A 2026 Halloween on the Dark Side

And with that, another Halloween disappeared into the shadows. We won’t see another Saturday Halloween for 11 years! 

This year, the stars aligned and Halloween fell on a Saturday, giving us the perfect excuse to summon amigos from Barcelona, family friends, neighbours, witches, wizards and the occasional Sith Lord to our home for a proper Halloween gathering.

Thanks to the mysterious workings of calendars, leap years and possibly the Force itself, Halloween won’t fall on a Saturday again until 2037. By then, Lady Yeya will be nearly 20 and we’ll be seriously geriatric. 

Now that is frightening.

Darth Vader Returns to M Street

Once a year, Darth Vader returns to M Street with his red lightsaber in hand. Halloween morning, however, was suspiciously beautiful. In the US, it is normal for neighborhoods to transform into a Halloween spectacle that puts Kew Gardens’s Halloween walk to shame. Inspired by the spectacle, Darth Vader set out on patrol with Ahsoka in tow.

Their route took them around the neighbourhood park and onwards towards the village, drawing smiles, waves and perhaps a little concern from unsuspecting passers-by.

The mission was simple: spread Halloween cheer while paying tribute to one of cinema’s greatest and most complicated villains.

Mission accomplished. But there was no time for Vader to rest. Another mission awaited back at base: a Halloween party.

Bonfire and Outdoor Cinema

As daylight faded and darkness crept across M Street, the real haunting began.

Darth Vader took up position at the front door, greeting a steady procession of tiny witches, ghosts, skeletons and assorted creatures of the night with fistfuls of Halloween candy. It was wonderful seeing old neighbours and new ones alike wandering the streets in some brilliantly spooky costumes. Meanwhile, Ahsoka joined forces with Harry Potter, a Gothic Witch and the Skeleton Brothers for a trick-or-treating expedition of their own. 

Their objective?

Acquire as many sweeties as humanly, or supernaturally, possible.

Back at our home base, temporarily renamed Mustafar, Vader finally retreated to the garden. There, beside the flames of the Solo Stove, we settled in for an outdoor screening of Beetlejuice, enjoying his well-earned pulled-pork sandwich and lots of guacamole. 

The fire crackled late into the evening. Marshmallows were roasted. S’mores were assembled. Sugar levels reached dangerous new heights.

And eventually, Mustafar transformed into a Monster Ball. The projector lit up the darkness with our Halloween soundtrack:

• Thriller
• Dead Dance
• Ghostbusters
• Somebody’s Watching Me

Until Next Halloween…

Eventually the music faded, the fire burned low and the last ghosts and ghouls vanished back into the night. Another Halloween is over. But these are the nights we’ll remember: children racing from door to door, friends gathered around a glowing fire, marshmallows melting, music playing and everyone being just a little bit ridiculous together.

Until then, sleep well, M Street. Darth Vader will return.

May the Force be with you. Always.