Autumn is so eerily delicious, I love it, but my heart belongs to Halloween. I’ve scrubbed off the St Tropez, dyed my hair black and bleached a found deer skull with peroxide. I’m so Halloweened out, that while talking to a friend, I included Kat Slater in the list of ‘goths I have genuinely been compared to’. See full list on my twitter this Friday October 31.
To Buy
Pumpkins- obviously. My top tip is: Pick Your Own Pumpkin (PYOP), Cheeseman’s Green Lane, Sevington, Ashford, TN24 7JX
Open 10am-4pm everyday until Friday October 31st.
I took my two-year-old, and loved it. Spooky grey skies, muddy fields and pumpkins as far as the eye can see. Choose from orange, black or moon-blue. We got two blue, a black and a big orange one to make a Jack-O-Lantern all for only £5. I spoke to owners Jemma and Mark Thompson, local farmers, and their co-worker, Chris Read. Chris was a Met Police officer until earlier this year. He had a minor horse riding accident which may have saved his life. His injury “hurt for a lot longer than it should have.” The reason for this turned out to be cancer. He left the Met and decided to start a life in the country as a farmer. He came to Mark and Jemma for work, and PYOP was born.
Chris is “OK”, the cancer is at bay, and he has turned his head into a Jack-O-Lantern. They have all been astounded at the success of PYOP as this is it’s first ever year, and only opened three weeks ago. It’s a great autumn trip out, really atmospheric. Plus 10% of all proceeds go to charity: Kent, Sussex and Surrey Air Ambulance.
Next year they plan to have a marquee serving bacon rolls, hot chocolate, teas… and beer and ales! “Pumpkins and a pint” as Jemma put it. I can’t wait.
Here’s a cute little treat I put together from the High Street . . . I’ve got two little gourds on my mantelpiece.
To eat/drink
Rot your teeth out with Trick or Treat Sweets!
For goodness sake, DONT throw away the insides of your pumpkin. It’s food. Make a pie or something. We waste 18,000 tons of pumpkin every Halloween in the UK. I found this AMAZING recipe for pumpkin fries for you at capture by Lucy here. I’m making pumpkin pancakes for Halloween night. Here’s a Stilton pumpkin pie I made this week using a recipe from Olive magazine.
To do
Thursday October 30
Gig at Knoops, 7-10pm, tickets £3 on the door, must RSVP on Facebook page (see below) as only 20 places available. Bring your own booze £2! Live music from Jamie Smart and Otti Albietz plus a spoken word performance from poet/writer Rob Dennard. All from Hastings, all amazing. Organised by Marie Cooney, who got engaged to Jamie Smart this week, congrats! https://www.facebook.com/events/341864279320446
And how sweet and magical is this!?
7pm Rye Harbour Village Hall
Rye Harbour Road, Rye Harbour , TN31 7TR, free but donations appreciated
A ‘tour of the universe’ – an indoor presentation, followed by a stargazing walk outside to unravel the wonders of the night skies using astronomical telescopes and expertise from Astronomia, part of Viewpoint Optics.
Rye Harbour Nature Reserve http://www.ryenews.org.uk/whats-on-guide
What a beautiful idea.
To do
Friday October 31 – HALLOWEEN NIGHT
Try a (quiet) night-time walk through St Mary’s graveyard and the Gun Gardens. It’s a must for spooky photos if you ‘heart’ social media.
My aunt took a photo of my cousin there one Halloween night and there is TOTALLY an actual ghost in the background. Seriously. Here’s one of me, as a dead aerobics instructor last year.
Queens Head: Voodoo Booth and Walking Dead Party. Entry is free and children are welcome until 9pm.
The theme for this party, organised by Kate Smith and Jonathan Breeds, is zombies. Free drink for if you arrive ‘undead’, free zombie makeover for ‘the living’ by Kate in the Voodoo Booth. Apple bobbing and party games. Minibus from the Queen’s to the Red Lion in Snargate’s Pumpkin Carving Night with French Medieval Band, £5 return, leaves at 8:15pm, returns at 10:15pm.
To talk about
Tell me what you think of the Halloween explosion. A creative, fun festival for everyone, or America bulldozing our bonfire season??? Who has the best Halloween window display in Rye? Do you care? Love or hate it, it gets bigger every year, with two in five British households now celebrating.
My community focused two cents is that in a town where there is little for 10-18 year olds, (I have seen the Secondary School kids have to queue politely outside the local ‘supermarket’ to be allowed in to spend their money) Halloween is one of the few events we can all get involved in. But for me, IT’S ALL ABOUT HAVING FUN DRESSING UP.
