Screamfest 2023
Screamfest is back with 2 new attractions alongside a return of many old favourites, making 2023, their biggest event yet. Alongside the additions, the event has spread itself across the site with more catering units, fairground rides and live music, with the central areas all populated with amusing scare actors.
As we visited later in the season - we didn't need to wait until it was dark to try out the outdoor attractions, so headed to Creed Farm first. Now it would be churlish of us to comment on the state of the UK weather - but the pathway through the corn was completely sodden and was probably more appropriate for welly boots than shoes! Fortunately this didn't stop the extremely lively actors who were running about in the mud, and we had some fun scares throughout the field and some of the scenes within.
Of course - a few years back the corn field attraction was accessed via a trailer ride that dropped guests at the top of the field, but this has now been re-purposed for the new attraction Area 52. If you have experienced Zombie Outlaw at Farmaggedon, then you will know the general set up of this attraction - a trailer ride into the darkness with a number of "live" targets to shoot at along the way. The biggest different being the threat is alien this time, and after watching the impressive preshow , we were soon on board and loading up our paintballs.
Now one thing that we must stress on these experiences is the need for a bit of restraint when it comes to firing at everything. There really are only a limited number of paint balls and the temptation is to just unload them all into the first creature you see! Of course it helps that the hosts have a convenient debit machine to take payment for more paintballs, but it can be costly if you are too gung-ho! Although the whole experience is not inherently scary - it really is great fun.
Although originally announced to leave the event, Love Hurts returned for what now appears to be its last year. Subtitled Last Orders - the maze gave us some great scares and frights throughout, and the actors clearly appeared to be having fun with the scares. It's always a shame when a big attraction has to close, but it will be interesting to see what replaces it. After all - being built in the old cattle sheds from the farm - it has some unique features that work well in a scare attraction (such as the cage in the beginning.)
The other returning attractions all gave us fun visits, with Freak out on Tour and Hillbilly Joe's Zombee Zoo really mixing the frights with laughs, The final attraction in the line up was the totally disturbing Insomnia, which since its return last year, remains one of the freakiest mazes at the park as it completely recreates the random and obscure nature of dreams. In all three mazes we had some impressive scares and the actors were incredibly active throughout.
The final new feature for 2023 - was the Psycho Circus show in the big top, which mixed some impressive circus acts with some vaudeville freakshow type elements. With an engaging framing story and some great effects - it was really refreshing to see something so different and we hope that they get to come back to the event next year.
All in - we had a really enjoyable time at Screamfest this year, and it was exciting to see it getting bigger and bigger and providing more scares and entertainment to guests. We can't wait to see what the future holds!
As we visited later in the season - we didn't need to wait until it was dark to try out the outdoor attractions, so headed to Creed Farm first. Now it would be churlish of us to comment on the state of the UK weather - but the pathway through the corn was completely sodden and was probably more appropriate for welly boots than shoes! Fortunately this didn't stop the extremely lively actors who were running about in the mud, and we had some fun scares throughout the field and some of the scenes within.
Of course - a few years back the corn field attraction was accessed via a trailer ride that dropped guests at the top of the field, but this has now been re-purposed for the new attraction Area 52. If you have experienced Zombie Outlaw at Farmaggedon, then you will know the general set up of this attraction - a trailer ride into the darkness with a number of "live" targets to shoot at along the way. The biggest different being the threat is alien this time, and after watching the impressive preshow , we were soon on board and loading up our paintballs.
Now one thing that we must stress on these experiences is the need for a bit of restraint when it comes to firing at everything. There really are only a limited number of paint balls and the temptation is to just unload them all into the first creature you see! Of course it helps that the hosts have a convenient debit machine to take payment for more paintballs, but it can be costly if you are too gung-ho! Although the whole experience is not inherently scary - it really is great fun.
Although originally announced to leave the event, Love Hurts returned for what now appears to be its last year. Subtitled Last Orders - the maze gave us some great scares and frights throughout, and the actors clearly appeared to be having fun with the scares. It's always a shame when a big attraction has to close, but it will be interesting to see what replaces it. After all - being built in the old cattle sheds from the farm - it has some unique features that work well in a scare attraction (such as the cage in the beginning.)
The other returning attractions all gave us fun visits, with Freak out on Tour and Hillbilly Joe's Zombee Zoo really mixing the frights with laughs, The final attraction in the line up was the totally disturbing Insomnia, which since its return last year, remains one of the freakiest mazes at the park as it completely recreates the random and obscure nature of dreams. In all three mazes we had some impressive scares and the actors were incredibly active throughout.
The final new feature for 2023 - was the Psycho Circus show in the big top, which mixed some impressive circus acts with some vaudeville freakshow type elements. With an engaging framing story and some great effects - it was really refreshing to see something so different and we hope that they get to come back to the event next year.
All in - we had a really enjoyable time at Screamfest this year, and it was exciting to see it getting bigger and bigger and providing more scares and entertainment to guests. We can't wait to see what the future holds!
Screamfest Burton 2022
In 2021, the Screamfest event performed a couple of own goals, that left reviewers and fans wondering what was going on. Firstly they got rid of their award winning and highly praised Insomnia maze, and then they replaced it with Le Theatre Noir, which was a fun and clever concept, but WASN'T a scare attraction as promised. Therefore, when it was announced that for 2022, Insomnia would return, we knew that the park was actually listening to its customers. Of course this also came with the news that Love Hurts was about to be retired, but we can accept (and even expect) change, if the replacement is something good. We will wait with bated breath to see what happens next year, but in the mean time we planned to enjoy the 5 main attractions that made up Screamfest 2022.
We started with Love Hurts and immediately got sent into those vile toilet cubicles. Despite some confusion from some of the group, we proceed through the maze where we were met with a scare around every corner. For a retiring attraction, this really was alive, and the further we went into the maze, the more hyped up the scares were. We had a number of great jumps along the way, finishing with a good old chainsaw finale! We really enjoyed this run through and will miss the maze in the future.
Our next visit was to Hillbilly Joe's Zombie Zoo, which has a great mix of fun and scares, From zombie hot dogs, chickens, Santa Claus, giant rats and just about everything in between. The actors and the sets helped create an immersive and long experience and we really didn’t know just what to expect next. As it was we had multiple scares throughout.
Freak Out on Tour was the latest incarnation of the clown maze and was just as chaotic as we remembered. We loved the story about entering an old scare maze that was being used for a rave as everything had now been shut down due to a fire. Asked to flick a light on, we soon woke up the clowns and had to proceed through the maze being attacked from all directions. With the power coming and going sporadically, we found the actors were using the darkness to get close, and sometimes the light would come on and we would be surrounded. It was a great maze with some really fun interactions with the clowns.
After entering Creed Farm - the park's maize maze, it wasn't long until we were split up and sent through different doors - only to be faced with complete darkness. All alone and with nothing to be seen ahead, our anticipation levels were unreal as the slightest noise or the feel of movement kept us on edge. After some great distraction scares (and the floating red eyes that seemed impossible to reach) we finally made it into some light and could see more of the corn field we were in. From here we were stalked and chased by numerous creatures including some terrifying scarecrows, and of course the obligatory chainsaw!
Finally - we made our way to the highlight of the night - the incredible Insomnia. Everything about this maze oozed class from the pre-story in the queue line, the terrifying Crackerjack creature with his long black claws, and the surreal nature of the experience as guests step into a little girl's nightmare. Experiencing this incredible maze again just reminded us why we loved it so much originally. The story line and acting was phenomenal, and made it feel like being in a live horror film. As much as there were multiple jump scares throughout, the psychological element of this attraction made this a stand out experience.
In summary, it's pretty obvious to see that we had a great time at Screamfest. The atmosphere around the park was as lively as usual, and the scare attractions were some of the strongest we have seen here in years. We've always had a soft spot for the event, and this year they are clearly firing on full cylinders for 2022. With an event this strong now - we cant wait to see what they come up with for next year!
We started with Love Hurts and immediately got sent into those vile toilet cubicles. Despite some confusion from some of the group, we proceed through the maze where we were met with a scare around every corner. For a retiring attraction, this really was alive, and the further we went into the maze, the more hyped up the scares were. We had a number of great jumps along the way, finishing with a good old chainsaw finale! We really enjoyed this run through and will miss the maze in the future.
Our next visit was to Hillbilly Joe's Zombie Zoo, which has a great mix of fun and scares, From zombie hot dogs, chickens, Santa Claus, giant rats and just about everything in between. The actors and the sets helped create an immersive and long experience and we really didn’t know just what to expect next. As it was we had multiple scares throughout.
Freak Out on Tour was the latest incarnation of the clown maze and was just as chaotic as we remembered. We loved the story about entering an old scare maze that was being used for a rave as everything had now been shut down due to a fire. Asked to flick a light on, we soon woke up the clowns and had to proceed through the maze being attacked from all directions. With the power coming and going sporadically, we found the actors were using the darkness to get close, and sometimes the light would come on and we would be surrounded. It was a great maze with some really fun interactions with the clowns.
After entering Creed Farm - the park's maize maze, it wasn't long until we were split up and sent through different doors - only to be faced with complete darkness. All alone and with nothing to be seen ahead, our anticipation levels were unreal as the slightest noise or the feel of movement kept us on edge. After some great distraction scares (and the floating red eyes that seemed impossible to reach) we finally made it into some light and could see more of the corn field we were in. From here we were stalked and chased by numerous creatures including some terrifying scarecrows, and of course the obligatory chainsaw!
Finally - we made our way to the highlight of the night - the incredible Insomnia. Everything about this maze oozed class from the pre-story in the queue line, the terrifying Crackerjack creature with his long black claws, and the surreal nature of the experience as guests step into a little girl's nightmare. Experiencing this incredible maze again just reminded us why we loved it so much originally. The story line and acting was phenomenal, and made it feel like being in a live horror film. As much as there were multiple jump scares throughout, the psychological element of this attraction made this a stand out experience.
In summary, it's pretty obvious to see that we had a great time at Screamfest. The atmosphere around the park was as lively as usual, and the scare attractions were some of the strongest we have seen here in years. We've always had a soft spot for the event, and this year they are clearly firing on full cylinders for 2022. With an event this strong now - we cant wait to see what they come up with for next year!
Screamfest Burton 2021
Screamfest Burton has become a must visit event in the Midlands. After years of providing us with excellent scares from classic mazes such as Slasher, Nocturnal and Insomia, we were eager to get back to the park to try out their resurrected lineup with two new additions.
We started our visit with Hillbilly Joe’s Zombee Zoo. This attraction is a fun and quirky take on the zombie genre, taking these otherwise generic creates and putting them in all sorts of weird and wacky costumes. This sense of humour was kept throughout the maze, leaving us anticipating what breed of zombie we’d encounter next. The theming of each enclosure perfectly encapsulated the comedy and left us laughing from start to finish.
We say it left us laughing, but that’s overlooking the significant portion of this maze we spent recoiling in fear away from this ridiculously talented cast of creatures. We had multiple scares thanks to how perfectly timed and well-hidden the actors were. A particular shout out has to go to the Egg Plant Emoji zombie who nearly gave this reviewer a heart attack in the middle of the maze.
One of the other aspects of this attraction that really needs to be praised is the sheer variety on show. The scenes play out in different ways, leaving no two scares the same. Our run through Hillbilly Joe’s couldn’t have been better. The scares were constant, and the actors really played up the humour in their roles. It was as lively as could be, giving us one hell of a trip! We already had high opinions of this attraction, however after this run we would safely rank it up there as one of the best attractions in the Midlands.
We then headed over to Creed Farm which has replaced Dia De Los Muertos and is Screamfest’s take on a cornfield maze, albeit without the usual trailer ride. The removal of the trailer ride really helped the pacing of the attraction and made the queue-line move quicker. In our eyes this was a massive positive for Creed Farm over the previous iterations of their cornfield maze.
The attraction itself was visually stunning. The corn looked very imposing lit up with menacing red hues and the theming elements scattered throughout the maze were simple but effective. We felt the atmosphere inside this attraction was rich and deeply unnerving. It was a definite improvement over Dia De Los Muertos which felt like a bit of a jumble of ideas at times. This was a cohesive and deeply interesting take on the standard human slaughterhouse concept.
What elevates this theme above other such attractions were the simply outstanding costumes worn by the actors. These hessian sack creatures were downright horrifying to look at, and really helped create an intense atmosphere in the attraction. Their interactions with the groups were fantastic, with some of the most creative and disturbing dialogue we’ve ever heard coming from them. It’s just a shame that aside from the scarecrow scene the maze was far too open for the actors to adequately hide and create any jump scares. Overall Creed Farm is a great improvement over Dia De Los Muertos.
Before we discuss Le Theatre Noir, we need to explain that this isn’t a typical scare attraction. It’s a sit-down show in a style that is all too familiar to anyone who has visited a Dungeons attraction before. This experience has replaced Insomnia, which was the event’s highlight attraction for the two years it operated. Adding a sit down theatrical show is bold move for a scream park to take. In this instance unfortunately, it hasn’t paid off. Whilst we love that Screamfest have decided to try something new, it’s clear that they took inspiration from the Dungeons attractions and didn’t have much else to add to the formula.
However, we must praise the cast for their acting talents. We were impressed by the enthusiastic performance of the lead actor who conveyed his role perfectly and kept us hooked within his story. It’s just a shame the environment we were in was totally unthemed, leaving us feeling a sense of detachment from the goings on. That being said, we did appreciate the numerous special effects which really helped build up the tension during the show.
Having lost the iconic Insomnia for this experience, we can’t help but feel disappointed with Le Theatre Noir. It was certainly an interesting experiment, but far more attention needs to be paid to the theming and scare element of the show for this to be a worthy successor.
With only two mazes left we opted to try out Freakout On Tour, which we presumed to be a reskin of the existing Freakout attraction. How wrong we were. This might as well be a new maze, feeling drastically different from the original attraction.
It opened with an absolutely hilarious theatrical scene which had us excited for what was to come. Thankfully the actors were a lot of fun throughout, and given the layout, they a lot of hiding spaces to lurk within. As the attraction went on it became more and more hectic, with us rushing to find the exit. Unfortunately, given the group size we were batched with, we didn’t get as many scares as we could’ve but nevertheless enjoyed these darker, more demented circus freaks.
It really was interesting to see this unique take on clowns. It felt far more industrial and grimy compared to the bright and vibrant world of the original Freakout. It has completely rejuvenated the experience and brought new life and variety to the attraction. We’d love to see this industrial aspect taken even further in years to come as this is an attraction we can definitely see returning as a staple in the line-up.
We ended the evening by through the classic Love Hurts attraction which has been at the event for a number of years. Sadly we didn't have the best run through. It was a real shame as this is a deeply atmospheric attraction, with some absolutely grisly sets. We just felt the actors on this particular run needed to utilise their environment better. Most stood out in the open, relying on menacing looks to provide scares rather than perfectly timed jumps. We really wish there had more variety and energy in the attraction this year as we’d have then had a much more positive experience.
It’s clear we had an unlucky run, which something all scare attractions will provide from time to time. This is by no means an indication of the quality of the maze, merely an unfortunate occurrence. We still enjoyed the excellent finale which is definitely one of the most exhilarating chainsaw run outs in the UK.
On top of the mazes there’s a variety of different shows and street theatre going on around the park. We particularly enjoyed the actor playing Pennywise the clown who seemed to be absolutely everywhere on our visit! The energy around the main hub was absolutely vibrant with live bands and lots of bustling food stalls creating a wonderful atmosphere that few other events can rival. Of course, the DJ booth on the lake was on top form as usual, blasting out halloween classics to keep us all in a spooky mood.
We really enjoyed our evening at Screamfest, even if not all of the attractions met our expectations. Hillbilly Joe’s has taken the crown from Insomnia as the headlining attraction, with Freakout and Creed Farm offering a nice supporting lineup. We wish we’d had better experiences in Love Hurts and Le Theatre Noir, however we look forward to returning to the event in the future to see what changes get made. Hopefully we’ll see another attraction replacing Love Hurts with something that can rival the legacy of Insomnia.
We started our visit with Hillbilly Joe’s Zombee Zoo. This attraction is a fun and quirky take on the zombie genre, taking these otherwise generic creates and putting them in all sorts of weird and wacky costumes. This sense of humour was kept throughout the maze, leaving us anticipating what breed of zombie we’d encounter next. The theming of each enclosure perfectly encapsulated the comedy and left us laughing from start to finish.
We say it left us laughing, but that’s overlooking the significant portion of this maze we spent recoiling in fear away from this ridiculously talented cast of creatures. We had multiple scares thanks to how perfectly timed and well-hidden the actors were. A particular shout out has to go to the Egg Plant Emoji zombie who nearly gave this reviewer a heart attack in the middle of the maze.
One of the other aspects of this attraction that really needs to be praised is the sheer variety on show. The scenes play out in different ways, leaving no two scares the same. Our run through Hillbilly Joe’s couldn’t have been better. The scares were constant, and the actors really played up the humour in their roles. It was as lively as could be, giving us one hell of a trip! We already had high opinions of this attraction, however after this run we would safely rank it up there as one of the best attractions in the Midlands.
We then headed over to Creed Farm which has replaced Dia De Los Muertos and is Screamfest’s take on a cornfield maze, albeit without the usual trailer ride. The removal of the trailer ride really helped the pacing of the attraction and made the queue-line move quicker. In our eyes this was a massive positive for Creed Farm over the previous iterations of their cornfield maze.
The attraction itself was visually stunning. The corn looked very imposing lit up with menacing red hues and the theming elements scattered throughout the maze were simple but effective. We felt the atmosphere inside this attraction was rich and deeply unnerving. It was a definite improvement over Dia De Los Muertos which felt like a bit of a jumble of ideas at times. This was a cohesive and deeply interesting take on the standard human slaughterhouse concept.
What elevates this theme above other such attractions were the simply outstanding costumes worn by the actors. These hessian sack creatures were downright horrifying to look at, and really helped create an intense atmosphere in the attraction. Their interactions with the groups were fantastic, with some of the most creative and disturbing dialogue we’ve ever heard coming from them. It’s just a shame that aside from the scarecrow scene the maze was far too open for the actors to adequately hide and create any jump scares. Overall Creed Farm is a great improvement over Dia De Los Muertos.
Before we discuss Le Theatre Noir, we need to explain that this isn’t a typical scare attraction. It’s a sit-down show in a style that is all too familiar to anyone who has visited a Dungeons attraction before. This experience has replaced Insomnia, which was the event’s highlight attraction for the two years it operated. Adding a sit down theatrical show is bold move for a scream park to take. In this instance unfortunately, it hasn’t paid off. Whilst we love that Screamfest have decided to try something new, it’s clear that they took inspiration from the Dungeons attractions and didn’t have much else to add to the formula.
However, we must praise the cast for their acting talents. We were impressed by the enthusiastic performance of the lead actor who conveyed his role perfectly and kept us hooked within his story. It’s just a shame the environment we were in was totally unthemed, leaving us feeling a sense of detachment from the goings on. That being said, we did appreciate the numerous special effects which really helped build up the tension during the show.
Having lost the iconic Insomnia for this experience, we can’t help but feel disappointed with Le Theatre Noir. It was certainly an interesting experiment, but far more attention needs to be paid to the theming and scare element of the show for this to be a worthy successor.
With only two mazes left we opted to try out Freakout On Tour, which we presumed to be a reskin of the existing Freakout attraction. How wrong we were. This might as well be a new maze, feeling drastically different from the original attraction.
It opened with an absolutely hilarious theatrical scene which had us excited for what was to come. Thankfully the actors were a lot of fun throughout, and given the layout, they a lot of hiding spaces to lurk within. As the attraction went on it became more and more hectic, with us rushing to find the exit. Unfortunately, given the group size we were batched with, we didn’t get as many scares as we could’ve but nevertheless enjoyed these darker, more demented circus freaks.
It really was interesting to see this unique take on clowns. It felt far more industrial and grimy compared to the bright and vibrant world of the original Freakout. It has completely rejuvenated the experience and brought new life and variety to the attraction. We’d love to see this industrial aspect taken even further in years to come as this is an attraction we can definitely see returning as a staple in the line-up.
We ended the evening by through the classic Love Hurts attraction which has been at the event for a number of years. Sadly we didn't have the best run through. It was a real shame as this is a deeply atmospheric attraction, with some absolutely grisly sets. We just felt the actors on this particular run needed to utilise their environment better. Most stood out in the open, relying on menacing looks to provide scares rather than perfectly timed jumps. We really wish there had more variety and energy in the attraction this year as we’d have then had a much more positive experience.
It’s clear we had an unlucky run, which something all scare attractions will provide from time to time. This is by no means an indication of the quality of the maze, merely an unfortunate occurrence. We still enjoyed the excellent finale which is definitely one of the most exhilarating chainsaw run outs in the UK.
On top of the mazes there’s a variety of different shows and street theatre going on around the park. We particularly enjoyed the actor playing Pennywise the clown who seemed to be absolutely everywhere on our visit! The energy around the main hub was absolutely vibrant with live bands and lots of bustling food stalls creating a wonderful atmosphere that few other events can rival. Of course, the DJ booth on the lake was on top form as usual, blasting out halloween classics to keep us all in a spooky mood.
We really enjoyed our evening at Screamfest, even if not all of the attractions met our expectations. Hillbilly Joe’s has taken the crown from Insomnia as the headlining attraction, with Freakout and Creed Farm offering a nice supporting lineup. We wish we’d had better experiences in Love Hurts and Le Theatre Noir, however we look forward to returning to the event in the future to see what changes get made. Hopefully we’ll see another attraction replacing Love Hurts with something that can rival the legacy of Insomnia.
Screamfest Burton 2019
Screamfest Burton is back with a number of returning classics alongside an ambitious new maze, live entertainment and more. The atmosphere around the central hub was really buzzing on our visit, which really set up the mood for the night.
New for 2019 is Hillbilly Joe's Zombee Zoo, which combines horror and scares with a good dose of dark humour. The maze is set in a world when opportunist Hillbillies have rounded up zombies, and brought them for our viewing entertainment. In an unusual twist, the hillbillies have been having fun with the zombies so have dressed them up in amusing costumes. There is something quite surreal about seeing a zombie dressed in a cheap chicken suit snaring to eat your brains!
All through this long maze, we were never quite sure who we were at more danger from – the escaping zombies or the deranged hillbillies. Ether way – it was genuinely entertaining maze that gave the right mix of scares and laughs with some really engaging actors.
We them headed back to Insomnia to see if everything we said about it last year still stood. We’re pleased to report that this maze was just as fun as last year and still as trippy and scary as before. Our run through was just perfect in the number of scares we received as the actors seemed relentless. If all nightmares were this scary, then we probably wouldn’t ever go to sleep again.
Although nothing has changed with Love Hurts this year, our run through was one of the best we have ever had. The actors were relentless throughout and seemed to delight in picking us apart and tormenting us around every corner. We’re not sure what the management have been feeding this team, but if they can keep this level of intensity then we will stay very happy indeed!
Sadly, our run through Freak Out was ruined by poor batching which meant we ended up stationery at multiple points in the maze, just waiting the people in front of us to move through the scenes and clear the way. We felt so sorry for the actors as they were giving their all in a difficult situation and in the moments when we were able to walk into a room without someone in front of us, the team gave us some good jumps. We have said before that this maze is less about the scare factor, but is great fun when a party can split up and go through different doors.
Finally – the Day of the Dead trailer ride and corn maze was as fun as always, but maybe it’s time for a new story going forward as this one feels that it has slightly overstayed its welcome
All in – we had a great night at Screanfest with an entertaining mix of great scares and fun. We really loved the new maze and could see an improvement in actor engagement across the whole site. Well done Screamfest!
New for 2019 is Hillbilly Joe's Zombee Zoo, which combines horror and scares with a good dose of dark humour. The maze is set in a world when opportunist Hillbillies have rounded up zombies, and brought them for our viewing entertainment. In an unusual twist, the hillbillies have been having fun with the zombies so have dressed them up in amusing costumes. There is something quite surreal about seeing a zombie dressed in a cheap chicken suit snaring to eat your brains!
All through this long maze, we were never quite sure who we were at more danger from – the escaping zombies or the deranged hillbillies. Ether way – it was genuinely entertaining maze that gave the right mix of scares and laughs with some really engaging actors.
We them headed back to Insomnia to see if everything we said about it last year still stood. We’re pleased to report that this maze was just as fun as last year and still as trippy and scary as before. Our run through was just perfect in the number of scares we received as the actors seemed relentless. If all nightmares were this scary, then we probably wouldn’t ever go to sleep again.
Although nothing has changed with Love Hurts this year, our run through was one of the best we have ever had. The actors were relentless throughout and seemed to delight in picking us apart and tormenting us around every corner. We’re not sure what the management have been feeding this team, but if they can keep this level of intensity then we will stay very happy indeed!
Sadly, our run through Freak Out was ruined by poor batching which meant we ended up stationery at multiple points in the maze, just waiting the people in front of us to move through the scenes and clear the way. We felt so sorry for the actors as they were giving their all in a difficult situation and in the moments when we were able to walk into a room without someone in front of us, the team gave us some good jumps. We have said before that this maze is less about the scare factor, but is great fun when a party can split up and go through different doors.
Finally – the Day of the Dead trailer ride and corn maze was as fun as always, but maybe it’s time for a new story going forward as this one feels that it has slightly overstayed its welcome
All in – we had a great night at Screanfest with an entertaining mix of great scares and fun. We really loved the new maze and could see an improvement in actor engagement across the whole site. Well done Screamfest!
Screamfest Burton 2018
Screamfest is back for another year of scares and this time the classic Soul Seekers Live has been replaced by new maze, Insomnia. We visited on a very busy Saturday night to check out this year’s line-up.
First up we must mention the atmosphere and buzz around the main courtyard area when we first entered Screamfest. The predominantly young crowd were buzzing with excitement and with the DJ taking text requests to pump out the latest tunes, there was a real festival vibe. There were also a number of roaming characters in the area as well as cabaret horror style acts on the main stage. We didn’t have a lot of time, so grabbed some food and headed off to the 5 main attractions.
Demonica disappointed us last year so we headed to that first hoping it would prove us wrong. Sadly, compared to the detailed theming in the other attractions, the majority of Demonica is just black corridors with some scare actors in. Granted the actors worked hard to scare us throughout (especially the guy attacking from above in the cage finale) and there are some great sounds and effects, but we left the attraction wanting more.
Next up was the Día de los Muertos hayride/maize maze, which had some immersive opening scenes, as we were introduced to the festival ahead of us. The actors in the village were all lively and their enthusiasm for the music and the festival were infectious. They even had people from the group up and dancing, and the conga line to the maze entrance was just pure fun. Of course, once in the maze, things took a turn for the worse and the villagers became more aggressive with attacks coming from within the corn and from many of the agricultural buildings we passed through on the way back to the main arena. By the end of the run, the infamous drug dealers had taken over and we were chased out the fired by yet another chainsaw. Seriously though – if you don’t like chainsaws - this isn’t the maze for you as there are loads of them!
The best way to experience Freakout – the clown themed maze, is to just get to the first set of doors and split up. We all headed off in different directions (the choice you make of good clown or bad clown seems to make no difference – you always end up with a bad clown!) and towards the end our group of 5 were spread out all over the maze and we could hear each other’s screams in different rooms, before getting scared ourselves by the lively clowns. We must also state that these clowns were ruthless at times – one of our group was in the maze a good 90 seconds or so longer than the rest of us, as they kept being sent round and around in circles! Freakout really was fun from beginning to end.
Unlucky in Love? Well we wouldn’t recommend this speed dating night, as they would rather rip your heart out and eat it! Love Hurts remains an excess of gross theming and cannibalistic characters throughout. It’s still difficult to hear the audio in the opening scenes but once you’ve passed through the back of the toilet, its pretty clear what their intentions are. All in – Love Hurts is a fun maze with some really detailed sets.
So, we left Insomnia for last and we are genuinely glad we did, as this maze was just stunning in design and execution. In an unusual move the pre-show was played out live in the queue line, and although this was different, we felt that certainty the bedroom scene would be better off experienced as part of the main show after batching, to get the full effect. But what followed that was a terrifying trip through a child’s nightmare – as we were stalked by the imposing Crackerjack figure.
What impressed us the most about this attraction was the dreamlike quality of the imagery at the start. The room with the white house with the red roof was like nothing we have seen in a scare attraction before – brightly lit and welcoming. But what was behind the door was far more terrifying. The juxtaposition from light to dark was stunning. The scares then came thick and fast, with some of the liveliest actors we’d seen all night. With their evil grins and long pointy fingers, they were genuinely scary and had us on edge throughout the maze – especially during a long corridor full of windows when we never knew where he would appear from next.
We are so glad we saved Insomnia to be our last maze of the night as the whole thing was simply stunning from beginning to end, and completely different from anything else at the event. He have to congratulate all involved for such brave and original choices We left Screamfest with massive smiles on our faces after coming out, can’t wait to get back to visit it again.
So, another good year for Screamfest Burton – Insomnia is clearly the standout maze and proves that there are new ideas in the scare industry. The rest of the mazes are fun but if you are undecided on Screamfest Burton or have visited before then Insomnia really makes the visit worth it.
First up we must mention the atmosphere and buzz around the main courtyard area when we first entered Screamfest. The predominantly young crowd were buzzing with excitement and with the DJ taking text requests to pump out the latest tunes, there was a real festival vibe. There were also a number of roaming characters in the area as well as cabaret horror style acts on the main stage. We didn’t have a lot of time, so grabbed some food and headed off to the 5 main attractions.
Demonica disappointed us last year so we headed to that first hoping it would prove us wrong. Sadly, compared to the detailed theming in the other attractions, the majority of Demonica is just black corridors with some scare actors in. Granted the actors worked hard to scare us throughout (especially the guy attacking from above in the cage finale) and there are some great sounds and effects, but we left the attraction wanting more.
Next up was the Día de los Muertos hayride/maize maze, which had some immersive opening scenes, as we were introduced to the festival ahead of us. The actors in the village were all lively and their enthusiasm for the music and the festival were infectious. They even had people from the group up and dancing, and the conga line to the maze entrance was just pure fun. Of course, once in the maze, things took a turn for the worse and the villagers became more aggressive with attacks coming from within the corn and from many of the agricultural buildings we passed through on the way back to the main arena. By the end of the run, the infamous drug dealers had taken over and we were chased out the fired by yet another chainsaw. Seriously though – if you don’t like chainsaws - this isn’t the maze for you as there are loads of them!
The best way to experience Freakout – the clown themed maze, is to just get to the first set of doors and split up. We all headed off in different directions (the choice you make of good clown or bad clown seems to make no difference – you always end up with a bad clown!) and towards the end our group of 5 were spread out all over the maze and we could hear each other’s screams in different rooms, before getting scared ourselves by the lively clowns. We must also state that these clowns were ruthless at times – one of our group was in the maze a good 90 seconds or so longer than the rest of us, as they kept being sent round and around in circles! Freakout really was fun from beginning to end.
Unlucky in Love? Well we wouldn’t recommend this speed dating night, as they would rather rip your heart out and eat it! Love Hurts remains an excess of gross theming and cannibalistic characters throughout. It’s still difficult to hear the audio in the opening scenes but once you’ve passed through the back of the toilet, its pretty clear what their intentions are. All in – Love Hurts is a fun maze with some really detailed sets.
So, we left Insomnia for last and we are genuinely glad we did, as this maze was just stunning in design and execution. In an unusual move the pre-show was played out live in the queue line, and although this was different, we felt that certainty the bedroom scene would be better off experienced as part of the main show after batching, to get the full effect. But what followed that was a terrifying trip through a child’s nightmare – as we were stalked by the imposing Crackerjack figure.
What impressed us the most about this attraction was the dreamlike quality of the imagery at the start. The room with the white house with the red roof was like nothing we have seen in a scare attraction before – brightly lit and welcoming. But what was behind the door was far more terrifying. The juxtaposition from light to dark was stunning. The scares then came thick and fast, with some of the liveliest actors we’d seen all night. With their evil grins and long pointy fingers, they were genuinely scary and had us on edge throughout the maze – especially during a long corridor full of windows when we never knew where he would appear from next.
We are so glad we saved Insomnia to be our last maze of the night as the whole thing was simply stunning from beginning to end, and completely different from anything else at the event. He have to congratulate all involved for such brave and original choices We left Screamfest with massive smiles on our faces after coming out, can’t wait to get back to visit it again.
So, another good year for Screamfest Burton – Insomnia is clearly the standout maze and proves that there are new ideas in the scare industry. The rest of the mazes are fun but if you are undecided on Screamfest Burton or have visited before then Insomnia really makes the visit worth it.
Very scary
Our first Scare attraction and we had great fun. Only one scare was a bit disappointing and that was Demonica. The outside and the first room looks great and builds up to...not much. Dark walls, not many scares until the end, a bit of an anti climax.
The rest was brilliant.
Our first Scare attraction and we had great fun. Only one scare was a bit disappointing and that was Demonica. The outside and the first room looks great and builds up to...not much. Dark walls, not many scares until the end, a bit of an anti climax.
The rest was brilliant.
Screamfest Burton 2017
Screamfest Burton is back for 2017 with two new mazes - Demonica and Dia de los Muertos joining Love Hurts. Freak Out, and Soul Seekers to complete the line-up. Located at the National Forest Adventure Farm in Burton, guests are supplied with a live stage set at half hour intervals along with a handful of roaming characters to keep us entertained.
Love Hurts is one of the best themed mazes at Screamfest - from the cheesy 80/90’s rock music as you enter the building, down to the posters on the walls. Once inside we experienced a rollercoaster of jump scares, often with actors blending seamlessly into the scenery to provide the ultimate scare. The interaction by the scare actors was truly amazing. Our only gripe was the audio on the initial scene was so low we could not hear what was being said, but that only detracted from the maze a small amount. In reality – the whole thing was filled with plenty of disgusting gross out fun.
Freak out is set within a big top and looks reminiscent of a Blackpool circa 90’s Funhouse. The clowns take great pleasure in splitting up your party and with the multiple routes, you are pretty much guaranteed you will be alone for some of the maze. Choose your door wisely. With some fun scares and interactions by the residents of Freak Out, this maze is great fun and a brilliant way to warm up for the more intense scares in the other mazes.
Dia De Los Muertos - We joined the villagers from Los Condanados to celebrate the Day of the Dead festival. This maze opened with a tractor ride to get us deep into the field and on the ride up, we were informed about Carlos an escaped criminal. This must be the longest maze at the event with a solid 5 minutes of walking. The scares are very well timed, and the makeup is effective, making you feel that you have just stepped into a town in Mexico. There was great interaction throughout and the walk through the cornfield was just eerie, with jump scares and a few secrets thrown in for good measure.
Demonica – we were really looking forward to this new maze and the scenery and pre-show are jaw droopingly good. Sadly, this is where the maze fell short. Once inside, we failed to see many actors and instead we were faced with minimal scares and just empty corridors. We are not sure if this was during an actor change over or whether we were just unlucky. Either way it was our least favourite maze of the night.
Soul Seekers - We joined the Soul Seekers TV crew to investigate blood-curdling happenings at the abandoned Grand Hotel. Although the intro was rushed and it would have been better suited to be played on a video loop at the first entrance, it set the scene effectively. A bevvy of in your face cast members gave us many great scares, and with the periods of darkness and intensity of the scares, we had an impressive run through of this attraction.
It’s a shame on our visit that the new maze Demonica didn’t live up to our expectations, as everything else was so strong – especially the acting talent. Screamfest have an amazing cast this year and everyone seemed to be giving their all, whatever attraction they worked in.
So , if you get the chance to visit, don't think twice. It’s a destination that we always make a point of including at Halloween and we always have a great time when we go. We're sure you will too!
Love Hurts is one of the best themed mazes at Screamfest - from the cheesy 80/90’s rock music as you enter the building, down to the posters on the walls. Once inside we experienced a rollercoaster of jump scares, often with actors blending seamlessly into the scenery to provide the ultimate scare. The interaction by the scare actors was truly amazing. Our only gripe was the audio on the initial scene was so low we could not hear what was being said, but that only detracted from the maze a small amount. In reality – the whole thing was filled with plenty of disgusting gross out fun.
Freak out is set within a big top and looks reminiscent of a Blackpool circa 90’s Funhouse. The clowns take great pleasure in splitting up your party and with the multiple routes, you are pretty much guaranteed you will be alone for some of the maze. Choose your door wisely. With some fun scares and interactions by the residents of Freak Out, this maze is great fun and a brilliant way to warm up for the more intense scares in the other mazes.
Dia De Los Muertos - We joined the villagers from Los Condanados to celebrate the Day of the Dead festival. This maze opened with a tractor ride to get us deep into the field and on the ride up, we were informed about Carlos an escaped criminal. This must be the longest maze at the event with a solid 5 minutes of walking. The scares are very well timed, and the makeup is effective, making you feel that you have just stepped into a town in Mexico. There was great interaction throughout and the walk through the cornfield was just eerie, with jump scares and a few secrets thrown in for good measure.
Demonica – we were really looking forward to this new maze and the scenery and pre-show are jaw droopingly good. Sadly, this is where the maze fell short. Once inside, we failed to see many actors and instead we were faced with minimal scares and just empty corridors. We are not sure if this was during an actor change over or whether we were just unlucky. Either way it was our least favourite maze of the night.
Soul Seekers - We joined the Soul Seekers TV crew to investigate blood-curdling happenings at the abandoned Grand Hotel. Although the intro was rushed and it would have been better suited to be played on a video loop at the first entrance, it set the scene effectively. A bevvy of in your face cast members gave us many great scares, and with the periods of darkness and intensity of the scares, we had an impressive run through of this attraction.
It’s a shame on our visit that the new maze Demonica didn’t live up to our expectations, as everything else was so strong – especially the acting talent. Screamfest have an amazing cast this year and everyone seemed to be giving their all, whatever attraction they worked in.
So , if you get the chance to visit, don't think twice. It’s a destination that we always make a point of including at Halloween and we always have a great time when we go. We're sure you will too!
Screamfest Burton 2016
Screamfest Burton is back for 2016, with 4 returning mazes and a signature new headline attraction. Following the changes in 2015, the park has more of a festival feel, with live entertainment on stage and all attractions accessed from the main event arena. Roaming characters add great atmosphere to the line up with an amusing mix of humour and scares:
Love Hurts has been built in the same space that Nocturnal used to inhabit, and like its predecessor- this maze hides a dark secret. Promoted as a speed dating event in a local pub, clues in the soundtrack lead us to believe that not everything would be as it seemed, especially as the voiceover encouraged us to visit the toilets! The toilets themselves were easily some of the most disgusting we have ever visited, and with exploding pipe-works and the general noise from the maze, we were unable to hear the voiceover. It's a shame, as this was clearly the main story to the maze, so when we ended up in the sewers behind the toilets themselves, we were a little confused.
But this confusion didn't last long, as it was clear that these sewer rats beyond the toilets were doing some very horrible things to humans and the piles of flesh and rotting meat everywhere left us in no doubt as to what would happen if we lingered. The actors throughout were particularly vocal and aggressive towards us and it seemed to take ages to find our way out, until we were faced with a big chase finale that left most of our group jumping at the sudden appearance of the bad guy with the power tool!
All in - we enjoyed Love Hurts - the sets were completely immersive from the dingy desperation of the toilet stalls through to the damp underground tunnels and meat processing areas. It was definitely a step up in theming from Nocturnal and was proving very popular on opening night.
Soul Seekers has been a big favourite of ours in the past and this year sees a new set of actors making the attraction their own. They seemed to be really up close and personal on our trip through and their characterisations (and ability to get between us in our group) made for a really intense and scary experience. The sets and rooms remain as beautiful as ever, and the opening scene (when performed correctly) is still a stunning introduction to the maze.
Freak Out - Whether you consider clowns to be scary or not, there's one thing that most clown mazes forget. And that is that clowns just want to have fun. So instead of just having scary looking clowns jumping out, Freak Out really showed the playful side of these colourful characters. Instead of one linear route through the attraction, we were given multiple choices including doors for girls or boys, or choices as to whether we wanted to meet good clowns or bad clowns. At each door we came to, we were separated, and at times we could hear the screams of our colleagues in different rooms before meeting up for a moment only to be separated again. The clowns inside were clearly having fun throughout this maze and so did we! Great scary fun!
Children of the Corn was the strongest it has been in years with some genuinely dark and scary moments from beginning to end. The sheer number of actors in some of the indoor scenes was very impressive and the whole team experienced some very effective scares throughout. The trailer ride is pretty redundant now (being just a way to get guests to the top of the field), but the whole return journey walking through the corn was exceptional!
Night Bringer had a mixed reception from reviewers in 2015. Some people absolutely loved it, whilst others wondered what on earth was going on. We think this is due to batching issues and sadly on our visit we fell in to the latter camp. After a fun and jumpy intro, we passed into the maze quickly behind the group in front. We heard them screaming ahead of us but soon caught up and missed many of the set pieces . We even saw actors resetting the scene for the next group, with us just passing by passively. We had a few jump scares from some lively actors towards the end but unfortunately, Night Bringer failed to match the quality of the other mazes.
Looking back on the event, it was such a shame that we had a bad run through of Night Bringers as the other mazes were excellent and great fun. From the attention to detail in Love Hurts through to the silliness and fun of Freak Out, Screamfest offers a real mix of different scares and activities that would leave any scare fan entertained!
Love Hurts has been built in the same space that Nocturnal used to inhabit, and like its predecessor- this maze hides a dark secret. Promoted as a speed dating event in a local pub, clues in the soundtrack lead us to believe that not everything would be as it seemed, especially as the voiceover encouraged us to visit the toilets! The toilets themselves were easily some of the most disgusting we have ever visited, and with exploding pipe-works and the general noise from the maze, we were unable to hear the voiceover. It's a shame, as this was clearly the main story to the maze, so when we ended up in the sewers behind the toilets themselves, we were a little confused.
But this confusion didn't last long, as it was clear that these sewer rats beyond the toilets were doing some very horrible things to humans and the piles of flesh and rotting meat everywhere left us in no doubt as to what would happen if we lingered. The actors throughout were particularly vocal and aggressive towards us and it seemed to take ages to find our way out, until we were faced with a big chase finale that left most of our group jumping at the sudden appearance of the bad guy with the power tool!
All in - we enjoyed Love Hurts - the sets were completely immersive from the dingy desperation of the toilet stalls through to the damp underground tunnels and meat processing areas. It was definitely a step up in theming from Nocturnal and was proving very popular on opening night.
Soul Seekers has been a big favourite of ours in the past and this year sees a new set of actors making the attraction their own. They seemed to be really up close and personal on our trip through and their characterisations (and ability to get between us in our group) made for a really intense and scary experience. The sets and rooms remain as beautiful as ever, and the opening scene (when performed correctly) is still a stunning introduction to the maze.
Freak Out - Whether you consider clowns to be scary or not, there's one thing that most clown mazes forget. And that is that clowns just want to have fun. So instead of just having scary looking clowns jumping out, Freak Out really showed the playful side of these colourful characters. Instead of one linear route through the attraction, we were given multiple choices including doors for girls or boys, or choices as to whether we wanted to meet good clowns or bad clowns. At each door we came to, we were separated, and at times we could hear the screams of our colleagues in different rooms before meeting up for a moment only to be separated again. The clowns inside were clearly having fun throughout this maze and so did we! Great scary fun!
Children of the Corn was the strongest it has been in years with some genuinely dark and scary moments from beginning to end. The sheer number of actors in some of the indoor scenes was very impressive and the whole team experienced some very effective scares throughout. The trailer ride is pretty redundant now (being just a way to get guests to the top of the field), but the whole return journey walking through the corn was exceptional!
Night Bringer had a mixed reception from reviewers in 2015. Some people absolutely loved it, whilst others wondered what on earth was going on. We think this is due to batching issues and sadly on our visit we fell in to the latter camp. After a fun and jumpy intro, we passed into the maze quickly behind the group in front. We heard them screaming ahead of us but soon caught up and missed many of the set pieces . We even saw actors resetting the scene for the next group, with us just passing by passively. We had a few jump scares from some lively actors towards the end but unfortunately, Night Bringer failed to match the quality of the other mazes.
Looking back on the event, it was such a shame that we had a bad run through of Night Bringers as the other mazes were excellent and great fun. From the attention to detail in Love Hurts through to the silliness and fun of Freak Out, Screamfest offers a real mix of different scares and activities that would leave any scare fan entertained!
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Scary
Really good night children of the corn was very scary did a code yellow when we were chased by the chainsaw lol. Only disappointing thing was the actors makeup some of the publics makeup was much better.
Really good night children of the corn was very scary did a code yellow when we were chased by the chainsaw lol. Only disappointing thing was the actors makeup some of the publics makeup was much better.
Felt there was far to many people there this year making queues so big and it spoilt it for us. There also seemed to be less actors and certainly didn't find it as good as we have in the past!
Not scary at all
Didn't seem to have as many actors which I think made it a bit boring .should have a really scary adult only night
Would you visit again another year? Maybe
Didn't seem to have as many actors which I think made it a bit boring .should have a really scary adult only night
Would you visit again another year? Maybe
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