Neighbours all gave money, not sweets on Halloween in 80s

[ofwarren]

I was born and brought up in a working class town in Lancashire and on Halloween I'd always be a witch. My mum would dress me in a bin bag with a witches hat and I'd take out a swede (which they called a turnip) with a face carved in and a candle inside.

We would go door to door, usually only a few streets where my mum knew people and we were not given sweets, everyone gave money!

These days everyone gives sweets there but I'm just wondering if giving money was normal where you grew up?

Late 70s / early 80s guizer here, it was all about the cash for us 🤣 change, not notes, dropped into a sock. By the end of the night we would have been worth mugging but the sock would have been effective defence as a cosh.

I remember the horror one year when a new family from a different part of the country moved in and gave out fruit. Word spread quick, the mum said to someone at school pick up a few days later that they’d only had a couple of groups stop. Not sure if anyone explained that an apple and satsuma was not in the mercenary spirit of our bit 🤣

Never did it as a child (too old, never a thing where we lived) but dds did it in the 80s and it was always sweets. I don’t think anyone ever gave money.

Yes!

We would sing 🎶

Halloween is here tonight
Shut your doors and windows tight
Halloween is here tonight
Give us a penny

Fruit! That's hilarious, I'd have been so disappointed 🤣

We'd end up with loads of coins too. I can't remember what we used to collect the money in. It wasn't a sock but I know my mum wouldn't have bought something specially for it.

You had a song! Wonderful!
What part of the country is this?

Yes! In the 90s we were given money. If we were given a £1 we thought it was the best thing ever My mum was still putting money by the door ready and I said to her that kids were happy with sweets these days and she was most pleased then.

I have never heard of this 😂

No17 gave out 50p pieces. Ten bob per kid! It was legendary around our way.

We were also given fruit but it was mostly by the older generation. It was a nice snack to have whilst out

When I went guising in late 70s(Scottish town), over the evening we’d get a mixture of monkey nuts, toffee apples (much prized), a few penny sweets and the occasionally cash (from any household that had forgotten to get stuff in for hallowe’en). In return we had to do our party piece (a song, poem or joke).

Where I'm from we never really had to do a turn. The odd house would ask you to and most kids would just stand there bemused.

Would you plan what you were going to do in advance and then do the same piece at every door?

Northern Ireland in the 80s and we got cash too!

Yorkshire and we always did a joke, my cousin was always a Mummy (uncle worked at paper factory) and he did the punchline with a woo.
we were slick.

We just did not mark this event, we celebrated Guy Fawkes Night instead.

Yes, same in working class community I grew up in but it was only very small amounts of money.

Amateurs.
Penny for the guy, outside the pub from 25th during daylight hours and treating at night!

Newcastle.

We would all practice the song before we set off. There was another one as well but I can't remember it.

What part of the country?
Did you do 'Penny for the Guy'?
You'd occasionally see the odd Guy where I came from. Usually 2 boys who had made a scarecrow and pulled it door to door on a homemade go cart type thing.

Bonfire night as we called it was always celebrated too, usually with one of the neighbours having a bonfire in the street. One year the fire engine came and made them put it out and we never had one again.

The sky is blue, the grass is green, have you got a penny for Halloween? If you haven’t got a penny, a ha’penny will do, if you haven’t hot a ha’penny then we’ll put your windows through. Some folks still give money out round here but in times gone past I only give money once the sweets have ran out.

Still always see one bonfire guy with some lads begging for change outside the local shops.

North East.

When I went guising in late 70s(Scottish town), over the evening we’d get a mixture of monkey nuts, toffee apples (much prized), a few penny sweets and the occasionally cash (from any household that had forgotten to get stuff in for hallowe’en). In return we had to do our party piece (a song, poem or joke).

early 80s and this was my experience. Some houses you were invited in for apple bobbling and treacle scones hung up on a piece of string (you had to get underneath them to get some).
I don’t remember money being a ‘thing’.

we’d practice our ‘piece’ for weeks in advance - doesn’t mean it was any good though 🤣

We wore the black bin bags and cheap plastic masks.

Yes it was money!

And our song was "Halloween is coming the goose is getting fat, please put a penny in the old man's hat. If you haven't got a penny, a ha'penny will do, if you haven't got a ha'penny god bless you."

Scotland here. 1980s/early 90s.

Nobody had a ha'penny.

The sky is blue, the grass is green, have you got a penny for Halloween!

90s NE here, I would say most people gave cash still, some sweeties.

When I went guising in Scotland in the late 70s / 80s we rarely got money. Usually apples, tangerines, monkey nuts, penny sweets, toffee apples etc. You were usually invited in and the folk tried to guess who you were before you did your party piece.

I got money mid 90s, some people had started with a mini chocolate bar but we were all about the money lol

I’m in Ireland and every year I dressed up as a witch ( black plastic bag ) ghost ( sheet with holes in it ) or a cat ( black leotard with a tail made out of tights)
we were given fruit! Nuts ! And coins !

Absolutely loved Halloween and still do!
It’s a big celebration over here now and luckily the kids are always off Halloween week so plenty of Halloween fun to be had!

Years ago an English friend of mine texted me in a panic saying he had ran out of sweets ( massive area, I also had ran out and had made up 60 bags of sweets !)
I said just turn off the lights in the house.
Well he didn’t , ended up giving them money - gave out over €100 that night 😂 if I had of known I would have knocked on his door myself 😂