Celebrating the REAL Halloween

In an ancient wood-pasture in the heart of West Norfolk, over 2,000 people of all ages come together over two days to celebrate ‘The Real Halloween’ with music, storytelling, magical workshops, traditional games and a spectacular candlelit parade.

The event is a refreshing antidote to the commercialised shock-horror festival that has travelled from America to dominate in recent years. “We help families get back to the origins of Halloween as a festival of and for nature,” explains Chris Rose, who co-founded The Real Halloween with partner Sarah Wise. “The event combines natural history, local folklore and entertainment for the whole family.”

In times gone by, Halloween was a British festival that marked the period when nature went to sleep following the harvest and people began preparations for winter. Many Halloween traditions we recognise today have ancient spiritual origins. “The old practice of ‘trick or treat’ meant leaving out treats for the fairies to stop them from playing tricks on you,” Chris says.

Upon arriving at Bradmoor Woods for The Real Halloween, families will discover a collection of tents adorned with bunting, costumed characters and a welcoming firepit. “There’s a joyful atmosphere of the traditional country fair in a woodland setting, with little sign of the 21st century in sight,” Chris describes.

Wandering around the clearing you might come across a wizard popping popcorn on the fire or children playing musical toadstools. There are traditional vegetable-themed games such as parsnip skittles, apple bobbing and ‘shout at the sprout’ where a loud hailer is used to do exactly that.

In the performance tent there’s live music and Halloween storytelling to enjoy throughout the day before the Lantern Parade begins at dusk. This is an atmospheric trail through the woods marked with beautiful illuminated paper animal sculptures that everyone follows together using lanterns hand-crafted during an earlier workshop.

“Our Real Halloween event is a celebration of autumn, a chance for young families to reconnect with the environment and learn some nature-ability,” says Chris. “Lots of folklore is based on the real powers of nature, so we want to use magic as a gateway to teach young people about the natural world.”

Among the trees, magical workshops offer fascinating knowledge about plants or animals, alongside plenty of Halloween fun. ‘Wizard Training’ explores how to identify ravens, crows, rooks and jackdaws from how they walk, call and fly. In the ‘Magic Wand Workshop’ different types of native tree are explored as participants determine which wand will suit them best.

Sustainability is an important part of The Real Halloween. “Plastic is the scariest thing about UK Halloween celebrations,” Chris says. “Seven million shop-bought Halloween costumes containing 90% plastic are binned
each year, many after just one wear. That’s the equivalent of 100 million coke bottles of new waste plastic thrown away.”

Instead, visitors and volunteers at The Real Halloween dress up with enthusiasm for the ‘No New Plastic Fancy Dress Show’. There are fantastic Halloween creations everywhere you look, made from repurposing old clothes, using natural fabrics or discovered in the local charity shop. Favourites from 2023 included a super spider with legging-legs, an amazing jellyfish umbrella and a fabulous family of foxes.

Organised by Chris and Sarah through their charity, The Fairyland Trust, The Real Halloween has been
run almost entirely by passionate volunteers since it began in 2010.

“The Fairyland Trust is a tiny charity with just 150 supporters, but we have a big impact connecting lots of young children to nature throughout the year,” Chris says. “In addition to The Real Halloween we run an annual Fairy Fair in the spring and attend bigger festivals all over the country delivering magical craft activities.”

The Fairyland Trust keeps ticket prices low to ensure their magical experiences are accessible to as many families as possible. They are always looking for support, through donations to continue their ongoing work with young people or from volunteers to join the fantastic delivery team.

This year may see the last Real Halloween in Norfolk. With their own children now grown up, Chris and Sarah are stepping back from The Real Halloween and hope that somewhere in the country a new team of organisers will continue the success of this unique event. They welcome contact via email at info@fairylandtrust.org.

The Real Halloween 2024 will take place in Bradmoor Woods near West Acre on 26th and 27th October. Tickets are on sale from 6th September. For more information and to buy tickets visit www.fairylandtrust.org