Upcoming: Wicked London Treats for Halloween

Mairiona Cotter goes in search of London ghosts and ghouls.

Don’t let trick-or-treaters have all the fun this Halloween! October 31 will be with us soon – and there’s no better time to escape to London for some autumnal thrills and chills. We can’t promise bats, witchcraft and a full moon, but there are some wicked treats to be had in the capital.

Get spooked on a ghost walk – there are plenty to choose from and Jack the Ripper tours of the East End are packed with bloodcurdling tales of Victorian London. Snuggle up later under the covers later in the atmospheric luxury of The Rookery near Smithfield Market, scene of dark deeds and skulduggery in times past.

Check out the Fortnum & Mason store on Piccadilly, set to be transformed into a ghoulish den for Halloween with sweet treats, pumpkins and special menus. It’s just a witch’s broomstick jaunt from Hazlitt’s, a den of deepest comfort in darkest Soho.

Don your killer costumes and head for Ham House in Richmond, where a lantern-lit tour with drinks and canapés is on the cards at Halloween as you listen to tales of creepy hauntings. It’s just down the road from The Bingham , perched right on the River Thames and the coolest spot for miles around. Stay in one of the River rooms and you can soak in a double whirlpool bath, too.

Had enough of ghoulish goings-on? Leave your cloaks and masks at home and simply fall for the Edwardian magic spell of The Draycott, near Sloane Street. Crack open the bubbly and watch a scary movie while safely snuggled together under the duvet – fancy dress optional.

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