A magical new programme featuring all sorts of spell-binding delights has been unveiled for this year’s world-renowned Derry Halloween celebrations in  Northern Ireland, which run from 28th – 31st October.

Among the highlights is the debut appearance of the wonderful Rodafonio, the weirdest musical contraption in the world, created by renowned designer and musician Cesar Alvarez. Also adding an international flavour to the festivities are the Stelzen-Art Time Travellers, bringing their enchanting illuminations from Germany to the city’s Cathedral Quarter.

The City Walls are once again a stage for magic and mayhem this year, and visitors will witness all sorts of spectacles in the Witchy Wonderland created by In Your Space Circus. The ramparts will provide the perfect atmospheric backdrop for some dazzling fire performances and ghostly goings on.  

The core Derry Halloween festival programme will run from Monday 28th to Thursday 31st October, with the ‘Awakening the Walled City Trail’ transforming the town centre from Monday to Wednesday from 6pm – 9pm, and plenty of festivities taking place on 31st October – Halloween day itself – culminating in the dazzling Halloween Carnival Parade and fireworks over the River Foyle.

The Guildhall Production Studio, part of the famed Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London, make a welcome return animating two of the city centre’s famous landmarks, the Austins Building and the Bishop Street Courthouse, with bespoke installations bringing to life some well-known Derry ghost stories. 

Crossing Derry’s Peace Bridge, visitors will enter the ethereal Elemental Garden, an ambient and mesmerising celebration of darkness and light, as visualised by landscape spectacle specialists LUXE.

The programme is delivered by Derry City and Strabane District Council and funded by Tourism Northern Ireland and The Executive Office (Northern Ireland), with support from Ulster University. 

Mayor of Derry and Strabane, Councillor Lilian Seenoi Barr, said: “Derry just comes alive at Halloween and it really is a wonderful time to experience all the City and District has to offer in terms of hospitality and entertainment. It’s great to see the City’s famous Walls once again showcased in the Awakening the Walled City Trail event, which creates such a buzz around the city centre, bringing great benefit to local businesses in the build up to Halloween itself.”

This year a number of live music events will also be taking place at venues across the city, as well as ghastly ghost tours, haunted houses, spooky story-telling and creepy arts and crafts. Halloween favourites Spark will once again be making some noise during the festival, with a banging performance that never fails to draw the crowds. 

The wider programme of events taking place across the City and District include the Castlederg Apple Fair taking place on October 25th and 26th, and the Scarecrow Trail in Newtownstewart. There will also be a wide range of events and activities taking place in Strabane town centre.

Halloween night itself sees the return of the Halloween Carnival Parade featuring hundreds of performers from local clubs, schools and community organisations, who will help to bring this year’s ‘Festival of the Dead’ theme to life. It all culminates in a blaze of colour over the Foyle as the annual Halloween Fireworks display brings the festival to a close. 

Looking ahead to the programme, Ciaran Doherty, Head of Regions at Tourism Northern Ireland, said: “Tourism NI is delighted to be once again supporting the Derry Halloween event. The festival sets Derry firmly as the `Home of Halloween’, highlighting the Celtic origins of Halloween and the city’s rich artistic, historical, cultural and architectural offering.”

If you or your group would like to enjoy the Derry Halloween celebrations on a tailor-made tour of Northern Ireland, please do contact our friendly team today.

All photos of Derry Halloween © Tourism Ireland.