Halloween Party Ideas & Halloween Themed Entertainment

About Halloween

Whilst the word Halloween derives from the Catholic feast of All Hallows Eve or All Saints Eve, the celebration is a corruption of three ancient traditions:

1: The Celtic New Year feast of Samhain (sow-en) when the spirits of the dead from the previous year were believed to return in search of living bodies to allow them to pass into the afterlife.

2: The Roman celebration of the goddess Pomona (whose symbol is the apple)

3: A medieval religious belief that prayers, even from strangers, would assist the souls of dead relatives on their journey in the afterlife so people would travel from door to door begging for ‘soul cakes’.

The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the Otherworld became thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's ancestors were honoured and invited home while harmful spirits were warded off. It is believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks. Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm.

More about the history of Halloween

Ideas For A Halloween Party

For most people Halloween is about scary costumes, trick or treat, pumpkin carving and apple bobbing! There's not really that much scope to deviate much from the tried and tested theme, so instead we'll look at what makes a great party and where to get it.

Costumes

For scary fancy dress costumes the following suppliers make a great first port of call:

www.escapade.co.uk
www.fancydress.com
www.charliecrow.com (Children's Costumes)
www.partydelights.co.uk

For Fake Blood & Scary Accessories

Fake blood and more at https://www.fancydress.com/collections/special-effects

Games

Apple Bobbing
Pumpkin Carving
Witch Hunt (like hide and seek but with costumes!)
Make a mummy (with plenty of loo roll!)
Trick or treat
Pass the pumpkin
For adults, Halloween Murder Mystery

Food & Drink

Bring extra excitement to your Halloween party by theming the food and drinks. Traditional favourites include Toffee Apples & lots of sweets collected from trick or treat.

For more Halloween food ideas also see our special feature on Halloween Kids Party Food and Drinks

Live Entertainment

Think about mix and mingle acts or street entertainers as many of these can dress in costumes and adapt their performances to fit the halloween theme. We have a whole collection of Halloween themed entertainers for you to explore here.

No party is complete without live music so if your budget can stretch to hire a live band it will be a sound investment towards ensuring the success of your big night.

It's important to consider the age range of the guests who will be attending your party and pick a band who will appeal to everyone. Also ask Alive Network to arrange for the band to dress in halloween costumes!

Safe bets for a wide age range include Tribute bands, Rock and pop covers bands, Rock and roll/swing bands & Soul bands

Our Top 10 Halloween Party Entertainment Picks >>>