‘Hey, look at the size of that garlic head!’ I urged the rest of the family. ‘These aliens certainly know how to grow a bumper crop.’

They weren’t real aliens. Rather, they were keen gardeners who liked to dress up as their favourite characters from space adventure films and television shows. Their costumes were most impressive – the kind that you would expect to see on a Hollywood set.

We counted ourselves lucky to have booked into the hotel that was hosting the Annual Alien Horticulturists’ Convention at the same time as our stay.