Bringing a taste of home to Canberra, American-born Michael Whitesell, and his Australian wife Cathryn, started sitting outside with a bowl of lollies and a few small decorations on Halloween evenings.

“I love Halloween,” says Michael. “Everybody gets dressed up and everybody interacts with it, you see all the pumpkins that are out. Back then we were able to go out and start trick or treating at 6.30–7 o’clock at night and we wouldn’t come back until 10 at night and we’d be struggling under the weight of the bag through all the candy we would pick up.”

Over the past 20 years, their yearly celebration, known as Scarey Magarey in Magarey Street, Kambah has grown into one of Canberra’s must-visit fright night attractions.

“Times have changed and there’s too many people you just can’t be sure of; a lot of the fun has been taken away from the kids. That’s why we do this, so the kids can look back and have a memory, they can think ‘Oh, I remember Halloween, we used to go down to this place’,” says Michael.

The couple’s front yard is transformed as brave visitors are invited to undertake a journey into the unknown, walking through a misty graveyard, and past the hangman’s arch where they chance running into the grim reaper. Motion and light-activated frights are in store with talking headstones and ghoulish tricks.

In the courtyard are a number of 6- and 7-foot animatronics lifelike enough to give the most confident of adventurers a little fright. If it is in a quiet period, a few children might be guided through the courtyard but for most of the evening it is a look from afar experience to ensure the safety of visitors and the equipment.

At the entrance, guests will be greeted by vampires who, instead of wanting to taste your blood, want to offer you a sugar hit. Michael and Cathryn love to get dressed up each year and wear complementary outfits to welcome their visitors.

“Last year we were a wine bottle and a slice of cheese. Before that we were a nun and a priest – it was Sister Show No Mercy & Father Dread, a fairy godmother, Hagar and Helga the Vikings, we’ve done scarecrows, Wizard of Oz, clowns … One year I made him dress up as Psycho, the mother in that,” smiles Cathryn.

Each visitor is welcomed with the question of the day: trick or treat? While most youngsters are keen to get their hands on some tasty treats an occasional guest will choose a trick. The pair have a number of tricks up their sleeves including a water gun, a sleight of hand card trick, and more frightening options.

“We have a severed finger in a box … You have a box, cut a hole in it, put your finger up through it with some cotton wool and food colouring. They can lift the lid of the box and see the moving finger,” says Cathryn.

Pre-pandemic, so many ghouls, ghosts and other costume-clad visitors came trick or treating to their door the couple went through 15kg of candy.

Believing there aren’t enough activities kids can do without an added cost, the couple wanted to create a community event. There’s no entry fee or charity donations – the only payment they accept is a smile.

“There’s always a bucket to hand over money, which is a good thing, but it does become awfully taxing at times on people’s wallets because we are living in tough times. We just want people to come here and relax and enjoy what they see without having to pay for it,” says Michael.

When their children were younger, they would bring their friends to the house. Now grown up and moved on, those friends bring their own children along.

The neighbours have supported them throughout the years popping by for a fright and a delightful treat. The hosts are conscious of the noise and traffic and always ensure they wrap up before witching hour sets in.

“We usually finish up around 9.30–10 because, to be quite honest, most little kids should be in bed by then anyway,” says Cathryn.

“And we’re buggered,” smiles Michael.

Once the ghouls have gone to bed and the sun has risen, the dismantling of Halloween begins and the preparations for the Magarey Santa House begin.

Dare to trick or treat at Scarey Magarey on Magarey Place, Kambah on Halloween, Tuesday 31 October; facebook.com/ScareyMagarey

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