Over in Highgate up on the hill there’s a little shop attached to a very lovely little distillery. It’s called Sacred Spirits. They got known for their gin. Their brand and location makes them an excellent match for Peculiar London with whom I do the Haunted Hampstead Halloween walk.
Peculiar London is, essentially, my mate Siwan. She’s been running the walk with or without me for just about ten years now. We met about halfway through and if I can do it, I will. I’ll put on a top hat and make up ridiculous stories and reframe true stories. Last year I couldn’t, I was up at the RSC darling. No such luck this year. This year I’m very much doing it and I need the work and the money thank you very much.
We cap the audience at about 40. It’s a bone of contention as I reckon I could manage more in exchange for more cashmoney, but it is also smart cus we do get very strung out sometimes. 40 means we won’t lose anyone. I can be heard by more, but there are actors as well jumping out and doing silly things. It’s very handmade, don’t get me wrong. It’s a pub walk with some silly things and a man in a top hat shouting at you. At one point we do a traditional silly oath called “Swearing on the horns,” and we give them all a shot of something odd.
This is where Sacred comes in. One year we had Rosehip gin, another year it was Cardamom gin. This year I went up Highgate hill and got a car load of spiced vermouth.
I’m off it now. That’ll be a new experience, running the walk sober. I know I can do it though, I’ve negotiated all aspects of my work sober before, and less than a month in I’m already at the “why was I ever drinking?” stage. This means, though, that I won’t know what the stuff tastes like. Still it isn’t my job to recommend it.
“Can you get some photos for the socials?”
I write a daily blog sure, but that doesn’t mean I’m good at that shit. “Hi, this is me getting the booze from Sacred…” Nah. I solved it with the help of the shop assistant by pretending to be Igor shuffling in to buy the stuff. Recorded it on one take through my GoPro glasses and the shop assistant was ace. That’s all it needed and I’m actually quite proud of it as a social media thing. Maybe I am good at that shit so long as I don’t take it seriously.
If you don’t come expecting high art, it’s a pleasant boozy evening in North London. There’s a crap prize for best audience costume. I won’t be doing the 27th. Gonna train in Canice and pay him for it… Hopefully nobody will die. But yeah, if there’s availability and you fancy it, let me know you’re coming in advance so I can try and work out something odd to do to you.
AlBarclay 