Countdown to Christmas: Day 4

It's the fourth day of the festive season, and I was out in the woods!

Festive Walk and Talk in the Woods

Today was the regular Friends of Bailey's Wood Walk and Talk session, and so I gave it a festive flavour with tales of Christmas folklore, plus mulled apple juice and mince pies for the walkers. The antlers were a little nod to the fact that Bailey's Wood is a remnant of the medieval deer park at Blackley, though I'm now wondering whether dressing as a deer in an ancient hunting ground was really that sensible!

Advent Tea

Today's tea from my Bird and Blend advent calendar was Chocolate Digestives!

Advent Model

And our little festive model from our other advent calendar was a teeny little snow plough!

Countdown to Christmas: Day 2

It's the second day of our Yuletide celebrations. Today was more of an outdoor kinda day (for me - Rob was at work all day).

Walk in the Woods

I had a lovely walk in Blackley Forest today, listening to Christmas music and looking out for all the signs that the Holly King's reign has truly begun. There's a beautiful glade of silver birch trees in the forest, and I've fallen into the tradition of visiting it each December, standing in the middle of it and listening to 'Carol of the Bells'.

Stollen

Tonight, I had a bit of a difficult thing to do, as it was the monthly Friends of Crumpsall Park committee meeting, and sadly the meeting when I resigned as treasurer. I've been treasurer for eight years, and I still love the park a lot, but it's time for me to hand over to someone else now. I took some stollen for the committee so that it wasn't all doom and gloom!

Advent Tea

Today's tea in my Bird and Blend advent calendar was Earl Grey Creme!

Advent Model

Today's model in our other advent calendar was a little Christmas wreath!

31 Days of Halloween: Day 30

The penultimate day of our Halloween celebrations! I've got forest, films and pumpkins planned!

Ghost Stories Walk and Talk

Today started off with a really enjoyable Ghost Stories Walk and Talk for Friends of Bailey's Wood. I led a gentle, social walk in the forest, telling stories about lost knights, woodland werewolves, and the time the devil came to Dam Head. And then we had Halloween cakes and cherry squash in the woods!

Halloween Film Afternoon at the Care Home

This afternoon, I was at Castlerea Care Home for our annual Halloween Film Afternoon. I did my traditional dramatic reading of 'The Raven', and then we settled down with some popcorn and Halloween cakes to watch... well... Halloween.

Crown Prince Squash

More squash! We got a Crown Prince Squash in our Groobarbs veg box today!

Halloween Dinner

We went for dinner at my mother-in-law's tonight. I took her a mini pumpkin, and she gave us pumpkin pie (not made from the same pumpkin, of course).

P is for Prom Night

And then we continued our Horror A-Z with my mother-in-law, watching Prom Night tonight.

31 Days of Halloween: Day 26

Today was a very busy day, involving four different outfits and two different wigs. It was a good day.

Bailey’s Wood Litter-Pick

This morning started off with the monthly Friends of Bailey's Wood litter-pick. As is tradition, we dressed up for October litter-pick. And, as is also tradition, we (or maybe that should be I) tried to make our costumes as unsettling as possible.

Christmas Duck

One of the guys on the litter-pick presented me with a present this morning. He said, "I know you're into your ducks," and I think this is because my little Halloween ducks have been turning up at various events. Then he told me he'd found this one in his garden one day, and I could have it for when we start celebrating Christmas. I love my little garden duck!

Mouse and Chocolate Owls

A present from my mum!

Hannah’s Bookshelf Halloween Special

This afternoon was the annual Hannah's Bookshelf Halloween Special on North Manchester FM, featuring seasonal flash fiction from this year's 3 Minute Scares entries.

Abominable Books

Also on my radio show today, I opened my October box from the Abominable Book Club. I got Disturbance by Jenna Clake and Coup de Grâce by Sofia Ajram, plus a tote bag, popcorn and a few other treats.

Bailey’s Wood Horror Walk

Then it was to the woods for the Friends of Bailey's Wood evening event... Saturday the 26th - Horror in the Woods. I led some brave souls through the forest, telling stories of other realms, vengeful trees, and why you should never book a cabin in the woods on Airbnb.

L is for The Loved Ones

Back home, we continued our horror A-Z with The Loved Ones.

M is for The Menu

And then we rounded off the day with The Menu.

31 Days of Halloween: Day 23

Today was a bit of a busy, but absolutely lovely, day of Halloween celebrations.

Bailey’s Wood Halloween Story Walk

This morning, I led a Halloween Story Walk for Friends of Bailey's Wood. The kids who came along were so creative and imaginative, looking for clues about the identity of the creature who lives in the woods. Ultimately, they concluded that there's maybe... just maybe... something wrong with the trees. Gulp.

Campfire Tales at Castlerea Care Home

I did my regular poetry and stories session with the residents at Castlerea Care Home this afternoon. On a whim, I thought we might honour the spooky season by telling scary stories. We lit a campfire, gathered round, and started telling stories. I told some of my favourite urban legends (The Killer on the Back Seat and The Vanishing Hitchhiker), and the housemates invented a story about a ghost in the care home. We also listened to some classic Halloween songs (although we had to temporarily turn off the campfire to do that).

Uchiki Kuri Squash Curry

Squash season continues with Uchiki Kuri!

Events in October 2024

Park Write - Spooky Season
Saturday 12th October
2.00–5.00pm
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be running a creative writing workshop in the park with a seasonal writing theme
Booking Link

Virtual Writing Retreat
Sunday 13th October
10.30–5.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf
I'm hosting an online writing retreat for creative writers with writing exercises and structured writing sessions
Members Event

Late Autumn Walk in the Park
Saturday 19th October
11.00–12noon
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the park to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Samhain Walk in the Woods
Saturday 19th October
2.30–3.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the woods to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Halloween Story Walk in the Woods
Wednesday 23rd October
11.00–12.00pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a fun, creative walk in the woods with a Halloween theme
Booking Link

A Nightmare on Nelson Street 2: Emmeline's Revenge
Thursday 26th October
6.30–8.30pm
Pankhurst Museum
I'll be leading a weird history walk along Nelson Street, before returning to the Pankhurst Centre for Halloween brews and tales suffragettes and werewolves
Booking Link

Hannah's Bookshelf Halloween Special
Saturday 26th October
2.00–4.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf / North Manchester FM
I'll be hosting the annual Halloween edition of my regular radio show on North Manchester FM, including 3 Minute Scares flash fiction
Submission Link

Saturday the 26th - Horror in the Woods!
Saturday 26th October
5.00–6.00pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a walk in the woods with unsettling tales of the forest
Booking Link

Ghost Stories Walk and Talk
Wednesday 30th October
11.00–12.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the woods with some spooky stories
Booking Link

Halloween Film Afternoon
Wednesday 30th October
1.00–4.00pm
Castlerea House
I'll be hosting a Halloween film afternoon (with a bit of seasonal poetry) for residents at Castlerea care home
Private Event

Interested in booking me for an event? Click here to find out more.

Autumn Equinox: Day 6

It's the penultimate day of us celebrating the beginning of autumn, and oh boy! we've got a lot going on today.

Crumpsall Park Autumn Equinox Walk

This morning, I led a gentle, social walk for Friends of Crumpsall Park to enjoy the changing seasons in the park (especially the trees!).

Hannah’s Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special

This afternoon was my Hannah's Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special on North Manchester FM, where I shared some folklore of the season, but also played a selection of original, seasonal flash fiction from some fantastic writers who contibuted to the show. Also... I brought in apple pies for the volunteers at the community centre where the radio station is based.

Cherry Pie

I've had a LOT of apple pie so far this autumn, so I thought I'd mix it up and have cherry.

Bailey’s Wood Autumn Equinox Walk

After the radio show, I led a seasonal walk for Friends of Bailey's Wood, sharing folklore and stories of the season and enjoying the woods getting its autumn clothes on.

Autumn Equinox Dinner

Tonight was our Autumn Equinox Dinner, and Rob made us the traditional meal of meatloaf and root vegetable rice, followed by blackberry crumble (made with blackberries I picked when I went mad for brambling at the end of the summer).

Autumn Equinox Gifts

After dinner, we shared our traditional Autumn Equinox cards and gifts. Two more whiskies to add to the tasting set we'll be enjoying in December.

Dark Night of the Scarecrow

For the past couple of years, we've struggled to find a film that could be our regular seasonal film (we've got one for all the other seasons). But... the quest is over! Our (newly) traditional Autumn Equinox film is Dark Night of the Scarecrow!