Scream Park: Shocktober
The weekend is all about The Hideout, for the month that's in it! Yesterday, the first of four days of horror for me, we were on a field trip.. to Shocktober! Running at Tully's Farm, it promised shows, scares, fairground rides.. a maze with zombies that chase you with chainsaws.. also food and drink. Sold out for yesterday, I heard, which saw content creators flood the place, apparently. We were taking a train from Victoria together - and as usual, I found Uber cheapest.
We were to meet at the Wetherspoons at the station - and I was nearly blown over (literally) on the way, the wind was so strong. Traffic slowed to a crawl around Parliament Square, so I was about five minutes arriving - got there just after the organiser posted a message with the table numbers he'd secured, and said they were on the balcony, beside the "no children under 12 on the balcony" sign. Well, I was to discover that there were several "no children under 12 on the balcony" signs!
So it was a good job I had the table numbers, and could see I was in precisely the wrong place! I finally thought to check - and yes, there was a balcony on the other side too. And there they were. On the escalator side, rather than the stairs side. Well, a few of us ordered food - it was going to be a long day - and a few applied spooky makeup. Discussing our plans, we agreed that it was better to wait a quarter of an hour or so for the direct train - happily, our tickets weren't time-specific. And when the time came, we hurried down to the platform - some of us made our way faster and we secured seats for the others - handily, there were eight of us, so two sets of four seats did fine; two were late, and followed on after. And as we travelled, while we chatted, the organiser got his spooky makeup most professionally done by one of the group who knows about such things.
There were shuttle buses from the station, but we'd have had a wait, so we agreed to take a couple of taxis - and wow, the queue that greeted us when we arrived!
And wow, the cold.. at least the wind had (pretty much) died down. There's a bag check, and we had a long-ish queue to show our tickets. We got wristbands..
and physical maps, if we wanted - which proved handy, although there is decent WiFi, so we could just look it up on the website. (I think they might also have an app.) And then we were launched into the chaos that is Shocktober..
Scary details everywhere - the attention to detail, I have to say, is incredible. And prowling the site, all day, are people in character - as we kept remarking to each other all evening, we'd never before seen such crowd interaction, such enthusiastic performers! Someone remarked it was like the level of engagement you'd get in Disney! Well, wandering aimlessly at first, of course you couldn't keep the group away from the photo booths:
(This was a doll brought by one of the group, for effect - and boy, did that doll get attention all evening! both from performers, and also random passers-by..) You could be photographed standing in a vertical coffin, or in a cage, or against a wall of skulls.
And as that was next to the Haunted Hayride - Route 666, that's what we did next:
Again, the attention to detail was excellent:
This was decent enough during the daytime - and the woods that you travel through do lend a darkness to the scene. But just imagine how it must appear at night! Anyway, after that, we somehow found ourselves in Hell-Ements, where you essentially make your way, hooded (and unable to see - and frankly, I lifted the hood at one point and we were in darkness anyway), and subjected to strange noises - and some strange sensations. The idea is that you are exposed to the four elements - earth, air, fire, and water. Dunno what the earth part was - unless it was the uneven ground underfoot. The air is a very effective, strong, blast of air that you have to battle through, the fire you can feel to the side. The water.. never fear, you're not submerged, as in the video you watch at the start - it's a bit naff actually, you are squirted with a little water. You have a guiderope - which changes to a chain at one point - and I have to say, it was an unnerving experience - I hung onto it with both hands eventually, and it kept running through posts, so that I had to stop to feel where the rope ran next. It's the only way for you to get where you're going. And as can happen when your vision is restricted, I kept visualising things that weren't there..
Well, after that, we felt we'd earned our stripes and could go for food and drink. Some people tried the electric chairs - and actually, they don't seem bad; people described them as being more like a vibration. It costs £5, and if you can go through to the end, you get two free fast-passes - worthwhile, with all the queueing you end up doing, and as these passes usually cost £8. I had a bit of a hunt for the loo - it was dark by now - but there are three toilet blocks, and I have to say, the quality was excellent, with proper flush toilets, running water in taps, and plenty of both toilet tissue and hand towels. I rejoined the others in the "shed"-type area where the food stalls are:
I had a very moreish chicken wrap from the Chick'Inn, and someone who was running to the bar got me a white wine. And we stayed and chatted for a while, planning our next move.
We could see Purgatory and The Carving right beside each other, so decided to start with Purgatory - where we finally met up with our latecomers, who had been following our schedule, slightly behind! Aw, I thought this one was really clever - the decoration was good, plenty of little touches like mysterious paintings under draperies: but honestly, they didn't have to make too much of an effort with it, because it's so dark in there! They give you lanterns that flicker.. I got the distinct impression that the flickering was related to whatever room we were in, because it changed instantly as we entered the rooms. (Sorry, none of the haunts - apart from the Hayride - allow photography, so I can't show you.) Anyway, Purgatory - is full of nuns! The scary type, natch. And wouldn't you know it - they're terrific at giving directions, pointing most definitively the way you should be going, if you're not sure, or you take a wrong turn. Most obliging. Yes, really liked this one.
Well, the adrenalin junkies wanted to satisfy that craving next - and wouldn't you know it, we were right beside Stratos Fear! One of the group needed to leave at that point - the rest (apart from a couple of us, who sat and minded the bags) went up on the thing. Rather them than me!
And so to The Carving - it was getting late, so we used our fast passes there - those who had earned them distributed them so we all got one. And ooh.. I think I stumbled into the thing I was going to avoid! Well, there were definitely working chainsaws - I could smell the petrol! The premise is that you're invited to dinner.. and you're dinner. This attraction must actually be massive - it's certainly cleverly laid out; we seemed to be in there forever! And we raced through it, frequently having to dodge ghouls - jump scares abound, of course, and there are some clever setups. I was glad to be out.. and then there was a funny misunderstanding outside, where we were waiting for a couple of the group, who were actually waiting at the exit because they thought we weren't out yet, each group thinking the other had fallen victim to the chainsaws..
Searching for things to do before we left, some of the adrenaline junkies wanted to try Slingshot (not as impressive as Stratos Fear, we heard), and some of us headed to the Crooked Hag, a nice, cosy bar well-positioned for the live music stage:
And when the others tottered off their ride, off we went..
And so we made for the taxi rank - which was full of taxis - and again, got a couple back to the station. Ah man, it would have been so good to have stayed on! There was, for example, a nice firepit you could sit beside to listen to the music. Mind you, I could have managed maybe just one more haunt.. in particular, I would have loved to see Doom Town. Hey-ho, we'll just have to go back. ;-) But I can highly recommend this - the attention to detail, the enthusiasm of the staff, also good food and toilet facilities - this is a very well-thought-out attraction. Runs to the 1st, booking required. CAVEAT - contains lots and lots of strobe lighting - if that's an issue, you're as well staying away completely, you'd be hard-pressed to find something without it.
At the station, we were in time for the 11.40pm train - well in time, and ended up spending a considerable time in the stuffy waiting room. Where the group in general painted a rather horrifying picture, spookily made-up and sporting a demon baby, as they were. No wonder other passengers, despite the cold night air, generally stayed out, rather than join us! Got seats together on the train home - it was a terrific day out, and I think we're all vaguely thinking when we can do similar again.
I parted from them at Victoria, where the others got the Tube home, and I was on buses. I tell you though, it was fun - I found the stop where my first bus was to go from, but Buses Due had never heard of it, so I couldn't check when it was coming! It did, in due course - and took me to Elephant & Castle, where I should have been able to pick up the #188, which would take me straight home. With no sign of it on the listings, I checked what Google Maps had to say about my route home - and it told me the #188 wasn't due till about 3am! So I took the N1, which took me to within a 15-minute walk of home. Didn't arrive until after 2am..
Tonight, we're headed to A Nightmare on Elm Street - oh, I just love that film! Showing in the Prince Charles (PCC) - and of course, I'm in Bella Italia again beforehand. And thank goodness for a late start, or this post would've been seriously delayed..
Tomorrow, back with London Classical Music and Theatre Group (LCMTG) for the last day of Sicilian Vespers at the Royal Opera House. Continuing the horror theme, even the publicity shot for this shows skulls.. Again, it's months since I was last here, or with this group. Eating in Cote Covent Garden beforehand - even though it's on early, it's a long one, so I'll have to eat beforehand.
On Tuesday, finally back - for the first time in nearly a year! - with the Horror Book Club! Not a book club meeting per se - I never have time to read them - this is a panel, in Waterstone's - of new horror writers, discussing what's current.
On Wednesday, finally back with storytelling at Torriano! Hosted, as ever, by Nell Phoenix, it's - again - months since I was there. On this occasion, the performance is Lilith: The Other Side of the Story.
On Thursday, by the way, we have a company-sponsored team lunch, a reward for our hard work on the recent release - and I'll be eating burgers again, in Byron Burgers. Another place I haven't been to in years! And that evening, I thought film - and what came up was Mr. Nobody Against Putin, a documentary where a Russian teacher films his school to capture Putin's brainwashing of schoolchildren to fight against the Ukraine. Showing in the Curzon Bloomsbury - which, of course, I can walk to from the office, where I'll be that day. I booked - it was selling out - and used the last of my year's free tickets on it.
Then a few more days of horror. On Friday, I'm off to Dark Secrets: The Esoteric Exhibition at Waterloo Vaults - sounded too interesting to miss!
On Saturday, storytelling from the Crick Crack Club! Ben Haggarty and Sarah-Liisa Wilkinson are performing Stories in the Dark at the Richmond Lending Library. Sold out now, I believe. I've booked the Buenos Aires steakhouse for afterwards.
Next Sunday, back with The Hideout for Good Boy - a horror film from the perspective of a dog just trying to protect its master! Happening somewhere around Leicester Square - details TBA.
Next, a couple of plays. On the 13th, back with Up in the Cheap Seats for Lifers, a prison drama at Southwark Playhouse - was delighted I still had credit on my PAYG subscription with them.
On the 14th, heading to Blessings at Riverside Studios - a play about a staunchly religious family in the 60s, with change in the offing.
The 15th is our work social - we're headed to Boom Battle Bar, which has, em, axe throwing.. among other things. Augmented reality features. Well, I missed it at Shocktober..
On the 16th, I'm back with the LCMTG for The Cardinall's Musick, performing a choral concert at St. Martin in the Fields.
On the 17th, The Hideout persuaded me to go to Ti West's X trilogy - Pearl, X, and MaXXXine - at the PCC. Never seen any of them before. Lord knows when I'll have time to eat..
And on the 18th, meeting James for our monthly get-together at The Phoenix - it's the only weekend he can, and he prefers Saturday. Ivan can't make it - no word from Martin yet.
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