JulieF: the Guising you are referring to would have been largely Scottish in the recent centuries, I am sure. Most of the old Halloween customs in England transferred to Guy Fawkes night(Nov 5) and Mischief night(Nov 4). Certainly, all the bad behaviour/going round at night occurred on Nov 4 in north lancashire and the Lakes till fairly recently. Now it is drifting towards the nights leading up to halloween...which is of course where it all started, before Guy Fawkes chose Nov 5 for his escapade.
   Incidentalyy, in relation to the licensed bad behaviour aspect of the time of year: the fireworks let off by naughty boys has been going since around Oct 1 in Stoke.
    Anybody else spotted any interesting signs of seasonal activities?