Pat Regan: Spookport comes to life

It's not quite Halloween yet, but tonight (28th October) Southport became 'Spookport'.

Crowds lined the town as Lord Street was treated to a Halloween 'Spooktacular' parade.

Ghosts and ghouls everywhere and even the odd drunken pirate ..

Our modern celebration of Halloween was originally called 'Samhain,' which comes from the Gaelic/Celtic meaning for ‘November’ and ‘summer’s end’. The first Celtic settlers arrived here in around 600 BC, fetching with them their own 'nature - based polytheistic form of spiritual belief systems.

Samhain represented the beginning of the long cold winter. It was a time when the cattle had to be steered into sheltered quarters, as a protective measure against incoming frost and snowstorm.

Halloween is traditionally one of the oldest British religious festivals celebrated in Scotland particularly up to and beyond 1870s. It is not an American invention. Trick or Treat is not an American invention - the games, fun and harum scarum at Halloween are all typically British being listed in Robert Burns 1875 poem Halloween for all to see. It is part of our traditional culture.

Halloween is a genuine Celtic festival and was celebrated in Britain long before it was Christianised. The early Christians invented All Saints Day on November 2 to try to replace Halloween but failed because the people enjoyed Halloween so much.

Halloween is primarily an ancient celebration of love for life, our mysterious affiliation with the earth and intimate respect for the dearly departed.