Nick Doherty Talks Halloween Haunt Fest

Halloween Haunt Fest is in the midst of full preparations with October getting closer and closer each day. The upcoming scare event is looking to shake things up here in the and advises audiences to "expect an experience like no other." Fans can navigate through four terrifying houses- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Trials of Jane Wenham - The Hertfordshire Witch, E.D.E.N Project and Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey.

Created by award-winning scare attraction designers, Halloween Haunt Fest is a high-intensity, next-level horror event packed with movie-quality scares, sinister street theatre, a creepy carnival funfair, themed bars, and eerie photo ops for the bravest guests. I was fortunate enough to catch up CEO of In The Scenes Ltd, and one of the creative minds behind Halloween Haunt Fest, Nick Doherty.

To start things off, can you give us a bit of background on yourself and what you love about horror?

My name is Nick Doherty, and I come from a theatrical background, having trained in Production Arts where I discovered my passion for creating immersive worlds. What truly drew me into horror was my lifelong fascination with theme parks—especially the magic of experiencing them during Halloween season, both here in the UK and across the USA. Blending theatrical storytelling with the thrills of live, immersive environments, I decided I wanted to combine my expertise in creating live immersive environments with my passion of theme park entertainment. 

Can you tell us the backstory for Halloween Haunt Fest and how it came to be?

Halloween Haunt fest has been three years in the making. After visiting Halloween events in the USA I could see there was a gap in the UK market for IP related content. I spoke to friends and family about my idea and I pushed myself to create a team to develop the event. My wife Abbie has been key in encouraging me to talk to my IP contacts and encourage them to engage with the content here in the UK and my friend Jack (who is an expert in all things halloween) agreed to come on board after visiting an event in the UK 2 years ago. We as a team are passionate about creating something the UK can be proud to call us one of the top attractions for the halloween Season. 

With this being the opening year for Halloween Haunt Fest, what are you hoping to achieve with the event?

In all honesty we just want to showcase a mix of the best of British scare tactics with the best of American Technology and scenic environments. We're not going to get everything right in our first year but we certainly want to give it a good go! From the start I always said I want to come into the industry to shake it up a little. Encouraging creative shifts and improving on quality for UK Audiences. 

Being the first attraction in the UK to feature Leatherface & The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is incredible. Can you talk us through how that came to fruition?

We reached out to TCM as well as many other Horror IP's and expressed our interest in bringing their brand to the UK market. Many of these original conversations are still ongoing and we have quite a few brands up our sleeves. Leatherface is such an iconic character and we really wanted to include him in our line up for our first year. 

Why choose the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and did you have the opportunity to work with any other horror franchises or characters?

We have many exciting Brands up our sleeves ready for future events. It takes 2-3 years to develop plans with our brand partners so we are already working on attraction ideas for Halloween Haunt Fest in 2026 and beyond. 

Moving on to the other scare zones at the event, can you talk us through E.D.E.N? It sounds vastly different from the other scare zones at the event.

We really wanted to include something a little bit different at the event this year. We wanted to go with something sci-fi. We haven't quite revealed the whole story of E.D.E.N thats a surprise but we have included quite a few hidden hints in our marketing for the attraction. 

Was there anything in particular that drew you to create a scare zone blending sci-fi and horror?

We want to make sure that all our attractions compliment each other and each attraction will deliver a very different style of scare and story. Sci-fi was the perfect fit for this years event. 

The UK, particularly Hertfordshire, has a rich history of horror (and folklore). Why pick the story of Jane Wenham?

We wanted to build an attraction that would appeal to local people and celebrating the local folklore and history. We have taken some artistic license but the premise of Jane Wenham: The Hertfordshire witch attraction is historically accurate. 

Was including a scare zone based on local history always something you wanted to do?

We really wanted to do something for the local community and help tell their story.

Nick Doherty Talks Halloween Haunt Fest

What other horrors would you say have inspired the event as a whole, and the other scare zones?

We are certainly inspired by every UK attraction who have helped establish this amazing community. We are also inspired by USA attractions and wanted to bring the high quality production value they offer to the UK. 

You said Halloween Haunt Fest was looking to shake up the scare scene here in the UK. What would you say will set HHF apart from other scare events across the UK?

We are a creative led company. The management team come from a theatrical background and we will be using Theatrical methods and technology to help us tell our stories. 

What can anyone attending Halloween Haunt Fest expect?

Halloween Haunt Fest will be a fun, exhilarating evening out. There will be something for everyone. Whether it's coming face to face with Leatherface in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Experiencing a nightmare version of Winnie-The-pooh: Blood and Honey. Finding out the truth about what E.D.E.N is all about or experiencing local folklore in Jane Wenham: The Hertfordshire witch and if the scares are not your thing theres entertainment, food and drink options, Fun characters to interact with and funfair rides,  theres something for everyone 

Do you think there is the potential to bring other existing IPs to future events?

This is our goal, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Winnie-The-Pooh: Blood and honey are only planned to be here for 1 year.  We do have exciting plans for future events but we cant go into to much detail just yet but the plans are really exciting watch this space! 

What’s next for you and Halloween Haunt Fest?

We are planning something that will tour the UK throughout 2026. It will feature the theme of one of the original attractions at Halloween Haunt Fest this year. More details will be revealed soon. 

Lastly, to finish, if you had the opportunity to work with any horror franchise or character, who or what would you choose and why?

That’s a great question — there are just so many to choose from! I’ve always loved the iconic slashers like Michael Myers and Jason, but I also have a soft spot for the classic monsters from the Hammer Horror era. As for whether I’d love to work with them... well, you’ll just have to watch this space because we might already be in conversations with some of them.

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Huge thank you to Nick for the exclusive interview. We're looking forward to attending this event come October!

Expect an experience like no other.

Expect to be terrified.

Halloween Haunt Fest runs from 17th October - 1st November at the Hertfordshire Showground. The headline attractions will see fearless visitors experience the UK’s ONLY official Texas Chainsaw Massacre attraction, packed with blood-soaked iconic scenes from the 1974 horror movie classic. The first ever scare maze based on the 2023 British independent slasher film Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (and the 2024 sequel), and two original concepts E.D.E.N, The Gateway to ‘Earth 2’, and The Trials of Jane Wenham - The Hertfordshire Witch, based on local historical events!

Created by award-winning scare attraction designers, this next-level experience is guaranteed to be a deeply unsettling and immersive experience. Every detail has been carefully crafted to push fear to the limit. Expect movie-quality scares, atmospheric entertainment, and eerie encounters at every turn, with speciality acts, spine-chilling dancefloor beats from the resident DJ and sinister street theatre or break up the screams with some MORE SCREAMS and face all the fun of the as you take on the terrifying rides and try your hand at some creepy carnival games at the Phantom Funfair.

Alongside sinfully spectacular street food, a themed bar will offer hearty drinks and warm fires for those looking to gather some courage and sustenance with their favourite scare-seekers before heading out into the unknown where, scattered throughout the site, secret photo points offer backdrops for the ultimate haunted snapshots.

Your ticket gives you unlimited access to all of the scare experiences, whilst those less daring still have the chance to come along and join in the fun with a ‘Scaredy Cat ticket’ at a reduced price to experience a slice of the action with an opportunity to upgrade on the night! Book now to be among the first to experience a horror event that will redefine fear.

Tickets are on sale now, starting from £20.00 and can be bought via the Halloween Haunt Fest Website.

Halloween Haunt Fest takes place at the Hertfordshire Showground on select nights in the dates specified above. For more info please head to their Official Website. For regular updates, you can follow them on Facebook, Instagram, Tik-Tok or YouTube.