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Archive for the ‘November 5th’ Category

The future of Whangarei’s popular Guy Fawkes fireworks display is up in the air as organisers hunt for a suitable venue.

The Lions Club of Whangarei has been putting on the annual early November fireworks display for 15 years at Okara Park.

But last year’s event had to be moved as the park was being upgraded.

It was then cancelled after the alternative venue – Tikipunga Sports Domain – was deemed unsuitable because   dozens of horses were nearby.

Now the new Northland Events Centre stadium’s plastic roof makes it an unsuitable spot for the display.

Lions Club of Whangarei president Malcolm Hawthorn said after last year’s “disaster” the club had wanted to gauge public support for whether the event should continue, and if so where it should be held.

Mr Hawthorn said the fireworks spectacular was among the longest and best pyrotechnic shows in the country, but the rules  stipulate that when you shoot rockets from 15cm mortars they have to be well away from  people and buildings.

“Following last year’s disaster we have now identified that there are no alternative public spaces that meet the fire zone and public setback regulations,” Mr Hawthorn said.

“The future development of Pohe Island/William Fraser Memorial Park is the only public space with the required areas available for this activity in the future. It is ideal, being close to our old Okara site, meaning it does not have any livestock or horse issues  if the event was held on the city periphery.”

He said Okara Park was no longer suitable, despite its $18.5million upgrade into a multievents centre, as there were two main impediments.

“Firstly it’s [the new stadium] got a plastic roof and we can’t risk the roof. Secondly the [neighbouring] Old Boys ground has been sold to Hill Construction for development,” Mr Hawthorn said.

“We used to fire our big shells from the Old Boys ground and that development will affect those setback rules.”

The event took a lot of organising and raised more than $20,000 for charity, but before Lions committed to continuing it wanted to find out what the public thought.

The club had talked about putting on a free show, including possibly setting off the fireworks from a barge on Hatea River, and calling for donations, but that carried too much risk for the club.

Barge Park was also not an option because of nearby bush, while Port Nikau had also been looked at, but that would only be for four or five years maximum.

Mr Hawthorn said if the public wanted the event to continue, and backed Pohe Island as the spot, the club would approach the Whangarei District Council for permission.

“If they wanted Pohe Island we’d have to ask the council be careful not to obscure too many sight lines, and block the views of the fireworks, when they redevelop the park,” he said.

“But we need to know what the public wants first.”

Click here for the original article.

The largest bonfire had an overall volume of 1,401.6 m³ (49,497 ft³). The bonfire was built by Colin Furze (UK) in Thistleton, Leicestershire, UK, and lit on 14 October 2006. Click here for further reading.

As the nights draw in, a small band of mischief-makers prepare for an annual night of mayhem. Mischief Night is their chance to let loose and cause a little bit of chaos.

Depending on where you live, it lands sometime around Halloween and Bonfire Night. And opinions vary on whether it is a chance for harmless fun or an excuse for anti-social behaviour.

Like many native traditions, its exact origins are unknown, but Mischief Night is thought to date from the 1700s when a custom of Lawless Hours or Days prevailed in Britain.

“These were times when normal laws were suspended and tricks could be played ranging from throwing cabbage stalks at people, to the swapping of shopkeeper’s signs and gates,” says Simon Costin, Director of the Museum of British Folklore.

Go back to the 1950s it was largely an age of innocence. So the sorts of pranks were the kind of things that make modern people smile

It was not until the 1830s that Mischief Night itself appears on record, held on 30 April. Today, however, it is an autumnal occasion. Some are adamant it is 4 November, while for others it will always be the night before Halloween.

Many believe this discrepancy lies with its connection to Halloween, which was held over several days after Britain switched from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar in 1752.

“We removed 11 days to adjust, which means some places observed the old dates for things like Christmas and Halloween and some observed the new,” says Professor Stephen Sayers of Leeds Metropolitan University.

“Halloween, Bonfire Night, trick or treating and Mischief Night are all part and parcel of what used to be one festival.”

Since the 1950s, Mischief Night appears to have died out in all areas of the UK except northern England, and it is not at all clear why.

What is known is that it was exported to the United States, and recently re-imported as trick or treat, now popular across the UK.

“It may well be that the North has disconnected from the South which has been far more in tune with modernity,” says Mr Sayers.

“We tend to think of Britain as all behaving as if it’s one thing, but there are vast sections that still observe old customs that have largely died out elsewhere.”

Some of the more traditional pranks might have disappeared, but there is no evidence that Mischief Night itself is going the same way.

Online chat rooms prove it is alive and well. “Put peanut butter under the door handles of people’s cars so they’ll get it all in their fingers,” suggests one mischief-maker.

Such is the resilience of pranksters that some police forces put on extra patrols. The crack-down has become a week-long operation, because what started as one night of minor mayhem has morphed into a week or so of mayhem.

“Arrests go up around Mischief Night, we get a bit of a spike around those 10 days,” says Ch Insp Mark Khan from North Yorkshire Police. “The catalyst seems to be as soon as the clocks fall back, obviously it gets darker earlier and kids are out.”

Some believe we are becoming less tolerant of what is essentially harmless fun, but others think it is becoming more vicious. Traditionally mischief-makers stole gates or knocked on doors then ran away.

“Go back to the 1950s, it was largely an age of innocence,” says Mr Sayers. “So the sorts of pranks were the kind of things that make modern people smile.”

Nowadays, you are more likely to be covered in batter or have a firework pushed through the letter box.

So at this time of year, supermarkets ban the sale of flour and eggs to under-16s. And, contrary to the popular belief that on Mischief Night you are immune from prosecution, police will take action.

“They commit some kind of criminal damage or public order offence, and the next thing is they’re in trouble with the law and they get some kind of caution,” says Ch Insp Khan.

Some argue Mischief Night is a necessary evil. It allows people to experiment with behaviour that would normally be socially unacceptable. Social psychologists call it “psycho-social moratoria.”

“It means a time when the normal rules don’t apply,” says Mr Sayers. “A good example would be the office Christmas party, where all the guzzlings and flirtations you can get away with to an extent. Try that in the middle of June and you would be shown the door.”

It could be that Mischief Night allows people the opportunity to thumb their nose at authority in a way that is socially controlled, he adds.

So, far from being discouraged, some argue Mischief Night should be embraced.

“We [humans] are a set of contradictions sometimes charged with passion, sometimes charged with a darker nature that we need to express in some way,” says Mr Sayers.

“Anyone can be aggressive, but it’s skilled to be aggressive in a way that is socially acceptable and physically and morally and spiritually uplifting and, most of all, good fun.”

A FEAST of firework action is promised this weekend at the Royal Gunpowder Mills.

The Waltham Abbey venue is holding its first ever public firework display for its Guy Fawkes Experience event.

Kicking off at 11am on Saturday and Sunday, the event begins with a performance of the Gunpowder Plot staged by local actors and there will also be a 17th century food-tasting experience.

The main attraction fireworks display will take place from 4.45pm onwards on both days.

The Sunday event will also see a plaque unveiled by actor Timothy West in recognition of the site’s contribution to transport heritage.

The brilliant lancework fireworks from Tower Hamlets Fireworks Displays in London in 2006.

It is always good to see different shapes and patterns being used and this one must have looked very impressive, burning on a cold November night.

Big Ben in Flames

This must be something along the lines of what Guy Fawkes was aiming for. The symbol of government and power smouldering into ash.

Some people celebrate the foiling of the Gunpowder Plot, the way King James intended, some celebrate it’s attempt (more common nowadays). The main thing is we celebrate a man’s willingness to make a stand to make a change, of course we cannot condone his methods but it is said often of Guy Fawkes that he was “The only man ever to enter parliament with honest intentions.”

The execution of Guy Fawkes’ (Guy Fawkes), by Claes (Nicolaes) Jansz Visscher, given to the National Portrait Gallery, London in 1916.

The Execution of Guy Fawkes

This is the scene where Guy Fawkes was executed. It is a little known fact that Guy cheated the executioners. When he was to be hanged he planned to wait until the noose was around his neck and jump, thus snapping his neck and sparing him from the terrible pain of a full execution. Right up until his death, it seems, he was a cunning plotter.

The text at the top of the page transaltes as:

The PUNISHMENT
exacted from the eight conspirators in Britain,
on January 30 & 31, 1606,
actually exacted in separate groups of four,
but nevertheless on account of the very same cause of Punishment,

Everybody else was hung drawn and quartered. Learn more about the history of Guy Fawkes and the rest of the conspirators at Epic Fireworks Website.

HOW do you spice up a regular old bonfire night community event. By adding fireworks? Well of course, that goes without saying.

But the town of Winchester has another idea up its sleeve for this Guy Fawkes Night.

To raise money for local charities, the Winchester Round Table has come up with a novel and intriguing idea, they will be asking local volunteers to raise sponsorship money for…..FIRE WALKING!

Thats right, the good citizens of Winchester are being asked to sponsor their neighbours to watch them walk barefoot over red hot coals of fire!

Winchesters Annual Fireworks Evening attracts people from across Hampshire and this years is expected to be a big success. Although it was a close call. Winchester Round Table  has confirmed the event after having difficulties raising funds for last year’s display because of the credit crunch.

“We receive no funding from the council, the event can be run only on the basis of donations from our local businesses and the proceeds from programme sales.”

The extravaganza, on Saturday, November 7, will include a torchlit procession along the high street, a bonfire and, of course, fireworks.

So if you live in Winchester and think you have feet of steel why not get a sponsorship form and start raising money now. and don’t forget the blister cream!

The lead up to bonfire night is a time of joy and merriment for most around the UK. Guy Fawkes Night and the celebrations with bonfires and fireworks have been a part of British Culture for over 400 years.

However not everyone has fun during the Guy Fawkes night period. Yobs using fireworks in residential areas and shops selling fireworks to under 18’s are being targeted and police patrols alongside community warden patrol teams are being set up in known trouble areas and hot spots.

The Darker Nights campaign is a joint venture between South Tyneside Council, Northumbria Police, Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service and South Tyneside Homes.

Coun Joanne Bell, lead member for innovation and safer and stronger communities, said: “To some people, the approach to Hallowe’en and Bonfire Night is a time of fun and excitement. But it’s also an extremely hazardous time of year, and what is fun for some can cause misery to others. 

“We were delighted with the success of last year’s Darker Nights campaign, which saw a reduction in the crime and disorder, which traditionally happens at this time of year.

“Once again, we will be working with our partners to take a pro-active approach to tackling problems. This way we can deal with them early, or even prevent them from happening in the first place.”

As part of the campaign, which runs until November 30, firefighters will visit schools across South Tyneside to warn of the dangers of bonfires and fireworks.

Group Manager Chris Lowther at Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service, said: “The run up to Bonfire Night is one of our busiest periods and we want everyone to have a safe and enjoyable time. 

 Everybody has the right to a safe and enjoyable Bonfire Night without fear or anxiety. Fireworks should be fun for everybody, and anyone who does not like them should not be forced to endure dangerous behaviour from irresponsible youngsters.

The Darker Nights Campaign is helping to cut down on yobbish behaviour and who can argue with something that could have been renamed “Operation ChavStop”. 

 Local resident Sara Hall said: “well it is frightening, young kids setting off bangers, fireworks banging all night long, its not right. It can be frightening for older people”.

A Giant Skeleton over the East End of London for the 2007 Bonfire Night celebrations.

Giant Skeleton Over London