If your ideal Guy Fawkes experience revives the childish excitement of watching sparks rain down to gasps of 'ooh!' and 'aah!' as you snack on jacket potatoes and wave sparklers, then you'll be in bonfire night heaven at Ottery St Mary's celebration, where they have more kinds of pyrotechnical fun than ever, and stretch it out to two evenings.

The first falls on the Saturday before 5th November and involves a night-time procession of brightly-lit carnival floats, a huge firework display and 'squibbing' – the carrying of Roman candles at shoulder height through the streets. The second evening is that of Guy Fawkes Night itself, on which the vast bonfire is lit, with the Guy at the top, and flaming tar barrels of increasing size are carried through the streets in a proudly nostalgic (and surely rather dangerous?) commemorative fire-trail that is said to date back to the 1605 gunpowder plot itself, though even the the festival's official website carries the admission that the tradition's origins are hazy. But does it matter? The roads are closed, there's a parade of lit tableaux and wealth of tasty treats to buy, so you'll have plenty of time to come up with your own theory!

Written by  larapiegeler.

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