We were very kindly invited to this year's Scream Aloud. Whilst we were given free entry to the event, we have full editorial control of what our review of the event says.
Our Slasher Review
Scream Aloud is located near Lymington in the New Forest. This year they have six attractions on offer on their linear route. The event has some great roaming characters and some simple yet really effective set pieces. Unfortunately it lacked actors in some area due to actor illness so some arwas did feel a bit empty. My favourite attraction of the night was Ward 13. I felt Nocturnal to be the weakest of the bunch for scares but probably the best themed. Make sure to fully embrace Fannies Cavern of Chaos.
Top Tips - Take boots or appropriate footwear.
Things that bite - Lack of actors on our run due to illness.
Value for money - Its £30 for the event which feels a bit expensive when compared to some of the other events around the country.
Scare Rating - 3/5
Do we recommend - Yes if you're in the area as it is a fun night!
Our Stalker Review
When you think New Forest what springs to mind is open greenery and wildlife mooching about, but set between Lymington and Brockenhurst is Scream Aloud. This scare event has been running for a few years and we’ve seen it grow tremendously over the past few years so we were eagerly anticipating this years event. This year sees 6 attractions along a linear route. We arrived and it was wet. The weather hadn’t been kind and the ground was squelchy with light mud and water. Luckily this didn’t dwindle the enthusiasm as on went the boots and we checked in. The ever fabulous Fannie Burns arrived and escorted her past the fair and some side stalls of food and games and into her big top. Gone was the massive cattle pen queue line and heras fencing and in came a more social affair with benches, good and some good music. Fannies bedroom was off the right along with the entrance to the attraction. We entered the queue and whilst we waited some fire performers entertained the crowd as well as Fannie and her roaming menagerie of colourful characters. After about a ten minute wait it was our time to enter. We were told after our run that they were low on actors due to illness.
Warning: potential spoilers ahead.
I’m going to try to keep this spoiler free but apologies in advance of that doesn’t happen. First up was new attraction number 1, Rotten Rickies Repulsive Roundhouse. Our group had no idea what to expect and upon entering we were greeted with a bloody looking clown maze. We wandered through and met a couple of characters and saw a few great set pieces but then we entered the second half. Due to the actor illness mentioned above, this area didn't appear to have any actors in in our run. Because of that it was completely dead and felt like we were just going for a stroll. It needed some actors to really make it lively and match the first half of the attraction.
Nocturnal was back with the tagline The Witches Curse. We again were greeted with some awesome sets and this attraction made full use of its surroundings. We met a very polite witch that completely threw me as I wasn’t expecting it. It was such a nice walk through the set pieces. It doesn’t really have a story as such, or if it did it wasn’t obvious, but it was just nice to soak up the setting. The scares weren’t really there due to the open nature of the maze but it was meant to be more creepy than full on scary so lack of scares in this section was expected.
Next up was a highlight of their 2022 season for me, Dolls House. This year it had also received a makeover as it had become Dolls House: The West Wing Discovered! Inside had been changed a lot with more darkness and less soft toys. It felt less creepy than last year but we still got a few good scares. It had definitely become longer than previous and with the actor sickness it had a few areas of emptiness but again we could see the potential was there and I think as the season progresses it will only get stronger, but I do miss the soft toys.
Next up was Boot Camp: Danger In The Safe Zone. This had also been extended for the 2023 season. It had quite a few good actors in here who tried hard to use the spaces available. I felt it lacked the same intensity and urgency that it had last year, especially with the removal of the guy who barked orders at you and made you do exercise, but overall it was a fun experience.
Our penultimate attraction was Ward 13: The Doctors Revenge, their hospital maze. This attraction is where the event excels. It’s intense, great sets and just everything that makes an attraction fun to be in. It’s terrifying, has a mix of comedy and terror and the actors just go for it from start to finish. Particular mention to Tiny the doctor who threatened me into giving his this mention. He was terrifyingly intense.
Last up was Fannies Cavern of Chaos and oh my god. Going in I had no idea what was coming. About 25 of us were handed a glowstick and led in. There was Fannies everywhere. We were played a video which explained what was happening and then told to go. What ensued was 3 minutes of complete carnage and it was a camp delight ending in a scare maze classic.
Once back in the big top you can chill or you can go speak to Fannie about an optional extra experience. I chose not to do it on medical grounds but the guys i was with did and they enjoyed it……. I think.
Scream Aloud is a fun event this year. Was it as good as 2022? I’d probably say no but it is close. If it wasn’t for some areas being low on actors during our run it would have been really good. Our group had a fun night. There was a great mix of characters and you could tell so much love and hard work had gone into the set pieces and you can honestly tell so much love goes into each year.
We’d like to thank the team for inviting us down to experience this years event. To book tickets you can visit the Scream Aloud website.