Siwan has been running these Haunted Hampstead Halloween walks for ten years now. I’ve been on board since 2020 with a sabbatical last year when I went up to the RSC dahhling. They are a delight and we sell out every year. Very occasionally my friends decide to book and come. I don’t sell it hard intentionally as I know it will sell anyway and there’s no joy in playing to an audience who have booked because they think you need them to book.
I’ve started to recognise the regulars now. One guy this evening in particular caught me at the end. We stop by the pergola, and I had struggled to find anything even slightly spooky about that place. He told me that the earth to build it was pulled up from deep underground when they made Hampstead tube station, and that got me thinking about chtonic entities and how ancient earth can attract incomprehensible energies. He was happy to see how I’ve built that one conversation in a pub into the weft of my peculiar tour.
The whole crowd though, tonight – so many of them were familiar. You run something for ten years with such a small audience, of course it begins to attract the same strange people, just like that deep and ancient earth pulls entities. We hard cap it at 40 and that’s enough. Even then I’m having to fluff for ages while they catch up. I found myself wittering on about the nature of the George cross this evening on the top of Hampstead hill.
We all marched out on the heath again and I had friends from Wilderness Festival in the audience. People from my deep warm summertime connection event were with me as I strode into the darkness. These regular performance jobs where I curate and generate the content, they help make sense of this strange existence I’m carving out, all about connection and transformation and shifting energy. I was very happy to know that Gen and Ellie were there tonight. Last time I saw them I was working through some things in a summer field. God knows what I’m doing out there on the heath but it’s positive work in the darkness.
I’m knackered now and making pasta. Should probably stop it boiling. The cats want attention. It’s already late. A good night. A good night. A good night. Eat. Bed. Wash?
AlBarclay 