Apart from being my old man's birthday, October 31st is a curious holiday and marks the start of a fairly dark week of entertainment (up to Guy Fawkes Night) so why not get involved rather than staying in and getting strung out on spiced wine and pumpkin soup.

Parties make Halloween worth celebrating and there are plenty of events going on around the country. London sees several club nights rolling out on the 30th including Planet Nollywood (DJ sets from Robots In Disguise, Earl Okin and Trash Fashion - £13 with loads of raffle prizes and trick or treats!), White Light @ Lexington, Islington (Prizes for best costume, free vodka) and a special Halloween gathering at The Underground Restaurant, Kilburn. You may have seen this amazing idea on the TV - one woman opens her secret location to eager diners craving real and proper food without paying stupid prices and Halloween has inspired her to deliver champagne and a summer house for hire. £25 a head (extra for the summer-house) and authentic fare - you'd be daft to miss it (there is another meal planned for Halloween itself). Bristol also offers the same thing with the Secret Service Supper Club in a Quaker meeting house for £20.

And so to the magical night itself - If you wanna be a freak (and you can't help yourself) then head to Jodie Harsh's Birmingham bonanza at Gatecrasher, Broad Street. The dragster is sure to put on a right royal freaky show for £12. Nottingham as a Halloween All-Nighter at Rock City for just a fiver, while Manchester's infamous Sankeys has enlisted the talents of The Martinez Brothers and Greg Vickers to help you lose your inhibitions for £12. Check out the links below for further details of other nights around the country.

Back to the Capital and Horse Meat Disco and Lee Burridge head up the cobweb-blasting night planned for a secret warehouse location (£14) as part of the ultimate fancy-dress event. Fancy something cheaper but no less classy? Bow in London's East End offers up the All Hallows Eve Music Festival @ The Victoria for just £4 for an all-day dress-up fest with a horror-film cinema and BBQ. Bargain!

For a more family-orientated evening, you might like to try the Halloween Fireworks Ghost Train on the Battlefield Line Railway in Shackerstone, Leicestershire. Ideal for kids and adults, it's a train ride full of surprises and spooky moments. A BBQ adds to the evening and tickets range from £6.35 to £28.90. The whole journey takes place on Sat 24th October.

Whatever you choose there is plenty on offer - check out the links below....