Brighton's most popular Halloween house will not return this year

Ollie Slim, from Brighton, and his husband Ollie Blackaby, 49, have been decorating their house in Highcroft Villas, Prestonville, for the past 14 years.

Known as the “Highcroft Halloween Haunt”, the house became something of a local landmark, opening its garden to the public and raising more than £38,000 for Macmillan over the years.

Over the years, the house has been styled to various themes including Stranger Things, Ghostbusters and The Nightmare Before Christmas.

In 2017 the house featured Jack Skellington, a character from The Nightmare before Christmas (Image: NQ) This year, however, the couple have announced they will not be holding the annual event. A notice outside the house read: “It is with a very heavy heart that we announce that our annual Halloween Haunt in support of Macmillan Cancer Support will not be taking place this year.

“This difficult decision has been made due to the overwhelming success of the event and the large numbers of visitors on Halloween night. While we are thrilled that the Haunt has brought so much joy to the house, along with safety concerns of children walking in the road, have become significant issues.

“Despite our efforts to work with the local council for a road closure on Halloween night, we were unfortunately met with strong resistance.

“We know how much our Haunt means to everyone, and we truly hope to be back next year.”

Ollie Slim told The Argus: “We approached the council and asked if we could organise a road closure for the evening. They sent us a 20-page dossier of forms to fill out informing us that we would be required to take out public liability insurance and arrange for stewards. This would just be too expensive for a charitable event.”

Ollie Slim outside the 2022 Stranger Things display (Image: Ollie Slim) Councillor Trevor Muten, cabinet member for transport, parking and public realm said: “As a council we are keen to help local fundraising initiatives wherever possible and it is a shame to hear this popular event will no longer be taking place.

“The organisers should be congratulated for the fantastic amount they have raised for MacMillan Cancer Support and for the joy they have no doubt brought to the local community.

 “The council had previously had discussions with the organisers about the best options available to help support this event in relation to the traffic being generated, and although a full road closure may have ultimately proved difficult, we did also suggest alternatives and provide the appropriate application forms, guidance and information.

 “However, we did not receive an application for temporary traffic measures on this street for Halloween this year or last year. Had we done so, these would have been carefully considered.

 “Residents are welcome to request road closures or other types of traffic management for a range of events and these are always fully assessed before any decision is made.”