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Meet some of The Elf Challenge Masters who train all the Honorary Elflets at The Elf Adventure Challenge

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The Elf Adventure Challenge trains the children of England to be honorary Elves; so if Santa needs extra help during the festive season they can be trained and ready! Based on the storybook ‘Sprout’s Elf Adventure Challenge’ the festive, family event brings Christmas spirit and fun for all the family.

So we thoughts you’d like to meet some of the specially selected Elves sent from the North Pole to be your Elf Challenge Masters….

Meet Baubles the Elf…Elf Challenge Master at The Ice Cream Farm, Cheshire…

Meet Ginger the Elf…Elf Challenge Master at The Ice Cream Farm, Cheshire…

Meet Dougal the Elf…Elf Challenge Master at Red House Farm, Cheshire…

 

Meet Troy the Elf…Elf Challenge Master at Red House Farm, Cheshire and Trentham Gardens, Stoke on Trent

Meet Eve (full name Christmas Eve!) the Elf…Elf Challenge Master at Trentham Gardens, Stoke-on-Trent…

Meet Winter the Elf…Elf Challenge Master at The Ice Cream Farm, Cheshire and Red House Farm, Cheshire..

 

Meet Tingle the Elf……Elf Challenge Master at Trentham Gardens, Stoke-on-Trent…

 

 

To buy a copy of ‘Sprout’s Elf Adventure Challenge’ Christmas storybook go here 

To download ‘The Elf March’ Christmas single by Pumpaa and the Sprouts go here 

 

Elves top 3 favourite, easy Christmas recipes to make…

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elf festive treatsElves top 3 favourite recipes –

As you know Santa’s Elves love all things yummy and have a varied diet of foods from the 4 food groups – Candy, Candy Corns, Candy Canes and Syrup! 

And as its less than a week until Christmas, Pumpaa Elf has let us into some of his secret recipes direct from the North Pole and has allowed us to share them with you so that you can enjoy some yummy Elf treats this Christmas with your family.

He has given us his top 3 recipes for Christmas treats that you can easily make at home with your family. So get ready to eat like the Elves this Christmas eve!

THE BEST HOT CHOCOLATE….

Oreo Hot Chocolate…. 

Using Oreos for your hot chocolate recipe turns regular hot chocolate into a unique, creamy drink.

INGREDIENTS

  • 3 cups milk
  • 10-15 Oreos, crushed
  • 50 grams dark or white chocolate
  • Freshly whipped cream
  • Oreo pieces

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Place 2 cups of milk in small pan Add the crushed Oreos and gently heat.
  2. Once the milk begins to simmer, remove it from the heat and allow it to fully cool.
  3. The milk will have significantly thickened from the cookies. Add the remaining 1 cup of milk and mix well. Strain the milk. Heat the Oreo milk in the pan or in the microwave until it is hot.
  4. Melt the dark or white chocolate and divide it among your desired mugs. Pour some Oreo milk into each mug and mix with the chocolate. Then add the remaining Oreo milk.
  5. Spoon some freshly whipped cream on top and decorate with Oreo pieces.

THE BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

INGREDIENTS

  • 250g plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 170g unsalted butter, melted
  • 220g packed brown sugar
  • 100g white sugar
  • drops of vanilla extract
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 335g chocolate chips
  • Pinch of salt

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Grease baking trays or line with greaseproof paper.
  2. Sift the flour and baking soda into a bowl, then add the salt.
  3. In another bowl, mix together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar thoroughly.
  4. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy.
  5. Mix in the flour mixture until well combined.
  6. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon.
  7. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
  8. Preheat your oven to 165 degrees C (325 degrees F).
  9. Roll the dough into a sausage and cut into equal discs. Spread onto baking trays with at least 3 inches space in between in one.
  10. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking trays for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

CHOCOLATE MINCE PIES

This recipe combines two of the best things about Christmas – mince pies and chocolate – you can’t argue with that!!

INGREDIENTS

  • 280g plain flour, sifted 
  • 125g icing sugar, sifted 
  • 50g cocoa powder, sifted 
  • pinch salt
  • 200g cold butter, diced 
  • 2 free-range egg yolks
  • 500g ready-made mincemeat
  • 2 clementines, zest and juice
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1 free-range egg, beaten

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Mix the flour, icing sugar, cocoa powder and salt together in a bowl. Mix in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
  2. Stir in the egg until the mixture comes together in clumps (you may need to a little cold water). Knead the dough briefly until smooth, wrap in clingfilm and leave to chill in the fridge for one hour.
  3. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
  4. Mix the mincemeat, clementine zest and juice together in a bowl.
  5. Remove the pastry from the fridge, and roll out to a thickness of 0.5cm/¼in. Using a 7.5cm/3in fluted cutter, stamp out 12 discs from the pastry and use them to line a 12-hole bun tin. Fill each hole with two teaspoons of the mincemeat mixture and brush the edges with a little milk.
  6. Using a 6cm/2½in fluted cutter, cut out 12 circles and use them to top the mince pies, pressing the edges together with your fingertips. Re-roll any remaining pastry and cut our snowflakes or star shapes to decorate the top. Brush the top of each mince pie with beaten egg and gently place the decorations on top, then brush again with egg.
  7. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the pastry is cooked through.

Happy baking and tasting!! Send us your pictures of your yummy Christmas treats! And share you wining Christmas recipes with us too!

To see our top festive books to read whilst you are tucking into your yummy treats see here 

 

8 Festive Book Recommendations to Read with the Children this Christmas

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childrens christmas story books

Our favourite Christmas story books for children

There are so many things to love about Christmas with the kids, but one of the best things is snuggling up together with a Christmas story! There is a tradition in Iceland called Jolabokaflod which involves people giving a gift of a book to a loved on Christmas Eve and then snuggling down with Hot Chocolate and reading their book straightaway. We think this is such a lovely tradition and one that should be adopted all over the world. And what is better than snuggling down with your little ones and reading  Children’s Christmas book?!

So here is our round-up of favourite Children’s Christmas books, whether you start them on the 1st December (we have already started ours though as we have so many to get through!) or read them on Christmas Eve, we hope you make time for reading together this Christmas. Such precious and short lived moments are to treasure…..

1/ Santa Claus; the Book of Secrets – Russell Ince

Age 5+

This is our favourite and one the we get out every year (hence the worn look of it!)

Santa Claus the Secrets answers everyone’s questions about how the magic world of Santa works; from the Elves and where they live, to how Santa delivers all the toys in one night, how he works with special helpers around the world to succeed in his gift of joy and what happens throughout the year in the North Pole plus so much more.

A beautifully written, collection of chapters, each one covering a different aspect of the magical world. We do one chapter a night in the nights leading up to Christmas. They are only short too so a great, magical insight which can be dipped in and out or devoured in one go! You children will never be able to question the logistics again!

Buy ‘Santa Claus Book of Secrets’ by Russell Ince here from Amazon 

santa claus book of secrets

2/ Father Christmas and Me – Matt Haig

Age 7+

father Christmas and me Matt Haig

This is part of a series of 3 books, including ‘A boy Call Christmas’ and ‘The Girl who Saved Christmas’. All 3 are amazing stories and they do link together with this ‘Father Christmas and Me’ being the final one of the three and for us it’s our favourite. In the first book we see how father Christmas became Father Christmas. In the second one we meet Mary (to become Mrs Christmas) and Amelia the human girl who ends up going to live in Elfhelm with father Christmas. The third book is about her first Christmas in Elfhelm and being accepted by the Elves. It has its dark moments and is probably recommended for age 7+due to this. For ages 7-10 I would read it with them (and even after that I would anyway as I love it so much!)It is not only an amazing story set in a magical world, and therefore keeping the spirit and magic of Christmas alive for children for longer. It  also has some brilliant core messages and thought provoking ideas to discuss with the kids.

Buy ‘Father Christmas and Me’ by Matt Haig here from Amazon

The new one from Matt Haig about one of the characters in this series, ‘The Truth Pixie’ has just been released and we can’t wait to read that!

3/ Sprout’s Elf Adventure Challenge – Helen Nurse

Age 2+

childrens christmas book

This was written to accompany the event ‘The Elf Adventure Challenge’ and is the story of Sprout the Elf and how she does her Elf training and the important lessons that she learns about the true spirit of Christmas along the way. Beautifully illustrated, a lovely picture book for 3- 8 year olds to read with their parents.

Buy ‘Sprout’s Elf Adventure Challenge’ by Helen Nurse on Amazon here 

4/ The Night Before Christmas – Richard Scarry (and various others!)

Age 2+

the night before christmas richard scarry

A staple in our household read for us on Christmas Eve just before the kids go to bed. We do the reindeer dust, put out the treats for Santa and cuddle up to read The Night Before Christmas. There are lots of versions of course and all are lovely. This is one of our copies.

But our kids just love Richard Scarry. If you haven’t read any of his books before you really should. They are the kind of books that every time you read them you see something different! The children love them as there is so much to look at ad point out. The characters are a bit random and have funny names and we love that! And this version of The Night Before Christmas is just a bit different and more fun that a lot of the traditional ones. And who doesn’t like maximum fun at Christmas?!

Buy ‘The Night before Christmas’ by Richard Scarry on Amazon here 

 

richard scarry the night before christmas

5/ Little Owl and the Star – Mary Murphy

Age 2+

little owl and the star by mary murphy

A board book or younger children, a really nice take on the Christmas story, quality illustrations and small enough to pop in your handbag as a boredom busting story when you are out and about this December!

Buy Little Owl and the Star by Mary Murphy from Amazon here

6/ The Snowman – Raymond Briggs

Age 2+

the snowman by raymond briggs

One of the most famous festive stories of the last 30 years! Of course it started out as a animation and the story has come from there. We love to listen to the audio version with the music accompanying it (the one read by James Nesbitt is the best in my opinion!)

But we also love to read the book and my 2 year old loves to look at the pictures as the illustrations are so beautiful considering their origination.

Buy ‘The Snowman’ by Raymond Briggs, version with the CD (which we think is the best as the music is so amazing!) from Amazon here 

7/ Mog’s Christmas – Judith Kerr

Age 2+

mogs christmas bt judith Kerr

We love Mog! Maybe because we are a cat family! And this is another good one for the littlies! Mog is not happy about the Christmas upheaval in the house! Will she ever come down from the snowy roof?!

Buy ‘Mog’s Christmas’ by Judith Kerr from Amazon here

8/ A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens

Age 7+

A christmas carol by charles dickens

Not a traditional Children’s story, there are Children’s versions of the story and I think it is such an important story for children to know, that introducing a version of it when they are young is good to do. I am also a big fan of reading a book before seeing the film and since there are various children’s film versions of the tale now, reading it first gives more magic to the tale. When I was a child my uncle recorded an audio tape of the story and I listened to it constantly at Christmas time. There is a great sense of nostalgia for me around the story as a result and I think it’s great to create those future moments for our children too.

So that’s’ our top 8 – but there are so many more amazing Christmas stories! Please let us know your favourites and share your Christmas reads with us.

See also ‘Why we start the Christmas Magic in November’

and ‘Elves Best toy picks for Christmas 2018’

To book tickets for The Elf Adventure Challenge CLICK HERE

Why Santa’s Elves don’t do Black Friday…….

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santa and his elves book illustration

Black Friday is one aspect of the human world that Elves really don’t get!

For a start, the word black – what is black about an Elves word or Christmas? Nothing!! Believe me the only black you find at the North Pole is the sky and this is full of twinkling stars!

The second thing that doesn’t sit well with Elves is the emphasis on consumption, greed and materialism. Santa’s Elves are obviously into, no not just into; PASSIONATE; about making toys and giving gifts. But not because they are the latest gadget or for the sake of having. And it’s certainly not about quantity; it’s about quality!  The ethos of Santa and his Elves is to give thoughtful gifts that mean a lot to children and make them feel loved and special. Often this can be one, carefully chosen toy that is perfect for that child and what pushes their excited buttons!  It’s parents that often think they have to pile the gifts up and achieve quantity over quality! The spirit of Christmas is all about thinking about others, being kind, helpful and loving. So linking Black Friday with Christmas is not something that true Elves are keen to do!

The third aspect is to do with the world around us. Santa and his Elves live in a secret, magical, unspoilt part of the earth, which luckily humans cannot get to. But the Elves still want to encourage humans to look after the human inhabited part of the world. And encouraging over consumption of ‘stuff’ doesn’t do that!

And lastly, Christmas is mostly about magical memories. The letters that Santa receives (like this one)…that ask for non-material things are his favourite. Ok, he sadly cannot always deliver on the request but he does his best and where he cannot he will try to help with a gift instead.

 

santa letter from child

 

buddy the elf

 

Time with the family is something that a lot of children write to Santa about and it’s not just kids who want time with parents; adults want time with kids. And spending time with kids over the Christmas period has such a magical impact on grown up’s and allows them to release their inner child and celebrate the magic and joy that is Christmas.

 

So we Elves would much prefer that instead of accepting all the Black Friday marketing blurb, instead come up with some plans for your time in December where you can spend time together as a family and feel the true spirit of Christmas together.

elf adventure challenge family event

To book on the Elf Adventure Challenge and come on a fun filled, festive family adventure INFORMATION AND BOOK HERE 

Why we start the Christmas magic in November….

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christmas at home

 

If you start to blast out Christmas songs in November, invariably you get someone within minutes telling you ‘it’s too early’ and ‘you shouldn’t even be thinking about Christmas until December” and other varying phrases at different levels on the grumpy “don’t say the ‘C’ word yet!

But for us, as soon as the last sparkler goes out on Bonfire night, then it’s time for Mulled Wine, mince pies, Christmas music and movies!! And why not? Especially if you have kids.

I worked out that for each child, if you assume they are into the full on Christmas magic for 10 years (which obviously might be more or less depending on the child). And discounting the first year as they obviously would rather rip up a cardboard box and likely cling to you and howl if you try and get them to meet the Big Man; that means you have on average 9 Christmas’s to really feel the magic with your child. To put it bluntly. If you don’t start getting excited with your nippers until December, then you only have a total of 27 weeks of singing Christmas songs, or put another way; just 189 days of festive magic with your under 10!!!

Of course my wish if for my kids to continue to watch Nativity, Elf and listen to Slade with me until we can then do the same with their children!! But being realistic about it, once they turn into teenagers, you can’t always do exactly the same magical stuff you can do when they are little.

Of course if you have more than one child and depending on how spread out they are, you may have many more days than this. I am lucky to have 9 years between my eldest and youngest and so I double the numbers here in terms of magical Christmas days!

But that’s why I want to double them again!! Ultimately what’s the harm in the excitement starting in November? I don’t put our tree up until Dec 1st, mainly because it would be thread bear and looking very sorry for itself by Dec 25th! But there is nothing wrong with a good Christmas movie, sing song or Christmas story in November.

And to those Scrooges who mutter about commercialism and companies being greedy and all that jazz; they clearly fail to see the benefits to the economy that a bit of Christmas excitement brings to the country. If a company is doing well selling products or magical Christmas experiences, food or drink, then they in turn plough that back into the economy, which provides jobs and income, resulting in money being spent all year round and ultimately families therefore being able to have a happier Christmas!

So, for me; Christmas has many far reaching benefits; doing magical experiences together with our family has far reaching benefits for the community and ultimately and fundamentally magical time with our kids has far reaching benefits for our family. So we want to make the most of that!!

So come on get the Christmas songs on the speaker, make some mince pies and enjoy some quality time together. Life is short and childhood is ever more fleeting so let’s relish in the magic while we can. Let’s also reclaim some of the magic of our past and see how good it is for our soul! I know singing loudly to ‘Feed the World’ reminds me of what is important and nourishes my soul!!

buddy the elf

Here are 5 great Christmas activities to do with the kids in November:

1/Make mince meat. Unless you are one of those super organised types who does it in January (do they exist?!) chances are you won’t have done this. And if you have never made your own mince pies before preferring to fall back on shop bought ones; but believe me they are so much nicer. And making mince-meat is so easy and non-accurate that it’s a brilliant cooking activity that the kids can get really involved in – and who doesn’t love a good old mix?!!

2/ Plan the Christmas dinner together– still on food (let’s face it, it’s one of the best things about Christmas!) getting the kids involved in planning the Christmas feast is something that they love and also is a lot of fun, plus it actually is helpful to get ahead! As we all know once December starts its such mayhem, time for planning is few and far between. So actually some time leafing through glossy Christmas magazines and recipes and getting the kids to cut out and make a montage of their favourite pictures and tastiest ideas if a great way to get them on board with food education and appreciation too!

3/ Santa letters! Everyone knows that Santa appreciates being given some time! After all he can’t make everyone’s toys in one month! So the earlier the kids do their letters the easier it makes it for the Big Man!

4/ Christmas movies!! You can’t beat an Autumn Sunday afternoon snuggled on the sofa with a movie and hot chocolate. And if you leave it until December, chances are all your weekends will be jammed packed and you’ll realise you haven’t watched any of the Christmas movies that you wanted to. So why not start now! Let’s be honest you can’t beat a good Christmas movie so make the most of them from now! Our favourites for watching in November are Nativity (and any of the sequels!), Home Alone and Elf!

5/ Christmas stories!! There are so many great Christmas books and stories if you wait until December to start reading them all you don’t get enough time to read them all! So start reading the Christmas stories with the kids in November and they will love it (as will you!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To organise an amazing family festive activity with Elves from he North Pole find out about The Elf Adventure Challenge 

Half term and Halloween fun and events for families

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half term kids

The leaves are falling, the weather is turning and the nights are getting darker – cue October half term fun with the kids!!

So as usual we’ve got our round up of holiday fun activities and events to do with the kids; including free and paid activities; scary and non-scary, day and night; there is something for every family!

So get your planner out and check out these great events and activities for October half term for the kids…

Hocus Pocus Adventure  Challenge; school of Wizardry at Rivendell Garden Centre

school of wizardry rivendell garden centre

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mon 22nd October

Let Merlin the Wizard take you through your own exciting Wizard School!

Enjoy wizard themed challenges, games and much more. Learn the Wizard anthem, wand technique and broomstick riding and at the end be awarded your very own certificate as an honorary Wizard!

Interactive, high energy, wizard themed fun workshop for your under 10’s.

This is a one hour, immersive and fun filled session!!

2 sessions available, pre-booing essential

Hocus Pocus Adventure Challenge; school of Wizardry at Rivendell Garden Centre

Red House Farm, Dunham Massey

Thousands of pumpkins across the fields mean its one of the best locations for Pumpkin picking in the North West. Add to this half term fun including Spook hunt, the barrel train, climbing wall, inflatables and fancy dress competition AND Hocus Pocus School of Wizardy is also running from Thurs 25th – Sun 28th Oct.

More information here –

http://www.redhousefarm.co.uk/halloween.html

Red house farm pumpkin picking

Bents Garden and Home; Pumpkin painting, Hocus Pocus School of Wizardry and much more

Children can enjoy pumpkin painting activities in the run up to Halloween.

Create a truly unique pumpkin using paints and glitter. Sessions cost £6, with tickets available online , and run 9am to 11am from October 25 to October 28.

And if your half term is running the week after then Hocus Pocus School of Wizardry is also taking place on Mon 29th and Tues 30th. Pre booking essential.

https://www.bents.co.uk/hocus-pocus-adventure-tuesday-31st-october-proret0180-1

pumpkin painting

Willow the Wisp and the Fire Sprite

Embark on a magical walkabout fairytale adventure Willo the Wisp & the Fire Sprite in parks and woodlands across Merseyside this autumn. Enrol at Wizard School and go on a quest with the Story Wizard to find the Wisp and save the Fire Sprite Princess Ember.

Along the way you will meet lots of fairytale characters – trees elves, fire sprites, white witches, gnomes, wisps and trolls; in beautiful locations around the parks.  You can choose to go on your adventure by daylight or twilight depending on how brave you feel. Music, dance, light, fairies and fire will bewitch your mind and dazzle your senses – wrap up warm and don’t miss this spectacular family walkabout adventure!

Various dates from 21st Oct – 4th November Book here

Halloween in the City; Manchester city centre

Saturday 27 & Sunday 28 October 2018

Plenty of tricks. Plenty more treats. Mark the arrival of Halloween with a weekend of terrifyingly good events. Featuring: momentous monsters, petrifying parades, a trick or treat trail and a gigantic ghostly gathering  – plus events and offers from the biggest, baddest names in shopping, food and drink.

https://www.visitmanchester.com/ideas-and-inspiration/halloween-in-the-city

mManchester halloween event

Beeston castle

Enjoy crafts, stories, and hands-on activities this Halloween half term at Beeston Castle and Woodland Park. Dress to scare in our daily fancy dress competition.

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/whats-on/beeston-creepy-castle-oct-nov-2018/

Sat 27 Oct – Sun 4 Nov 2018 11-4pm

 

Museums at Night: Trick or Treat Experience

Saturday 27 October 2018
Lion Salt Works, Northwich

Aimed at children aged 4-9. Join for a night of frights at the museum as we lock the doors and meet the ghostly characters who come out to play at night. Put on your scariest costume and join our ghostly tours around the site, go trick or treating in a safe environment, and listen to spooky stories about the mysterious happenings at the salt works. 4.30pm will be our Autism Friendly Tour, with a quieter tour and lights on.
http://lionsaltworks.westcheshiremuseums.co.uk/

Manchester Science Festival

Get hands on and up close with scientists, hackers, coders, artists, musicians, experiments, explosions, space and lots more this half term from 22 October to 1 November at the 9th Manchester Science Festival.  The 11 day exploration and celebration of the wonders of science features largely free and drop-in activities, shows and events for all ages at the museum and many venues across Greater Manchester.

http://www.manchestersciencefestival.com

Brick or Treat LEGOLAND Discovery Centre Manchester

20 Oct – 04 Nov

This October bring your little monsters to the LEGOLAND® Discovery Centre Manchester and get into the Halloween spirit with our Brick or Treat event!

Featuring some fun spook-tacular activities such as:

  • Creepy creations – Add your creation to our LEGO® pumpkin patch
  • ‘Scarevenger’ hunt
  • Spooky stop motion animation
  • Meet and greet with our new Halloween character mascot!
  • Scarily themed mini land
  • Limited Edition pop-badges and factory bricks whilst stocks last

Not only that but all little Vampires go free! – All kids who come down to this event in Halloween costume will gain free entry into the attraction! Please note; 1 free child per paying adult.

Brick or Treat is on from 20October – 4November … BOOk now before those naughty LEGO® ghosts beat you to it!

https://manchester.legolanddiscoverycentre.co.uk/tickets/

Wicked treats at the Trafford Centre

Visitors to the Trafford Centre will be treated to special performances from the West End and Broadway musical sensation Wicked.

The show is returning to Manchester for one last time this December and to celebrate cast members will appear on the main stage in The Orient to perform a selection of songs from the show.

Performances will take place at various times over the weekend of Saturday, October 27 and Sunday, October 28.

Fans will also be able to get up close and personal with some of the production’s award-winning costumes, which will be on display in the Main Dome from the Sunday for three weeks.

During October half term the shopping centre is being transformed for the spooky celebration.

The annual intu trick or treat family event is taking place on Thursday, October 25 and Friday, October 26, from 10am to 2pm.

Little trick or treaters can pick up their free special Halloween bucket from the customer services desk and then scour the centre for specially decorated pumpkins in spooky windows to collect their treats.

Trafford Centre, Trafford, Manchester, M17 8AA.

wicked trafford centre

Halloween Ghost Trains, East Lancashire Railway

Ghost trains will be rattling through Greater Manchester on the East Lancashire Railway again this Halloween.

A ghastly cast of giggling ghouls, ghosts and goblins will be joining any passengers brave enough to board the spooky steam train services from Bury to Rawtenstall and back.

There’ll be goody bags full of tricks and treats for every child as well as food and drink for everyone at the station buffet.

Bury Transport Museum will also be hosting a creepy craft workshop as part of the fun.

The ghost train is running on October 26, 27 and 31, at 5.30pm, 6.30pm, 7.30pm and 8.30pm each day.

Tickets are on sale now, priced at £15.50 for adults and £9.50 for children aged 3 to 17, on the website here.

East Lancashire Railway, Bolton Street, Bury, BL9 0EY.

Halloween at Blackpool Pleasure Beach

Blackpool welcomes Vampire Pleasure Beach this Halloween.

A drive-in cinema will screen three horror classics for older ones with Nightmare on Elm Street, The Conjuring 2 and Halloween H:20 between October 29 and 31.

Guests are invited to enjoy the thrills, spills and screams at the popular amusement park, all from the comfort of their own car.

The drive-in cinema is just one of a series of spooky events at the attraction.

From October 27 Vampire Pleasure Beach will be transformed into a spine-tingling sight, with zombies, vampires and goblins around every corner.

Visitors are encouraged to ‘dress to thrill’ in their spookiest costumes, while the Spooky Maze will also provide a fright with ghosts and ghouls around every corner, and park visitors can ride into the twilight with a special late night experience. A magnificent firework display will finish the evening at 10pm.

For little ones Creepy Hollow comes alive between October 20 and 31, an interactive experience with some gruesome real life animals, such as giant snails, cockroaches and snakes.

Pumpkin carving and face painting will also be available from October 26 to 28

For further details on dates, tickets and age restrictions visit the website here.

Screamania Halloween Family Fun event, Reddish Vale Park

20th to 28th October 2018.

Lots of spooky fun for all the family to enjoy across the half term. From live actors, special effects, spooky challenges and lots more. See here for all the details .

spooky vale