On the 1st November 2014 six of us from Alterego Fancy dress attended the annual Spooktacular scare event at the Heart of England Centre, Meriden. The event itself consisted of a three course meal, disco and games, along with a unique themed scare attraction set within the forest-land surrounding the site (more details on that later).
Many of our team had been to one of these shows before however this was my first time. I, along with my wife, have been to ‘scare-fests’ before so had some idea of what to expect….and yet we saw none of it coming!
We all kitted ourselves out with top costumes….as did everyone who was there. When we arrived it was obvious that no expense was spared – the centre lavishly decorated with Halloween staples such as cobwebs, tombstones & ghouls along with horror props and characters from films. All tables surrounded a stage which was book-ended by two large movie screens showing iconic scenes from classic horror films whilst all of the ‘victims’ mingled and meandered their way to the tables. A mixture of Death & Heavy Metal boomed through the speakers to complete a ‘Horror-Assault’ on the senses!
I find Halloween parties a surreal experience at the best of times, due to the experience of seeing so many people in-character as something generally frightful or unpleasant. The feeling of fun and freedom is addictive and contagious – and there was no lack of it here! The atmosphere that was created was palpable! Where else would you see an 8 foot animatronic spider drop from the ceiling to dangle above the stage throughout the celebration?!
So…the scare event was structured to take enough people from two tables at a time. This means that throughout the night two tables at a time disappear for half an hour whilst the others have their delicious food served. This kept the flow of the evening going nicely (however we were all very glad that we weren’t on the last tables that finally got their turn at nearly midnight).
We were on table 12 which was pretty much bang in the middle. When our number was called we were led outside to a large truck (or, as we were told, an amphibious vehicle). We were driven deep into the forest towards an unknown building.
At this point its probably apt for me to set the scene!! At the start of the evening a compere, dressed as a Military official, stood and introduced the night’s festivities. We were all attending for a specific reason. In 1944 a number of brave soldiers died in this area of the forest due to the war – but their deaths had only recently been unearthed. We were all descendants of these soldiers and were legally obliged to pay our respects to them. The compere was brilliant, shouting at people from the stage and generally setting the tone of the evening “Be quiet! Treat this evening with dignity and respect, dammit!”
So we were on this truck to see where our loved ones departed this earth, so many years ago. The compere accompanies you as your guide…again shouting for order and quiet – very believable! Once off of the truck we were led into the compound, and this was where the fun (and fright) really began! Zombies begin bursting through doors and windows as we meandered our way through twisting corridors and rooms, frantically trying to find an exit. Towards the end we encounter the mastermind behind the undead – Dr Vivian Mortus. He explains that our dearly departed never really died – and that we were next in order for him to create an undead army of super-soldiers….no thanks!!
A mad dash to the exit ensues – everyone screaming as zombies advance on our position. Finally we got back on our truck and head back to the party although its not quite over. The zombies burst through the doors to the compound and ran after the truck almost all of the way back…phew!
When we got back to the centre the evening was in full swing with the disco up and running – so we were able to dance the night away….safe in the knowledge that the zombies were securely locked outside!
Everyone had a fabulous night. It was clear that no expense was spared for the scare event and the theme / story line really padded out what can sometimes be quite a repetitive affair. The compound was chock full of really believable zombies and scary moments. Absolutely loved it! I would recommend this evening to anyone who fancies immersing themselves deeper into Halloween, so next year watch out here for details of the upcoming event!
Thank you to the Heart of England for having us there, although we will be happy if we never have to go back to that compound ever again!!
Thanks
Chris J
Alterego Fancydress
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