Halloween as a cultural event

Since moving to the UK in 2005, one of the times of year that I still find jarringly different to when I was growing up in Massachusetts is Halloween.  As a child in a predominantly Catholic part of MA, going to Catholic schools from K-12, wearing a halloween costume to school and having a halloween party in class was the norm.  Costumes ranged from scary to silly with everything in between.  I once dressed as Lucy from Peanuts.  It was all about costumes and candy and maybe haunted houses (though they can freak me out so I didn't generally go). 

Since I've been in the UK, I've been told "costumes have to be scary". The church we go to and the church where the playgroup I work at is have Light Parties as an alternative and hand out leaflets about how halloween is evil etc. It all seems to be associated with darkness and scariness and evil here.

My daughter has really got into halloween this year but quite awkwardly on Sunday at church she told everyone in her group that she was going to be making "spooky cakes and dressing up" with her best friend the next day.

How does halloween here in the UK compare to your childhood? Is it, as my husband said, that the Catholic Church turns a blind eye" and now that I'm attending a Pentecostal church and working at a Baptist Church that's causing this difference?

Like you, I grew up in a largely Catholic part of Massachusetts. We had Halloween parties at school and there was always a competition to see who would come up with the best costume (some were scary and some weren’t). Obviously, trick-or-treating was big, but so was picking and carving your own pumpkin, pumpkin painting, haunted houses, haunted hayrides and scary movie marathons. I love that adults get into it as well.  As I got older, we’d still dress up and go to Halloween parties. I love, love, love Halloween.

This is my first Halloween in the UK and it seems to be exclusively for the very, very young, if they’re interested at all and most of the parents and adults consider it to be a pain in the butt. It’s very depressing, but I moved here knowing that. I understand that it’s a different country and a different culture, but boy do I love Halloween in New England! It’s something I’m always going to miss.

Halloween sucks here in the UK. This is my 5th Halloween here and I've decided we are going to have a good time this year for once. Got us costumes and we're going out. Mr. and Mrs. Edward scissor hands we shall be! I guess going to a uni party isn't the same as all the fun we'd have in the US but it's better than staying home and doing nothing. I'm so excited!   

I hate the "costumes must be scary" rule! My hubby is always saying that but our boy is only 20 months old and you can't really pull off scary at that age. DH thinks that he shouldn't dress up if it's not scary but to that! We'll only go and knock on his mum's/sister's doors anyway.

When we were discussing costumes for the boy earlier in the year he was going on about not wanting our son to be 'weird' for not wearing a scary costume and I was like, you'vw got to be kidding me! Ugh! Halloween here depresses me!

Halloween is one of the few things I really miss about the US. It was always so much fun for everyone. Everyone got involved and there was a sense of community when kids were out trick or treating. I miss the parties and the general silliness.

I am another one that does not get the whole "scary" costume thing. My first year here I was blissfully ignorant so I showed up as a flamenco dancer to my company's first "dress up day". There were 5 witches and me. It was awful. 

Well, we're hoping for some trick or treaters tomorrow but I'm not holding my breath for it to be anything like I'm used to.

I am another one that does not get the whole "scary" costume thing. My first year here I was blissfully ignorant so I showed up as a flamenco dancer to my company's first "dress up day". There were 5 witches and me. It was awful. 

Awe! 

Good costume idea though! 

Growing up in the 60's and 70's in small-town Southern California, our costumes were always scary.  Not every single kid did scary, but the majority did.  There were 'Haunted Houses' put on by local civic groups (scary), and people's Halloween parties always had a scary theme.... my dad put on parties for us where some wimpier kids ended up crying... people in scary costumes were jumping out of cupboards and corners, there were lots of gross/scary displays, a tape was played that consisted mainly of howling, wailing, screaming, creaking, crashing noises.  It was great! 

I really don't care one iota about Halloween anymore, but if people are going to do it, it should be done 'right', and in my opinion, that means scary! 

Well, we're hoping for some trick or treaters tomorrow but I'm not holding my breath for it to be anything like I'm used to.

I get maybe 2 or 3 groups of children trick or treating here. But that's 2 or 3 more groups than I had in the US!

I have always considered Halloween a children's holiday.  It's really only in the last ten years or so that adults have really participated.  To the best of my recollection at least--there were certainly no adult Halloween parties when I was growing up. 

I'd agree that the UK doesn't do it well, but until recently they didn't do it at all so it's not a tradition for them.  If parents are annoyed it's because they aren't bolstered by memories from their childhood like we are.  Without those memories, it is annoying.  It's just having to buy an expensive costume and candy and walk your kid around the neighbourhood.  My colleague thinks it's only gained popularity here as an excuse for more commercialism, and I'd have to agree.  But then, I'd also argue that it's being ruined in the US as well.  I always used to go out with my friends after dark, and we'd go all over the town.  Now everything has to be supervised and in the daylight.  It's no fun and against what I'd consider the spirit of Halloween: adventure and mischief and at least a bit of spookiness and being scared.     

I have always considered Halloween a children's holiday.  It's really only in the last ten years or so that adults have really participated.  To the best of my recollection at least--there were certainly no adult Halloween parties when I was growing up. 

I'd agree that the UK doesn't do it well, but until recently they didn't do it at all so it's not a tradition for them.  If parents are annoyed it's because they aren't bolstered by memories from their childhood like we are.  Without those memories, it is annoying.  It's just having to buy an expensive costume and candy and walk your kid around the neighbourhood.  My colleague thinks it's only gained popularity here as an excuse for more commercialism, and I'd have to agree.  But then, I'd also argue that it's being ruined in the US as well.  I always used to go out with my friends after dark, and we'd go all over the town.  Now everything has to be supervised and in the daylight.  It's no fun and against what I'd consider the spirit of Halloween: adventure and mischief and at least a bit of spookiness and being scared.     

Totally agreed!

How does halloween here in the UK compare to your childhood? Is it, as my husband said, that the Catholic Church turns a blind eye" and now that I'm attending a Pentecostal church and working at a Baptist Church that's causing this difference?

I think this is the major difference, actually.  The more Evangelical/fundamentalist churches, even in the U.S., have always taken a hard line against anything they feel is in anyway associated with, or might 'normalize,' occult or 'pagan' activity.  This includes Halloween, Harry Potter, Dungeons & Dragons, KISS and many other mainstream/pop-culture elements.

I noticed a difference just in moving from one region of Wisconsin to another.  My hometown was pretty much either Catholic or Lutheran, and had no particular problem with any of these things.  They see them as fairly innocent fun.  But when I moved to an area with a much higher number of Baptists, Pentecostals, Reformed, etc., there seemed to be a lot more people who were anti-Halloween, lots more churches holding 'alternative events,' etc. 

So, while there's certainly a difference in the way Halloween is treated here (i.e. it's just not as big a deal), probably your new church environment is the biggest factor, and you'd likely find the same thing (or even more vehement opposition!) if you were in similar congregations in the U.S.

Everyone in my shop is supposed to dress up as vampires this year, except I think we're all going to be Twilight vampires because we got a lot of sparkly makeup and shimmer lotions in for the holidays.

I have always considered Halloween a children's holiday.  It's really only in the last ten years or so that adults have really participated.  To the best of my recollection at least--there were certainly no adult Halloween parties when I was growing up. 

One of the main social events on my parent's calendar for as long as I can remember has been their friend's massive halloween party.  They are in their mid-60's and I think this party has been happening since the early 80's.  They always get really into their costumes, because the hosts offer pretty cool prizes.  The party is always the weekend before Halloween and since most of the neighborhood parents went, a lot of them would dress up in their costumes on Halloween to take us kids trick or treating when we were little.  

In fairness - my neighborhood growing up rocked and there were loads of parties all year round and the parents were all friendly.  I lived/live in Massachusetts.  So maybe we just rock halloween a bit better up here!  

We just got our power back after hurricane Sandy and I am so happy.  Trick or treating was cancelled last year in our town because of a crazy October snowstorm and I was dreading it being cancelled again this year if the power was still out.  My older daughter is really excited about it this year.  We've already missed dressing up and parties at two events this week because of Sandy.  It's much better here in the US. Such a superficial thing...but what can I say.

I think this is the major difference, actually.  The more Evangelical/fundamentalist churches, even in the U.S., have always taken a hard line against anything they feel is in anyway associated with, or might 'normalize,' occult or 'pagan' activity.  This includes Halloween, Harry Potter, Dungeons & Dragons, KISS and many other mainstream/pop-culture elements.

Kind of paradoxically... I grew up in a very strict Fundamentalist church environment.  I wasn't allowed to listen to rock music, or go to dances, or go swimming with boys, or spend the night at friends homes who had brothers.  If I was invited to go to church with a schoolfriend who was of a different religion, I wasn't allowed.
  Yet, every Halloween we dressed up as all sorts of zombies, vampires, and ghouls, and attended scary-themed parties.  I guess my parents were too worried about us having pre-marital sex to worry about other 'dangers'!