Let's be clear about this from the start. This sort of activity means you will have to sit for up to 90 minutes in a confined area, or at least in the vicinity of your seats and listen and watch what can best be described as a group of professional dancers/actors etc trying to retain a modicum of dignity as they prance around in garish costumes entertaining under 5s. In terms of street cred, they have none. After you are seen going to one of these, you won't either...

If you're fed up with the usual Halloween consumerism, try something a little bit different. Pumpkins are the best form of self expressionism at this time of year. Try Extreme Pumpkins for inspiration! Also worth a try is Dawn of the Zombie Pumpkins

The retail giants are desperately trying to cash in on Halloween at the moment, offering a variety of ghoulish accessories to scare your toddler witless. The big supermarkets all seem to be offering cheap tat which probably only has a 50% chance of lasting through the evening.

Whilst it may seem like a reasonable idea to send older kids out for a couple of hours to beg for their sweet allocation for the week, you have to ask yourself whether you really want to encourage the under fives to acquire a collection of Haribos & Smarties that are likely to be consumed within the hour and lead to tantrums as they bounce off the ceiling.