Warwick Castle - Ghouls and Ghosts Alive
Warwick Castle is one of England’s most famous castles and over the years it has seen some very nasty deaths and violence. It is no wonder then, that it is allegedly haunted by the ghosts of those who have met an untimely demise in the area.
Sweet Dreams have taken many of these gruesome stories and created a new event for the castle, which brings the ghosts screamingly to life for an evening of frights and fun.
The evening started with some excellent spooky street theatre as the main courtyard was filled with silently threatening hooded figures who mingled with the waiting guests. The tension was palpable until the town crier appeared and started the events properly. The group of approximately 70 people was then split into two groups and led into the castle grounds through different routes.
The first part of the evening involves four different experiences around the castle, each telling a different story about the ghosts of the past. A visit to the dungeon brings a spooky encounter with a condemned man. A small hidden passage way tells the hideous story of a woman and her baby bricked up alive and a tour of the gardens tells the story of the beastly Dun Cow. The highlight of these four experiences though is clearly the trip into the Ghost Tower for a slightly changed version of the popular Ghosts Alive attraction. With what appeared to be more actors and a few more scares, the screams coming from the tower were audible from outside!
These four attractions alone had most of our group screaming and laughing and the quality of acting and storytelling was very impressive. Each experience was different with a mixture of intense scares, subtle shocks and some creepy storytelling. Only the Dun Cow scene really failed to ignite any real response from our group.
By now it was time for our feast but we were led to the entrance to the Kingmaker attraction and told we would have to be careful in the dark as we made our way to the restaurant. Adding this extra set of scares to the event was an inspired choice as with the darkness and the numerous hiding places NO-ONE was safe as we walked through in small batches. Unlike the previous story led attractions, the Kingmaker was a pure adrenalin filled walk full of sudden scares and noises. By the time we made our way through we were all desperate for a drink so the offer of unlimited beer and wine in the restaurant was thankfully taken up!
The Ghosts and Ghouls package also includes a three course meal and the food served was both delicious and plentiful. As we sat in the restaurant though, talking about the events of the night, there was small feeling of anti climax as we had thought that the scares were over. How wrong we were!
With our soup completed the room suddenly dropped into darkness and the story telling continued. Again the acting talent was impressive and the placing of ghostly monks around the room created a spooky atmosphere especially when they started joining in with the story and running through the room scaring people. Throughout the rest of the evening between dinner courses, we had more sessions of ghostly events each one bringing its own chills and surprises.
Before long the coffee was served and it was time to depart. Leaving the restaurant with full bellies we walked into the courtyard to be confronted by apparitions lining the route home. With spooky music booming and a well placed smoke machine we never quite knew what was going to happen next and true to form for the rest of the night – they did manage to get one last scream out of us before we left!
So what did we think of the whole event? We had a brilliant time and the mix of ghost stories, real scares and great catering worked really well. As this was effectively a soft opening /preview event it would be churlish of us to pick up on a few fumbled lines or bad timing on effects. These were minor quibbles though and didn’t ruin the evening in anyway and will presumably be fixed before next time.
So if you fancy a fun evening with some real scares and a spooky atmosphere we would definitely recommend the Ghost and Ghouls Alive event. Its not cheap (at £51.50) but when you take into account the food, the unlimited drink and nearly 3 1/2 hours of themed entertainment we are sure it’s going to be a winner.
Sweet Dreams have taken many of these gruesome stories and created a new event for the castle, which brings the ghosts screamingly to life for an evening of frights and fun.
The evening started with some excellent spooky street theatre as the main courtyard was filled with silently threatening hooded figures who mingled with the waiting guests. The tension was palpable until the town crier appeared and started the events properly. The group of approximately 70 people was then split into two groups and led into the castle grounds through different routes.
The first part of the evening involves four different experiences around the castle, each telling a different story about the ghosts of the past. A visit to the dungeon brings a spooky encounter with a condemned man. A small hidden passage way tells the hideous story of a woman and her baby bricked up alive and a tour of the gardens tells the story of the beastly Dun Cow. The highlight of these four experiences though is clearly the trip into the Ghost Tower for a slightly changed version of the popular Ghosts Alive attraction. With what appeared to be more actors and a few more scares, the screams coming from the tower were audible from outside!
These four attractions alone had most of our group screaming and laughing and the quality of acting and storytelling was very impressive. Each experience was different with a mixture of intense scares, subtle shocks and some creepy storytelling. Only the Dun Cow scene really failed to ignite any real response from our group.
By now it was time for our feast but we were led to the entrance to the Kingmaker attraction and told we would have to be careful in the dark as we made our way to the restaurant. Adding this extra set of scares to the event was an inspired choice as with the darkness and the numerous hiding places NO-ONE was safe as we walked through in small batches. Unlike the previous story led attractions, the Kingmaker was a pure adrenalin filled walk full of sudden scares and noises. By the time we made our way through we were all desperate for a drink so the offer of unlimited beer and wine in the restaurant was thankfully taken up!
The Ghosts and Ghouls package also includes a three course meal and the food served was both delicious and plentiful. As we sat in the restaurant though, talking about the events of the night, there was small feeling of anti climax as we had thought that the scares were over. How wrong we were!
With our soup completed the room suddenly dropped into darkness and the story telling continued. Again the acting talent was impressive and the placing of ghostly monks around the room created a spooky atmosphere especially when they started joining in with the story and running through the room scaring people. Throughout the rest of the evening between dinner courses, we had more sessions of ghostly events each one bringing its own chills and surprises.
Before long the coffee was served and it was time to depart. Leaving the restaurant with full bellies we walked into the courtyard to be confronted by apparitions lining the route home. With spooky music booming and a well placed smoke machine we never quite knew what was going to happen next and true to form for the rest of the night – they did manage to get one last scream out of us before we left!
So what did we think of the whole event? We had a brilliant time and the mix of ghost stories, real scares and great catering worked really well. As this was effectively a soft opening /preview event it would be churlish of us to pick up on a few fumbled lines or bad timing on effects. These were minor quibbles though and didn’t ruin the evening in anyway and will presumably be fixed before next time.
So if you fancy a fun evening with some real scares and a spooky atmosphere we would definitely recommend the Ghost and Ghouls Alive event. Its not cheap (at £51.50) but when you take into account the food, the unlimited drink and nearly 3 1/2 hours of themed entertainment we are sure it’s going to be a winner.
This review was written by Michael Bolton and originally appeared on Haunted Attractions UK.
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