Any ould nuts and apples for the Halloween party was our refrain. Goin round the houses we called it.

I was never allowed to “go round the houses” - sure we have enough nuts here for a party. Instead my Dad & I would walk the bonfires

Susan - You’re right - there is a danger in associating differences with location when the passing of time can be an explanation. Ireland’s Halloween has evolved - since long before the US existed of course and like most things is quite commercial though still different and more chaotic than its American cousin.

The one in England which has only been adopted in recent years is quite funny - because it ignores the traditions that informed Halloween in Ireland and in Scotland and apes a mish mash of popular culture mostly from the US - which yes is about as accurate at representing true Halloween there as Star Wars represents space travel.

I’ll confess to never having attended a gay Halloween parade when I lived in the US, but then I was probably paraded out. (Ha Ha!)

Quickroute - Shouldn’t the dunking have been voluntary? Your Halloween sounds like Halloween at Abu Ghraib.

The Halloween you see in the movies is nothing like real Halloween in the US. I collected candy in a pillowcase generally. It wasn’t that commercial in the US either back in the 70’s either.

Now only the gay parades are really any fun on Halloween - it’s a very grown up thing sans candy. More booze.

Unlike the pumpkin, the hollowing out of the turnip is not a scraping out affair and takes forever, the smaller size not making it any easier - and then you start the slow carving. Yep, only for the dedicated.

Next year I’m doing a potato - I think I’ll call it a Jacquet Potato (see what I did there?)

Sniffle - the bonfires aren’t as haphazard now it seems, but it could just be where we’re both living. The fire brigade in Dublin had a record year last year of 1,600 calls on Halloween. You should make cardboard masks, gooey ones of course, but you should really make them.

Primal - coins? What were you getting - florins? And sweets? Sweets were only starting to break into our world of nuts as I was growing out of going out. But you got no more of them than you did pieces of fruit. The Púca has a lot to answer for.

We sang at the door rather than knock to announce ourselves. We’d be invited into the kitchen and asked for a second song. Then the householders would “try” guess who we were, but never get it right. Sweets for the younger kids, coins for the older.

Those who didn’t welcome the Púca suffered having their gate tied up with barbedwire or other “punishment”, as was only right. Meas mór ar an Phúca.

What happened to the bonfires and the burning of the witch. And toffee apples. And those cardboard masks which went gooey around the mouthal area, gooey gorilla masks.

Good one Eolaí.

I do remember us roving around in loose mobs,knocking on doors and wheedling out an “Anything for Hallowe’eeeeeeen”
We might get some monkey nuts and an apple if we were lucky.
A fong up the hole if not.