Official judge of Halloween · Est. 2026
Small cat.
Strict standards.
Midnight is a small black cat who scores every pumpkin, ghost and vampire that comes to his door. Almost nobody passes. New animated episode every day until Halloween.
New book: Midnight's Very Strict Halloween
New app: pet Midnight, free on iPhone & Android
- Jack-o'-lantern 3/10
- Bedsheet ghost 2/10
- Vampire, nice cape 4/10
- String spider 1/10
- Candy bowl 7/10
- Black cat costume 10/10
The case files
Every night,
a new ruling.
Short animated episodes on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook, one a day from October 11 to Halloween night, plus a bonus on November 1.
Watch nowThe pumpkin blinked
Fears nothing. Mostly. Then the jack-o'-lantern winks.
Ruling: pumpkin 3/10, nerves 0/10
Watch nowSnack inspector
Someone reaches for the candy bowl. Midnight is already in it.
Ruling: quality control, passed
Watch nowCostume judge
Ghost, vampire, then one costume he can't argue with.
Ruling: 10/10, flawless
Watch nowPumpkin inspector
A row of carved pumpkins, one strict judge and one suspiciously handsome pumpkin.
Ruling: 10/10, obviously
Watch nowHaunted house tour
Skeletons, spiders, a cackling witch: all boring. Then the vacuum comes out.
Ruling: house 1/10, vacuum 0/10
Watch nowCandy corn trial
One piece of candy corn. One very strict trial. One paw.
Ruling: guilty, off the table
Watch nowBlack cat crossing
Trick-or-treaters leap out of his way. Bad luck? Midnight calls it respect.
Ruling: I meant to do that
Watch nowFog machine
Swallowed by party fog. Only the ears survive. A legend is born.
Ruling: the Fog Phantom
Watch nowMotion-sensor witch
She cackles every time he walks past. Science, stealth and a belly-crawl all fail.
Ruling: game over, witch
Watch nowPumpkin throne
Carving night. One empty pumpkin. Obviously a throne.
Ruling: bow before King Pumpkin
Watch nowScared of his own shadow
A monster on the wall copies his every move. Then he works out who it is.
Ruling: turns out I'm enormous
Watch nowGhost balloon
A smiling ghost balloon follows him down the hall. One boop settles it.
Ruling: ghost defeated
Watch nowBat garland
Paper bats on the porch. A heroic pounce. A soft landing in the leaves.
Ruling: leaf hat intentional
Watch nowScreaming doormat
The new doormat screams. Midnight screams. Then he gets a job.
Ruling: porch security, hired
Watch nowGrabby candy bowl
He went in for the candy. The skeleton hand went in for a handshake.
Ruling: friends now, totally planned
Watch nowCobweb cape
Tangled in fake cobwebs, until the breeze turns them into a cape.
Ruling: Phantom of the Porch
Watch nowThe witch hat
Outraged by a tiny witch hat. Until he sees his reflection.
Ruling: the hat stays, forever
Watch nowProjector ghosts
Glowing ghosts drift across the wall. The hunter awakens.
Ruling: ghost hunter, undefeated
Watch nowApple bobbing
He inspected the apple tub. The apple inspected him back.
Ruling: spa night, meant to do that
Watch nowJack-in-the-box
It jumped out at him once. Never again.
Ruling: problem solved
Watch nowThe mascot pose
Halloween night, a rooftop and a giant moon. Time to be iconic.
Ruling: Happy Halloween
Watch nowThe day after
Halloween is over. Then someone opens the Christmas box.
Ruling: there's ANOTHER one?!
Meet the judge
He takes the job very seriously.
Black cats are the official cats of Halloween. Midnight read that once and has not relaxed since.
- Species
- Small black cat, extra fluffy
- Position
- Head judge, front door
- Scoring
- 0 to 10, mostly 2s
- Fears
- Nothing. Blinking pumpkins excepted.
- Perfect scores
- One. It looked exactly like him.
The courtroom
What would Midnight
give your costume?
Pick what you're wearing this Halloween. The judge will rule immediately. There are no appeals.
New book · Coming soon
More Midnight,
in more places.
His first picture book is out now, and an app for your pocket is on the way. Both equally judgy.
Midnight's Very Strict Halloween
A pumpkin, a spider, a ghost and a vampire all fail inspection. Then the doorbell rings one last time… A laugh-out-loud read-aloud with a line kids love to shout: “Not scary enough!”
Guess Midnight's score before you turn the page, and find Bixby the bat hiding on every spread. Cosy, funny, never scary.
Paperback $11.99 · Kindle $3.99 · Free with Kindle Unlimited
Midnight's Halloween Party Pack
Turn your party into a costume contest. A scorecard for every guest, Halloween bingo (8 cards), a “Midnight Approved” winner certificate, a door sign and bookmarks. Print tonight, judge tomorrow.
US Letter & A4 PDFs · For home and classroom use
Pet Midnight
The real app, running right here. Tap him on the phone and see what he thinks of you. On your own phone you can stroke him, shake him and wake him up, and he'll have opinions about all of it.
Email me when it's out“Go on. Tap. I dare you.”
See you tomorrow
Judging is over.
For tonight.
A new ruling lands every morning until Halloween. Subscribe or follow and you won't miss a single unfair score.
