BUSINESSES in York are preparing for a freaky weekend as the city hosts its first Spooksfest.

The festival has been designed to promote York’s reputation as the most haunted city in Europe and draw visitors to the city centre during a quiet period in the tourism calendar.

Firms have been joining in with the theme, with El Piano restaurant and deli, in Grape Lane, serving up spooky muffins, Stonegate Yard offering creepy cocktails and cupcakes, spooky smoothies being sold by Xing, in Shambles, and evil cupcakes from Vamps, in Goodramgate.

The Luxury Ice Cream Company, in Back Swinegate, has developed a Eye Scream Ice Scream, while Milkshack, in Church Street, will be making Psycho Rat milkshakes.

Past Images, in Shambles, will also be selling ghostly photos over the festival.

The event has attracted experts in spine chilling subjects, who will be giving talks at Bedern Hall, in St Andrewgate on Saturday.

Different paranormal topics will be featured every hour, with speakers including Dr Ciarán O’Keeffe from TV’s Most Haunted, vampirologists, demonologists and cryptozoologists on subjects such as angels and demons, psychadelic plants and psychic people, phone calls from the dead, spirit mediumship, electronic voice phenomena and orbs.

Ghost hunting workshops will be available for those interested in learning how to become paranormal investigators.

Dr O’Keeffe will also host an evening dinner event at the Treasurer’s House, in Chapter House Street, on Saturday, while storyteller Adrian Spendlow will share ghostly tales and chilling experiences over dinner at The Court café bistro-bar of the Best Western Dean Court Hotel, in Duncombe Place, on Saturday.

Rachael Hayward, who is hosting the talks, said: “It should be a fascinating, alternative and insightful day, and we are lucky to be joined by some of the leading academics and experts in this field.”

Visit spooksfest.co.uk for further information about events, including haunted pub crawls and family treasure hunts, and to book.