Halloween Storytelling with music

A free event to share the fun and some history of Halloween.
Start Halloween with us at 2.30pm, come dressed in costume.

Guising is a very old tradition for Halloween with its deep roots in the ancient festival of Samhain. Not only in local Edinburgh history, but in the wider Gaidhealtachd of the Highlands and Islands, children wear disguises and carry lanterns carved from turnips to ward off the dark, so that when a doorbell rings, it is not merely a request for treats, more the long standing practice of sharing neighbourly warmth and hospitality, face to face, heart to heart, mind to mind.

The old Gaelic festival Samhain marks the turning of the year towards winter. For Celtic peoples it is the New Year, which begins in darkness - a threshold season. The harvest is gathered, the nights grow long and we turn towards the warmth of the hearth and one another. Traditionally, this was also a time for remembering those who had gone before - a season in which the boundary between past and present, the living and the dead, becomes thin.

On 31st October, members of Blackford & Grange Parish Church invite children, parents and individuals for an afternoon of stories, riddles, ballads and live music to pass on the memories of those who came before us; by allowing memories to travel from one generation to another, with voices carrying what might otherwise be lost.