Halloween might conjure up images of chilly nights, mist and howling winds, but the UK's weather on 31 October has been remarkably varied.
Historical observations contain everything from temperatures above 20°C to snow on the ground, torrential rain and wind gusts reaching 110mph. So, what are the UK's most extreme Halloween weather records?
What is the warmest Halloween on record in the UK?
The highest temperature recorded in the UK on Halloween is 23.6°C, observed at both Kew Gardens in London and Gravesend in Kent in 2014.
Elsewhere in the UK, Wales has reached 22.2°C at Trawscoed in 2016, while Scotland's Halloween record is 19.3°C at Kinloss in 2011. Northern Ireland reached 18.5°C at Fivemiletown in County Tyrone in 1995.
Halloween 2014 also stands out for its mild night. London St James's Park recorded a minimum temperature of 15.8°C on 1 November, the highest minimum in the Met Office's Halloween dataset.
What is the coldest Halloween on record?
Halloween can also provide an early taste of winter.
The lowest minimum temperature associated with Halloween is -12.8°C, recorded at Balmoral in Aberdeenshire in 1926. Minimum temperatures in the dataset are taken overnight into 1 November.
England's lowest is -8.9°C at Houghall in Durham in 1926, while Wales has fallen to -7.8°C at Rhayader Penvalley in 1955 and Northern Ireland to -6.4°C at Lough Navar in 1988.
Some Halloween days have remained exceptionally cold too. Balmoral recorded a maximum temperature of just 0.6°C in 1934, while Buxton and Macclesfield reached only 1.1°C that year.
Has it ever snowed on Halloween in the UK?
Yes. Snow features in the UK's historical Halloween weather records.
The greatest recorded Halloween snow depth is 13cm at Balmoral in 1926. England's highest is 7cm at Boltshope Park in County Durham in 2000, while Wales recorded 4cm at Llanarmon in 2008.
Snow was recorded at 10 observation sites in 1968 and five in 2008, demonstrating that wintry weather is possible by the end of October.
What is the windiest Halloween on record?
For suitably spooky Halloween conditions, it is difficult to beat the wind.
The highest Halloween wind gust in the UK is 110mph, a record shared by Gwennap Head in Cornwall in 1977 and the Needles on the Isle of Wight in 2022.
Scotland has recorded a Halloween gust of 92mph at Kirkwall in 1965, Wales 74mph at Aberdaron in 2021 and Northern Ireland 82mph at Killough in County Down in 1991.
What is the wettest Halloween on record?
Rain can provide another unwelcome ingredient for anyone heading out on Halloween.
The highest daily rainfall total in the Halloween dataset is 158.9mm at Tollymore Park in County Down in 1968.
England recorded 77.8mm at Footholme in Lancashire in 2021, Scotland 82.6mm at Tyndrum in 1999 and Wales 73.7mm at Beacons Reservoir in 1965.
What is the sunniest Halloween on record?
Halloween isn't always gloomy. The UK's sunniest Halloween in the dataset brought 9.8 hours of sunshine at Yarner Wood, Bovey Tracey, in Devon in 1992
Scotland's highest total is 9.1 hours at Paisley, Wales has recorded 9.2 hours at Aberystwyth and Northern Ireland 8.7 hours at Broughderg.
So, while ghosts and ghouls might provide the traditional Halloween scares, Britain's weather has plenty of tricks and treats of its own.
You can explore all of these extremes in our interactive graph below.
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