I used to go trick or treating
30 something years ago, in the wooly wilds of Kent.

It's not an American thing, or recent.

The difference between us and the spetics is that they seem to do general fancy dress, whereas us snaggletoofs stick to ghosts, goblins, and bloody corpse costumes.

Having said that, Haloween in the UK seems to have become much more significant in the last few years. I don't think that's anything to do with the yanks though.
(username failed moderation, Fri 26 Oct 2012, 11:54, 1 reply)

Depends what you mean by recent.
I am less recent than you are and when I was a sprog it just did not happen.
( edjogs Collared doves are shit., Fri 26 Oct 2012, 13:23, closed)

I can still remember doing Guy Fawkes
with a huge fucking bonfire and stuffed mannequin thingy.

Never any "Trick or Treating" on Halloween.
That was in Zambia, Africa in the 70's.
(Misery McUglywife an attention seeking sociopathic fuckstain., Fri 26 Oct 2012, 13:31, closed)

i grew up in 3 different european countries
all had their own hallowe'en customs, this was mid 80s-90s
(quintsy, Fri 26 Oct 2012, 14:03, closed)

You did Guy Fawkes?
No wonder they burnt him afterwards.
( Draconacticus Reject shampoo. Demand real poo!, Fri 26 Oct 2012, 14:32, closed)

I went up the
"other secret tunnel to parliament."
(Misery McUglywife an attention seeking sociopathic fuckstain., Fri 26 Oct 2012, 23:30, closed)

Well, when I said thirty something years ago
that's what I meant by not recent.

I suppose it's obvious, but: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trick-or-treating

Several hundred years old, at least.
(username failed moderation, Fri 26 Oct 2012, 13:43, closed)

That wiki article is very vague, and largely irrelevant - 'souling' seems to be tangentially related, at best, and 'guising' - a bit closer, but not something I've ever heard of, possibly because it would seem to be almost exclusively Scottish. I'm probably not alone in my ignorance, as Wikipedia hasn't deemed it important enough for its own article. Any reference to older roots for the practice are thick with weasel-words such as "may" and "could".

'Trick or Treat' is recent, and imported from the USA. You can check this fairly easily by trying to find an old-timer who used to go Trick or Treating. I'll bet a pound to a penny that you won't find one.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Fri 26 Oct 2012, 14:14, closed)

I am one of those old timers and can vouch
for the veracity of your statement from first hand experience. The first experience I have of trick or treating was when my kids wanted to do it, early 1970s.
( edjogs Collared doves are shit., Fri 26 Oct 2012, 14:29, closed)

Going back to the original post,
we're discussing the 'Americanisation' of B3ta.

The suggestion is that the UK has somehow picked up the idea of trick or treating from the US.

Or at least that's what I thought we were discussing.

Just pointing out, while maybe it's not clear who started it, certainly there has been some tradition of doing it for at least 30 years in both countries.

And forms of it - people roaming around at Haloween in some kind of dress, and possibly collecting things, for centuries.
(username failed moderation, Fri 26 Oct 2012, 15:07, closed)

I came to Oz in the early 80's
Now I will admit that when we came here we were living out in the middle of fucking nowhere but, it really only has become a regular occurrence in the last decade or so that groups of kiddies have started roaming the streets at the end of Oct. Prior to that you may have gone to a dress up party but that was about it.

Any other antipodeans have similar/different experiences?
(Misery McUglywife an attention seeking sociopathic fuckstain., Fri 26 Oct 2012, 21:28, closed)

You could ask my bro'
He went to Perth in '69
( edjogs Collared doves are shit., Sat 27 Oct 2012, 21:50, closed)

Go on then.
I reckon the first time the missus and I got sprogs at the door was either 1999 or 2000 (from hazy memory).
(Misery McUglywife an attention seeking sociopathic fuckstain., Sun 28 Oct 2012, 23:09, closed)