A frightfully fun evening is in store for the whole family this Saturday as the second annual Southend Halloween Parade returns to the City’s seafront.
This fantastic free event will take place on Saturday 29 October (6pm to 7.30pm) with a host of local and national acts in their best and spookiest attire creating a memorable procession of light and colour.
Over 50 community acts have signed up for the parade along with the return of crowd favourites, the Spark! drummers. Also taking part are Rampage, the Southend Ghostbusters and the weird and wonderful giant puppets of Tim Davies Design including the world’s first giant spider puppet - the Arachnobot! Local artist, Dave Taylor, will also resurrect last year’s giant witch puppet as well as showcase a brand-new corpse bride.
The parade is organised by Southend-on-Sea City Council, in association with the Southend Tourism Partnership.
Jacqui Dallimore, chair of Southend Tourism Partnership, said: “The Southend Tourism Partnership are delighted to see the return of the Halloween Parade this Saturday, as last year’s event was hugely popular with both residents and visitors. We’re looking forward to showcasing the community’s artistic flare with amazing professional looking entries.”
Cllr Carole Mulroney, cabinet member for environment, culture and tourism, said: “I am delighted that the Southend Halloween Parade has become a permanent fixture on the Southend City calendar, and we want it to be bigger and better each year. Involvement from local businesses and community groups will bring us together and put the parade on the map and is vital for our economic recovery.
“We are aiming to attract visitors from far and wide to hopefully arrive early to enjoy everything Southend has to offer before they experience a magical evening of spookiness and an amazing Halloween Parade. But please do plan your journey ahead especially if travelling on the C2C train line as major works are being carried out this weekend. For those driving, parking is free after 6pm.”
Full details about the Halloween Parade, including a route map and where to park (free parking from 6pm) can be found on the Southend Halloween Parade website.
Photos and a parking map are available on our Flickr site
Plan your journey ahead – Major interruption planned this weekend on C2C train line
Due to track maintenance work, the C2C line between Pitsea and Southend Central via Laindon will be closed. These services will start/terminate at Pitsea. A shuttle train service will be in place between Southend Central and Shoeburyness. Rail replacement will be in operation between Pitsea and Southend Central. Full details are available on the C2C website.