Households across the world are gearing up for a Halloween like no other this year.
With 2020’s scariest visitor undoubtedly being the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, this means that the usual frightful festivities of Halloween parties, trick or treating and more will be out of the question, which is leaving people to turn to other forms of fun to mark the occasion.
This is probably why many are planning to go all-out on decorating their houses this year.
If you’re looking to, quite literally, lighten the mood, then it’s predicted that compact projectors – which are designed to reflect a range of Halloween-themed images and scary scenes onto the side of your house – are the must-have decorative accessory for this spooky season.
No matter your price range, or what it is that you’re looking for in terms of capability from a projector, there’s plenty of different options available to get your hands on.
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What’s more is they can also be converted over to be used for other annual celebrations too, like Christmas, Bonfire Night, Valentines Day, Easter and more, which means you’re bound to be getting your money’s worth from your Halloween purchase.
We’ve decided to round-up a few of the best projectors we’ve seen on the market so far.
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Total Home FX Special Effects Projector
£159.95 – The Glow Company
The Glow Company
The Total Home FX Special Effects Projector comes pre-loaded with twelve seasonal videos and creates an animated display that will delight viewers with amazing detail and special effects.
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Not only do effects include Halloween zombies approaching the window glass, romantic dancing skeletons, or even a crazed mummy, but there are Christmas scenes too.
With a built in speaker, the overall effect is incredible.
It’ll set you back £159.95 and you can buy the from the Total Home FX Special Effects Projector from The Glow Company website here.
Premier Decorations LED Projector
£10.00 – John Lewis
John Lewis
The Premier Decorations LED Projector keeps it nice and simple.
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It’s a light effect projector that’s designed to beam pumpkins, ghosts, skulls and Happy Halloween onto an outdoor garden wall, fence or other surface, but it’s also suitable for indoor use too.
A lot more on the affordable side than others on the market, the Premier Decorations LED Projector will set you back just £10.00.
You can get your hands on it from the John Lewis website here.
Halloween Holographic Projector
£24.99 – Amazon
Amazon
The Halloween Holographic Projector is a nifty machine.
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This Amazon bestseller offers a little more sophistication, with moving images shown on any window or reflective surface. This full colour window movie projector plays 16-second movies in your windows, with 12 movies to choose from – six Halloween and six Christmas ones.
For just £24.99, you can get your hands on the Halloween Holographic Projector from Amazon here.
Atmosfear Fx Window Fx Bundle
£358 – Direct Nine
Direct Nine
Are you looking to really take things up a notch this Halloween?
Currently on offer and down from £596, this bundle includes Atmosfear Fx Halloween videos, with ghostly apparitions and phantasms, fancy graphics and a hi-res output. With different styles of ghouls to choose from – from comedy cartoons, to full on horror-fests – this brand is best for those taking digital decorating very seriously.
The Atmosfear Fx Window Fx Bundle will set you back £358 and you can get your hands on it from the Direct Nine website here.
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New survey reveals Britain’s ULTIMATE Christmas dinner combo – including ‘surprising’ sides
Emily Sergeant
A new survey of the British public has revealed what our ultimate Christmas dinner combination is, including some very surprising sides.
With December now well underway and the festive feasting season already thriving, it won’t be long until the big day is here and lots of Brits sit down to tuck into the heartiest meal they’ll likely have all year – their Christmas dinner, of course.
But do we all like to eat the same things? Apparently not.
You may remember that a survey conducted a couple of years back found that a good chunk of Brits would prefer to eat a curry over a traditional Christmas dinner, but now, a big new survey by YouGov has revealed what the nation’s ultimate Christmas dinner combination would be in the year 2025 – all the way from mains, to sides, to dessert.
A new survey has revealed Britain’s ultimate Christmas dinner combo / Credit: PickPic | Pxhere
When it comes to mains, it’s no surprise (or maybe it is?) that turkey still rules the roost at the Christmas dinner table, with 57% of Brits having it as part of their main meal.
On the other hand though, chicken or beef are not uncommon, with just under a quarter (24%) having either as part of their Christmas dinner, while one in seven(15%) tuck into some Christmas ham, and 10% of festive dinner tables feature other joints of pork.
Vegetarian or vegan alternatives, such as the ever-popular nut roasts, were found to feature on the Christmas dinner table for 13% of Brits.
When it comes to sides, it really is no surprise this time that roast potatoes and gravy take the crown, with around eight in 10 Brits (79-81%) accompanying their roasts with the duo.
Everything from mains, to sides, to desserts are on the menu / Credit: Realmac Software (via Unsplash)
Carrots will be on the table at 76% of Christmas dinners, while just over two thirds (70%) will feature stuffing, pigs in blankets, or Brussels sprouts, 62% typically have parsnips, and half (49%) add Yorkshire puddings to their plate.
Roughly four in 10 (40-42%) include cranberry sauce or broccoli, and 51% of us lot in the North will include mashed potatoes in the mix too.
Surprisingly, 16% add bread sauce to their plate, and 5% even opt for potato dauphinoise.
Ready to chat sweet treats? When it comes to dessert to finish things off, traditional classics like Christmas pudding (41%) and mince pies (31%) come out on top, but a little lower down the list you’ll also find trifle (18%), sticky toffee pudding (9%), and even stollen (5%).
On the flip side though, the survey also found that a traditional roast dinner doesn’t feature in everyone’s festive seasons, with 7% of Brits saying they have something else as their main meal on Christmas Day.
Featured Image – Nicole Michalou (via Pexels)
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The nominees for the Critics’ Choice award at the 2026 BRITs in Manchester have been revealed
Danny Jones
With the upcoming BRITs ceremony coming to Manchester, we’re more all over the nominations than ever, especially now that the Critics’ Choice nominees for 2026 have been confirmed.
2023 was the annual Chanel ‘Metiers D’Art’ show, 2024 was the MTV EMAs, and next summer will see the BRITs; gosh, Manchester really is in vogue, isn’t it?
Commenting on the nomination, he told the BRITs: “Ya beauty! Tapadh leibh [‘thank you’ in Gaelic] for recognising my work for this award, you legends! Even though I’m Scottish and Irish before I’m British, I appreciate the BRITs critics for this recognition.
“I really care about and believe in this music, and it makes my world brighter every time it reaches someone else. Hopefully, this nomination means some more beautiful people might find something in this wee album. ‘Mon the gays!”
Rose Gray
Next up in the nods is London’s Rose Gray – a solo star who has developed a cult following thanks to songs like ‘ATTENTION!’, ‘Wet & Wild’, ‘Angel of Satisfaction’ and more.
Also the long-time partner and childhood sweetheart of Babygirl, Iron Claw and The King’s Man actor, Harris Dickinson, Gray has been riding a particular wave of popularity over the past year or so, especially after the release of her A Little Louder, Please (Deluxe) double album this past October.
She said in a statement: “I’m so excited for this nomination! This moment feels like a special reminder of how far this journey has carried me and what a crazy year it’s been. One year ago, I was manifesting so hard for my album to travel, to find its people, to really get its light. And it did. Releasing this record has genuinely changed my life…”
Lastly, in at number three is the 20-year-old singer-songwriter, Sienna Spiro, whose soulful voice sounds like one with much more life experience and years of emotion under its belt; it’s no wonder that she’s resonated with multiple generations, let alone been recognised by the panel.
With big theatrical ballads like ‘Die On This Hill’, ‘You Stole The Show’, as well as heavily-streamed songs like ‘MAYBE.’, ‘BACK TO BLONDE’ and more in her impressive and fast-growing discography, we know she’ll go far even if she doesn’t win – you can bank on that.
She added: “So beyond honoured and grateful to be nominated for this year’s Critics’ Choice BRIT Award! To think I started releasing music last year, I would never have expected this at all. Thank you so much!”
Having looked again at the list of people who’ve been both shortlisted and those who have gone on to win it, trust us, you’ll want to be paying attention to this one…
For context:
Past BRITs Critics’ Choice / Rising Star winners and nominees
2008 – Adele (Duffy, Foals)
2009 – Florence + The Machine (Little Boots, White Lies)
2010 – Ellie Goulding (Delphic, Marina and the Diamonds)
2011 – Jessie J (James Blake, The Vaccines)
2012 – Emeli Sandé (Michael Kiwanuka, Maverick Sabre)
So yeah, it’s fair to say that anyone even in the running for this accolade tends to go on to do even more bigger and better things than they already have.
Tickets to be at the 2026 BRIT Awards at Co-op Live in person for whoever picks up the Critics’ Choice gong, as well as all the other categories, are live now.
Emily Sergeant -
24th September 2020 
