A mention in another topic triggered a thought about Halloween. Specifically do kids trick or treat in Forest Hill?
If they do what are the expectations of kids in terms of treats? I presume home-made stuff is out of the question? Would it be individually wrapped sweets? Whole chocolate bars? Or is there something better to give the wee witches and ghouls? Furthermore, what times do kids tend to trick or treat?
I moved here from Camberwell. And there it was very hit and miss. There were Halloweens Iâd buy candy only to have no-one turn up and weâd have to eat it ourselves. Or perhaps I was home to late. Other yearâs weâd forget and have to hide in the back of the house and pretend we werenât home.
Iâm conscious that FH has more families, and perhaps more suburban style streets conducive to this tragic North American import. Regardless, I donât want to get on the bad side of my neighbours byhaving the wrong type of treats. Or having to hide in the garden shed all evening.
The general rule on our street is that if you have a lit pumpkin lantern or other Halloween decorations at the front door, you are open to Trick or Treaters. If not, not!
Yup - same here just off the South Circ. Was lovely and good-natured last year. We tend to have a mix of Celebrations / Miniature Heroes in a bowl. Keeping a relatively small amount in there and topping up is advised - otherwise your early visitors might grab massive handfuls.
It does depend where you live, but my street is filled with a well organised zombie army (and their children in fancy dress) . Celebrations is the best idea or pop in to @Pauline for a selection of treats for the little hooligans.
A pumpkin outside your house or building a medieval castle is a good way to let children and parents know that you are tooled up for the occasion.
Westwood Park go full on Halloween mode every year. Worth having a look there, make it early as a few dads get together to house sit when mummyâs and kids are out and have a beer or eightâŚ
Yep we have the same rules - if thereâs a pumpkin out (or some other Halloween decoration) you knock, otherwise you donât. I have to admit we go a bit overboard and decorate the whole house (including scary door bell!) so I always gets loads of kids round! I am on Kilmorie Road and usually get about 20 knocks, often they are children I recognise from the local schools so itâs always very friendly and fun.
I usually get in things like bumper packs of mini milky ways, mini mars bars. You donât need to do full-size bars.
Actually last year some people did do home-made sweets and my kids thought it was lovely.
As others have said, donât put too much in the bowl, or hand out one sweet each, otherwise they will take a handful!
I think it can be a nice community-spirited evening, Iâve never had any trouble (except one year when some drunken middle-aged guys on their way home from the pub pinched one of our carved pumpkins from the front window ledge! Cue me in my PJs shouting at them and waving my fist from the bedroom windowâŚthe cheek!)
This year Halloween is on a school day for most of the Lewisham schools as far as I know - previously itâs been in half term - so it probably wonât go on too late.
Pumpkin rule here in HOP too. Generally Iâve found that itâs only kids from our street that come around so I like to do something, although last year I gatecrashed another streetâs very well organised Trick or Treating.But my first year here, no pumpkin and no knocks, so if you donât want to partake, Iâd shut the curtains and not bother. Also, itâs generally only younger kids so you can expect it all to be done pretty early. I take my pumpkin in when weâve run out of sweets. Or when Iâve eaten them all
We are a non-Halloweâen household - we dislike and disapprove of this nasty American commercial import and wouldnât dream of putting out pumpkins or other decorations. That doesnât stop a long succession of little bullies, apparently encouraged by their parents knocking on our door every year and demanding âtreatsâ. Iâm ashamed to say we are sufficiently terrified to pay Danegeld; my wife usually bakes some buns specially. That has hitherto usually been enough to send the horrible little marauders on their way without them throwing eggs at our front window or committing other unpleasantnesses.
I have to disagree - Halloween and trick or treating isnât an American import; it has its roots in Celtic traditions mixed with Christianity and in fact was exported to America from other countries. Trick or treating developed from âguisingâ, which has long been popular in Ireland and Scotland.
I am surprised you get so many callers without a pumpkin out. Maybe the buns are very popular? Word does go round about the best houses to go to âŚ
This is one of those rare times when everyone is right - while Halloweâen traditions in Scotland and Ireland have guising (going door-to-door for sweets / money), the actual âTrick or Treatâ is a North American invention which gradually made its way to Europe.
I quite like the increasing American influence - carving a Jack OâLantern out of a turnip when I was a child in Ireland in the 1980âs was massively difficult and dangerous and pumpkins are much easier to deal with.
Yes, itâs one of those festivities that has so many different influences itâs difficult to say exactly where it came from.
I think I feel a bit of a personal fondness for Halloween because of my surname - Toussaint - which is of course French for âAll Saintsâ, also known as All Hallows Day - 1 November, the day after Halloween.
Plus, I quite like dressing as a witch and scaring the kids
Will we get some pumpkin photos posted on 31 October then?
I enjoy being an old grump on Halloween and delight in ignoring the whole event. You will probably find me enjoying a pint in the Chandos (football or no) but the no pumpkin rule seems to work when I have been indoors in past years.
. Celebrations is the best idea or pop in to 
