Halloween fancy dress special at Peckham Levels
At 500-capacity Peckham Levels, a Halloween rave is operating a ‘no fancy dress, no entry’ policy. Fortunately, there’s a theme to help get your costume going and it’s running on three Ms: Movies, Music and Memes. Still can’t think of what to wear? Then, er, just turn up in yellow according to the website. Local DJs will be spinning the decks into the early hours, with R&B, Hip Hop, Dancehall and Afrobeats the genres of the night.
Peckham Levels, 95A Rye Lane, London SE15 4ST. October 29, 10pm – 3am. Admission: £10.
www.peckhamlevels.org/event/rilla-8th-birthday-halloween-fancy-dress-special/
Rivoli pop up cinema
Cover your eyes or brave the full-frontal horror at a pop-up cinema in the historic Rivoli Ballroom. Its three-day Fright Night Cinema series includes the chance to see: Bettlejuice, The Shining, Ghostbusters, Carrie, Hocus Pocus and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Famed for its plush furnishings and fittings, the space has appeared in several films itself.
Rivoli Ballroom, 350 Brockley Road, London SE4 2BY. Fright Night screenings from October 26 – 28, screening times vary. Admission: £10+.
www.rivoliballroom.com/halloween
The Canterville Ghost at Southwark Playhouse
Searching for some more passive entertainment? Settle down for an old-school ghost story, courtesy of theatre company Tall Stories. Their vaudeville production of Oscar Wilde’s The Canterville Ghost, about a family who move into a castle haunted by a murderous nobleman, is showing at Southwark Playhouse over spooky season.
Southwark Playhouse, 77-85 Newington Causeway, London SE1 6BD. October 11 – November 5, 7:30pm – 9:10pm.
Admission: £14 – £24.
www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/the-large/the-canterville-ghost/
The London Halloween Ball
Staking a claim to be the London Halloween Ball is SW2 nightclub Electric Brixton. Stage shows, scare actors, a treat station and a murder mystery-themed photobooth are all part of the late-night offering here. Put on your spookiest, most gruesome outfit and rave to raise the dead. One for rebels looking to party on a school night, the ball is being held on All Hallows’ Eve itself – aka a Monday, aka yikes. The Halloween Ball has sold out four years running, so be sure to bag your ticket in advance.
Electric Brixton, Town Hall Parade, Brixton Hill, London SW2 1RJ. October 31, 10:30pm – 4am. Admission: £10 – £20.
www.electricbrixton.uk.com/events/the-london-halloween-ball/
Halloween Spooktacular at Castle Square
Yes, there’s club nights and fright nights to entertain us grown-ups, but let’s be honest: the thrills of Halloween are most vivid when you’re small, wandering around with a painted face and clasping a bucket for your sweets. Hoping to conjure the best bits of spooky season for kids this year is Castle Square, which is being decked out with cobwebs and carved pumpkins to offer a full, free day of creepy entertainment. Highlights include the Upside Down Dance Academy re-enacting a live performance of ‘Thriller’, Halloween-inspired arts and crafts workshops, and the chance to play trick or treat. Adults are not forgotten though: sneak on up to the Cherry Tiger terrace for a Mexican Day of the Dead-themed cocktail.
Castle Square, Elephant and Castle, SE17 1EQ. Admission: FREE.
www.castlesquarelondon.com/
50 Berkeley Square at the London Dungeon
A visit to macabre tourist attraction The London Dungeon is going to give you goosebumps regardless of what time of year you visit, but it ups the chill factor for Halloween. This year, it has launched a brand new show with a limited run, 50 Berkeley Square, inviting the brave to step inside the attic of one of the most haunted houses in England. Here, a story of madness, mystery and murder will unfold – with little you can do other than look on in horror.
London Dungeon, The Queen’s Walk, London SE1 7PB. October 15 – 31, 10am – 4pm.
www.thedungeons.com/london/
Midnight Apothecary Halloween Spectacular
Midnight Apothecary returns to the Brunel Museum with another classy Halloween special. Amid a sea of carved pumpkin lanterns, huddle
by a fire pit eating s’mores and sipping on your choice of Halloween potion concocted by the
team of resident mixologists. There’s no food this year (R.I.P 2021’s pizza offering) but guests are invited to order takeaways to the bar. Those who dare can also opt to take an actor-led ‘spooky’
tour down into the underground chambers below the museum.
Brunel Museum, Railway Avenue, Rotherhithe, London SE16 4LF. October 28 & 29, 5pm – 7:15pm / 7:30pm – 10pm.
www.midnightapothecary.designmynight.com/
Halloween at Clapham Grand
Introverts, extroverts, party lovers and cinephiles are being catered for at former Victorian music hall Clapham Grand this Halloween. There’s a dress-up, sing-along Rocky Horror Picture Show movie night on October 29, followed by a Halloween Party taking ravers into the wee hours with DJs TeTe Band and Lady Lloyd pumping out the tunes. Drag stars Juno Birch, Cheddar Gorgeous and Elektra Fence are performing live and there will be prizes for the best dressed partygoers. Then on October 31, return to the venue for a screening of Halloween classic Hocus Pocus, featuring cauldron cocktails, a skeleton dance off and prizes for the best dressed witch.
The Clapham Grand, 21 – 25 St John’s Hill, London SW11 1TT. October 29, screening 5:30pm – 9pm/ party 9:30pm – 3am. October 31, 6:30pm – 10pm. Admission: £12 – £15.
www.claphamgrand.com/event/thegrand-halloween/
Halloween Hellhole All-dayer at Brixton Windmill
How about a Halloween concert? Or a series of concerts, really. Hidden gem Brixton Windmill is platforming underground bands from 5pm until midnight on October 29, from those with a hint of macabre about them to the downright gothic. Names on the billing include Wednesdays Child, Body Horror, Forrest Flowers, Children of the Pope and Pigeonhole. Haven’t heard of them? Us neither. But if you’re chasing a more alternative, music-led Halloween experience, why not check them out?
Brixton Windmill, 22 Blenheim Gardens, Brixton Hill, London SW2 5BZ. October 29, 5pm – 1am. Admission: £8
www.windmillbrixton.co.uk/events/2022-10-29-halloween-hellhole-all-dayer-the-windmill
