (2010), Resident Evil: Afterlife 3D (2010), My Bloody Valentine 3D (2009) and The Final Destination 3D (2009).
Catch The Thing and The Shining at Jetlag bar on Cleveland Street on Sunday.
For our money, the best selection comes at Roxy Cinema on Sunday with The Exorcist, The Ring and Halloween.
Witchin' Walks
South-East London Folklore Society are organising several walks over spooky season. Take your pick of London Bridge, Westminster, Farringdon and Peckham. (Wed/Thur/Fri/Sun.)
A walk with a white witch around some of the West End's spookiest spots. Tue-Sat.
Creepy Kids
Gruesome all-year-round, the Old Operating Theatre in London Bridge are hosting a macabre medley of plays and demonstrations over the half-term period.
The Garden Museum deserves a special accolade for inventive programming, hosting a Hallowe'en talk on Saturday about the world's most deadly, poisonous plants.
The V&A Museum Of Childhood will put on an afternoon of Hallowe'en themed fun on Sunday.
Image courtesy of MikeKingPhoto.
Last Updated 25 October 2010