The night community has a ghost of a chance

SO were you a killjoy, or the life and soul of the party? Did you lay out the tablet and toffee apples and warmly welcome the ghosts and the ghouls? Or did you close the curtains, extinguish the lights and hide in the kitchen cursing every ring of the doorbell?

Hallowe'en seems to divide every neighbourhood. By the age of ten, most children will know which houses will reward a party piece with a smile and a sweetie and which would burn down before the owners would open the door on the last night of October.

Well, if that was you, then you're missing out. Unlike almost everything else in life which isn't what it used to be, Hallowe'en is actually miles better. For a start, more people are making more of an effort.

There was a time when the scariest night of the year was just for kids. Now, pubs and restaurants have special events, and fancy dress parties take place across the city. And even the children are trying a bit harder.

It's a long time since I've seen an eight-year-old wearing a white nylon bed-sheet ringing doorbells on Hallowe'en. Instead, there are vampires and devils and all kinds of scary apparitions. Last year, I think I even saw a kid dressed as Vladimir Romanov. Terrifying. And the performances on the doorsteps have improved too. Last year, I got some Tam O'Shanter, and the year before that three blood-soaked schoolgirls doing the horror rap. Odd, but worth some mini Mars Bars.

The cynics complain about the Americanisation and commercialisation of Hallowe'en as if it was some precious piece of our cultural heritage that should be preserved for the nation by Hysteric - sorry, Historic Scotland.

The truth of the matter is that it's just a way of confronting the arrival of the long nights of winter and making our darkest fears a bit less worrying.

Like many other commercial things, the Americans also do it incredibly well. I spent Hallowe'en a few years ago in the foothills of upstate New York where every house had a cut-out witch on the rooftops, zombies pinned to the garage or a plastic severed hand poking through the letterbox, and the cinema offered an all-night screening of classic horror films. We also have the Americans to thank for the pumpkin and for that alone I am grateful.

Anyone who has spent an hour trying to scrape out a turnip for a lantern will know that it ranks alongside giving the mother-in-law a back-rub in terms of jobs you just don't want to do. In comparison, hollowing out a pumpkin is a breeze and you get a soup for the family out of it too.

In fact, part of what makes Hallowe'en so special is the potential it offers to unite us all. The whole family can get together to help with the costume, make up a daft poem or just crowd around the front door and enjoy the company of strangers. In these days of political correctness and health and safety obsession, every aspect of childhood is safer and less challenging than it was before. Hallowe'en is the only time children have the confidence to go out after dark visiting neighbours they may not see from one year to the next. My son is reaching the age where he doesn't need me to follow him around, collecting the spoils. I will miss it.

So if you spent last night huddled in the darkness with your own demons, vow now to make the change next year. Buy some sweets, turn on all the lights and embrace the start of winter and one of the few occasions when we can open ourselves to being part of a community.

The Saudi king needs his wings clipped

WHILE the rest of us recycle and agonise about our carbon footprint, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia arrived for his state visit with an entourage of 400 aides in eight private planes.

They were then shuttled around London in 37 limousines and countless support vehicles.

Just because the Saudis produce much of the world's oil, doesn't give them an automatic licence to use it regardless of the consequences.

If the Government really is serious about carbon emissions and protecting the environment, why don't they just say no to such ridiculous and pompous largesse?

And if the Saudi king decides to stay at home as a result, well, that's fine.

Capital offers relief from London fear

I SPENT last week queuing up to be body-searched by burly men in London. I know there are some people who are happy to pay for that privilege but frankly, I could have done without it. I queued to be searched at the Science Museum, I queued to be searched at the Imperial War Museum and I queued to be searched by a man with a machine gun at the House of Commons.

Stepping on to the GNER train home was like escaping from Alcatraz. No bag x-rays, no frisking, just a relaxing journey to Waverley where the only policeman was busy helping a Chinese girl with a map.

The Glasgow Airport bombing was a reminder we can't be complacent about terrorism.

But thank goodness we can still live our lives here without the fear and paranoia that now stalks the streets of London.