Halloween night out
Friday 23rd October

It's 8:15pm at night and I'm driving along the motorway.

This is going to be such a cool night. As it's the end of October I decided it would be fun to have an authentic Halloween themed night out.

Being a tourist heading for a goth club night. I had to get the right look so I can go undercover as a goth! So here's my outfit.

- Def Leppard T-shirt from their Slang tour in 1996. I bought this when I went to see Def Leppard in concert and never wore it much since. My girlfriend at the time, when we were teenagers, won the tickets by phoning in to a competition on Key 103.

- Black Zara Jeans. When skinny jeans were in fashion in a big way and everyone was wearing them to the pub - I saw a pair on Sale in Zara for £4.99 and thought I'd see what they were like on. I never wore them out once! I didn't return them either because at £4.99 it wasn't worth it (A Metrolink ticket to Manchester cost £4).

- Doc Marten Boots
I used to wear Doc Marten boots all the time. They looked like shoes and had the air cushioning system. It was the closest you could get to shoes that were comfortable like trainers before they brought in all these pumps everyone is wearing. They're also waterproof.

- Marks and Spencer black jacket from the Italian range. Bought in 1998 and still looks good today. I've rolled up the sleeves to give an 80's inspired look.

- Top hat. The top hat is what made the outfit very cool. I bought this on Wednesday from the fancy dress shop in Manchester Arndale.

- Bracelets. I've got a whole selection of bracelets which I bought in the sales from Burton and other stores. I'm wearing about 10 of them fo this outfit. Lots of bracelets look cool.

- Chain belt. In the House of Fraser sale a few years ago. House of Fraser had been bought by a private equity firm called Baur or something. Anyway. This was the biggest sale ever. They were selling lots of stuff off to reduce the amount of stock in storage. I bought a pair of Paul Smith trousers reduced from £185 to £10! Bargain of the century. They were missing the jacket as part of a suit. I also saw some chain belts for £3 and £5 reduced from £30 each. So I bought them too because they looked so cool.


I park the car out of town and leave it there. Now I'm walking past some shops with Halloween window displays.

I walk up to the venue. It's a church with iron railings set among railway arch bridges. As I'm walking up it's dark and quiet. I wonder if this event is even on, there's no-one around. I'm going around the building looking for the entrance. I hear some music playing then find a door with small windows in it. I can see people inside. I push the oor but it's locked.

Ok. So what now? Is there some kind of password or something? Someone inside looks through the window, unlocks the door and lets me in It shuts with a clunk behind me.

Two goth ladies sitting at a desk greet me. One is wearing a red corset and a long black skirt. The other is wearing a knee length dress where the skirt part spreads out, a mesh top, fishnet tights and shiny black goth boots.
Her: "Hi." she says smiling.
Me: "How much is it?"
Her: "£5"
I pay the £5 and go inside.

It's a goth club night held in a church! Wow!
In the main room there's a DJ playing goth music and quality disco lights. This is brilliant!

I'm now in the entrance foyer area where people hang about and chat. A minute after I arrive and now a goth lady wearing a velvet coat over a dress smiles.
Me: "Hi."
Her: "Hi."
Me: "How's it going?"
Her: "Good thanks. How are you?"
Me: "As it's Halloween I came for the authentic goth night experience!"
We laugh
Her: "It's good here. I've been coming for years."
We talk for about twenty minutes about the goth scene, our hobbies, interests and so on. She does most of the talking which is great. Often when I meet people it's often me who has to do the work to keep the rapport going. For a goth night people seem friendly and enjoy good conversation.

A random guy with long hair, wearing a black T-shirt and jeans says:
Him: "Hi. Have you had a leaflet?"
He hands me a leaflet.
Me: "What is it?"
Him: "It's a goth meetup group. We're going to the pub this Sunday and we go to other events. I designed the logo and leaflets."
Me: "It's good."
Him: "Thanks. It has a web address and an online group you can join."
Me: "Ok."
We talk for about 15 minutes. It's nice that they have a group to go out and do activities together. I didn't expect the people at a goth night to be like this.

I chat to some guys from Sweden who have come here because a friend invited them. People here are mostly really nice, there are a few serious ones, but the goth thing here is more like fun.

Now I'm in the main room dancing on the dancefloor to some goth music. Some of it is quite good.

Now I'm standing in the entrance foyer area. On the tables is free cola, lemonade with goth style cups to drink out of! Free crisps and Halloween themed sweets! This is top.

I dance some more on the dancefloor.

I swap numbers with a French lady I chat to. She's come to England to work as a classroom assistant until July next year. Someone gives me their Facebook address.

I've chatted to most people here throughout the course of the night. Everyone was impressed with my goth look. The DJ happens to have some goth accessories with him, so everyone starts borrowing hats and shades! Inspired by my top hat, the lady at the entrance taking the money shouts to me
Her: "Look. My hat is cooler than yours now!" she says laughing. She's wearing a captain type of hat.

This is hilarious. It's a quality night. People here have good conversation, dance, don't take drugs, and drink responsibly. It's one of the best nights I've had in ages.


Summary and venue reviews

Sacred Trinity Church
Medium busy. Clientele: goths. Decor: 10/10.
Notes: The venue of a goth club night. Good service, friendly, a well run event.
Sacred Trinity



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© Alex Remizo