DERRY HALLOWEEN FESTIVAL MARKS 40TH ANNIVERSARY WITH FIREWORKS FINALE

Derry's Halloween festival closed its 40th anniversary celebrations with a carnival parade and fireworks display over the River Foyle, marking the end of its largest-ever four-day programme. Around 120,000 visitors were expected across Derry and the surrounding district, according to Derry City and Strabane District Council. Organisers describe the event as Europe's largest Halloween celebration. Strabane held trick-or-treat trails, live performances and interactive activities, ending with a fireworks display at the Melvin Sports Complex. Further events took place in Artigarvan, Castlederg and Newtownstewart.

The festival began in the 1980s after a party in a pub and a bomb scare, according to the council's head of culture, who credited local "ownership" of the event for its growth to its current scale. This year's programme drew on folklore, mythology and Samhain, the ancient Celtic festival from which Halloween originates. Derry was named the world's best Halloween destination in a 2015 USA Today readers' poll, and the New York Times later listed it among top spooky-season travel destinations. The festival is promoted across the UK, North America, Europe and Australia. About a quarter of attendees travelled from outside Northern Ireland.

Tourism Northern Ireland's chief executive, Laura McCorry, said the festival helps attract visitors to the north-west and boost its economy. "Tourism is really important for Northern Ireland," she said. "It supports over 70,000 jobs and currently contributes £1.2bn in revenue to the economy," she added. McCorry said the organisation aims to double that figure, adding that events such as Derry Halloween "provide a much-needed boost for the local economy" by encouraging visitors to stay longer in Northern Ireland's cities.