Mother Shipton’s Cave is set to open late for the first time as part of Halloween celebrations.

The Knaresborough attraction is hosting a Hocus Pocus themed event, which includes wicked witches, a wacky wizard and a spooky woodland.

To conclude the Halloween celebrations, Mother Shipton’s will be open until 8.30pm tonight.

The last admission will be at 7pm.

A spokesperson for Mother Shipton’s Cave said:

“The team at Mother Shipton’s have decided to conclude their event with a late night opening on Halloween – visitors will have the chance to see the spooky woodland lit up after dark and cast spells with the witches and wizard on All Hallows’ Eve itself.

“So if you’re looking for a safe and family-friendly alternative to ‘Trick or Treating’ tomorrow, this Halloween adventure could be the perfect way to celebrate.”

Tickets for the Halloween event can be booked online here at the Mother Shipton’s website.

Read more:

• Spooky castles, pumpkins and haunted houses: Halloween fun in the district
• Ripon pumped up on pumpkins for Halloween half-term
• Hairdresser’s spooktacular display wins Knaresborough Halloween contest

The Stray Ferret has launched our new Photo of the Week feature to highlight the beauty of the Harrogate district captured by talented local photographers.

Send your photos to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk for a chance to feature here. We are interested in amateur and professional pictures.

This week we feature an eerie image taken by David Burns who has perfectly captured Crown Place in Harrogate at its spookiest ahead of Halloween.

The spooktacular display at Claro Hair Stylists in Knaresborough has been crowned the winner of the town’s Halloween window competition.

The impressive window on the High Street includes potion bottles, cauldrons and spell books, which have been created by owner Sue Orr.

The competition, organised by Knaresborough Business Collective, is being run alongside the Halloween scarecrow trail.

Annie Wilkinson-Gill, from The Crystal Buddha, who launched the not-for-profit business group with Natalie Horner, from Sid Horner and Son said:

“Sue was thrilled to have won.

“This is our third window competition through the business collective and the turnout has been great. Lots of businesses decorated their windows in the run up to Halloween. It really creates a buzz in town and people love looking at all the displays.

They all looked spectacular, especially alongside the scarecrow trail, which has done so well and brought a lot of people into Knaresborough. We’ve sold hundreds of maps for the trail. We did have some vandalism on the first night, but since then it’s more than made up for it.”

A spectacularly spooky light show will be held at a historic building in Harrogate this weekend.

The Chapel on Grove Road will celebrate the occasion with its first ever display, complete with projected images, creepy smoke and themed music.

Owner Mark Hinchliffe said he hoped the free display would be enjoyed by people of all ages:

“It’s a bit mad – when you get one of those ideas and think, ‘what a great Halloween thing to do opposite the cemetery and on the road so you can see it easily’.

“It’s local, in town, and people can come and see it.”

Although the concept came from Mr Hinchliffe and his partner Heidi, they say they have had a huge amount of support from other local businesses.

FTAV has put together the programme of projection, lighting and effects, while Studio One and Kall Kwik helped with producing publicity material to promote the event.

In full costume, the couple will be greeting visitors with sweets donated by Asda, Waitrose and The Serious Sweet Company.

Read more:

• Spooky castles, pumpkins and haunted houses: Halloween fun in the district
• Ripon pumped up on pumpkins for Halloween half-term

The show will run on Sunday, October 30 as well as Halloween itself, Monday, October 31, from 6pm to 8pm each day.

It may only be two days long, but Mr Hinchliffe has already set his sights on something more extensive for the next significant event in the calendar. He said:

“If I do things, I like to make it really visual. I’m a creative and I’m a bit bonkers.

“It all started with Halloween and now I’ve had another idea of doing a Santa’s grotto. I’ve found an antique sleigh to die for – it’s 2.5m from North America, about 1900, with a double button cushioned seat. It’s the real thing.”

Details of the grotto will be confirmed nearer the time, but Mr Hinchliffe said he hoped to tie it in to Harrogate’s other Christmas celebrations for the benefit of the whole community.

Halloween is creeping up, with the celebrations and events across the district becoming bigger, better and more ghoulish each year.

This year it falls just after October half-term, so there is plenty going on for little witches and wizards – and big ones too!

So whether you fancy some pumpkin picking on a farm, spooky trails, or haunted houses, we’ve put together a list of five places to enjoy some Halloween fun.

Birchfield Farm Pumpkin Festival – Summerbridge

Birchfield Farm’s Pumpkin Festival is a firm favourite amongst families in the Harrogate district. Is it even Halloween if you haven’t taken a selfie with a wheelbarrow full of pumpkins at the picturesque Summerbridge farm?

You don’t need to book for this one and there are plenty of pumpkins of all shapes, sizes and colours to go around and you can visit everyday until October 31.

There are also lots of activities to do on the farm so you can make a morning or afternoon of it.

After you have picked your pumpkin from the patch – and there really is a huge selection of all shapes and sizes – you then have the option of visiting the farm for £5.95 per person. Then take your kids for a homemade ice cream at the farm’s café.

Activities include:

• A huge carving barn where you can create your pumpkin masterpieces
• Bouncy castles
• Play equipment
• A 6-acre maize maze
• A spooky woodland walk
• Animals
• A giant bale mountain

Creepy Castle: The Spooktastic Halloween Trail – Knaresborough

Soak up the spooky atmosphere at Knaresborough Castle – the setting of the new Creepy Castle Spooktastic Halloween trail.

Set in the grounds of the ancient monument, expect to see see wizard magic shows and spooky characters along the way. There will also be face painting, stories in the castle, cookie decorating and more scary surprises.

Halloween Trail – Swinton Bivouac, Masham

Stately Superstitions: Eerie Encounters at the Castle – Castle Howard, York