Bonfire Night

I don't particularly like fireworks and they scare the animals but I do love a bonfire.
I have one planned for a couple of weeks time to burn some brash and logs garden rubbish. We will have baked potatoes and hot drinks and hope it doesn't snow. Mmm
November 5th always seemed to rain when I was young but we stood about holding a sparkler or even a scary bigger thing in a gloved hand as per instructions. The Catherine wheels which got stuck and fizzed. The week leading up was when you had to avoid schoolboys with bangers.

I am another Bonfire Night fan! Lots of happy childhood memories similar to OP. Also I met DH at a firework party.. though as it was pouring with rain no fireworks or bonfires were lit! That was 1966.

Everyone has had cats an dogs for years so I am not sure when it all got too 'stressful' for them. TBH round here there have been very few noisy events outside the expected times /days. There was one idiot who threw a firework onto a bus locally and hurt someone. Dreadful!

I remember being scared as a child when some lads threw Jumping Jacks at our feet!

Diwali often coincides with early November so a few extra events if there are Hindu families celebrating locally. I also suspect if a child has a birthday at this time of year then maybe they might have a firework party!

DH bought a box of fireworks for when DGC were here but it was tipping it down so they are stashed away safely in the shed to come out on NYE!

There does seem to be an anti-celebration brigade out there wanting to ban fireworks. I would be sorry to see that happen.

Just because a few people behave irresponsibly is not enough reason to ban things. Cars and alcohol would have been banned years ago if that was the rule of thumb!

One night of fireworks is fine, but where I live they start mid October and continue to new year. Very noisy, huge bangs that terrify both my cats and ME!

I remember bonfire nights as a child, but the strange thing is I don’t remember any adults being present, just a couple of ‘ older’ boys ( maybe 12/13?).

One of our neighbours had a newsagent’s shop, and I remember she always gave us the leftover fireworks!

It wasn’t a big thing in our wee village when our children were small, as our neighbour had been blinded by a firework a couple of years before.

Yes, I do agree, now fireworks are set off randomly for a fortnight or more does make it very difficult for those who do not like them for any reason. We also have fireworks at so many events these days. There is a hotel over the hill from us that does weddings and fireworks are almost routine most Saturday evenings and sometimes mid week.

I liked it when fireworks were one day a year. There was a specialness about it then.

I always pray that bonfire night (and Halloween) won’t fall on “my” overnights with the grandchildren . But hey ho last night was one of those nights so we had fireworks and sparklers in the garden . Blimey they are VERY expensive aren’t they ? The children loved it and my DD watched from upstairs with the baby . It turned out to be quite a late night for a school night so all a little bleary eyed this morning .

We don't do anything now but I loved it as a child. It was so exciting. Me and my friends would beg for old clothes and make a guy, stuffed with newspaper. We would put him on an old trolley and stand on the corner asking 'penny for the guy' We would use the money to buy fireworks. There would then be a huge communal bonfire on a field. Neighbours would provide baked potatoes, sausages etc. We drove past a display last Saturday and the fireworks were fantastic.

Some years ago there was a celebration in the city during which there was a firework display. It was the same night I visited my mother - I found her hiding in a cupboard convinced war had broken out and the city was being bombed. I am in favour of organised displays but surely there must be a way of making the fireworks less noisy

My Dad used to make the most wonderful toffee apples- RIP lovely Dad xxx

Sorry, I should have added people who are distressed by the noise, particularly our former military personnel.

I loved bonfire night and still would if it was confined to one night. We had night 3 of huge, sustained bangs that started at 6 and went on till midnight, though less frequently after 10 pm.
I'm lucky in having dogs (and grandchildren) who aren't shaking and terrified. Dogs and horses seem particularly fearful of the noise. There are a number of reports of horses being injured or even killed in their attempts to escape the noises.
I'd like to see the sale of fireworks limited to organised displays only. Sorry for being such a spoil sport.

There were five houses in our court when I was growing up so bonfire night was always a communal affair. The mothers would always provide toffee, toffee apples, baked potatoes and ginger parkin. There was always a guy made out of someone’s dad’s old clothes and we children would cart him around the street asking “penny for the guy, please”. The resulting funds were spent on ‘penny’ fireworks! Begging. Shocking really. Like others we pooled our boxed fireworks and my then adult brother would always provide something special to end the evening; either a spectacular rocket, Roman candle or a gigantic Catherine wheel. The good thing was that, once bonfire night was over, that was it. No more fireworks. Now you don’t seem to need much of an excuse for letting them off seemingly all the year round.

We used to go over the road to my best friends for the evening and have a great time. The thing was they were devout Roman Catholics !

If they were only allowed on the 5th and without the need for making it sound as if WW3 had started they wouldn't get all the complaints.
We have a large private school here and on Sunday night, around 8pm with no warning it sounded as if bombs were going off. We are a few minutes from their fields and the boiler casing/windows were shaking! When you know that immediately behind the field there is an estate of sheltered housing with another very nearby, it shows the ignorance and lack of care for residents.

I loved bonfire night, almost as much as my mother. We had a bonfire on a piece of waste ground at the back of our gardens, shared with the neighbours, and all the children pooled our fireworks: half a crown, five shillings and very occasionally a ten shilling selection box. My father supervised the bonfire and my mother made gingerbread men, sausage rolls and parkin. I loved the sparklers and rockets, didn't like the bangers, and it was always a triumph if the catherine wheel stayed nailed to the fence until it burned out.
I don't remember anyone being hurt, although once a rocket landed in the basket where the fireworks were kept and most of them went off together.

I'm no killjoy and always enjoyed bonfire night and fireworks but it's hit a new level with damage being done and as I've already pointed out that 4 nights of bangers going off has been a bit much especially when trying to calm 3 scared cats with one so frightened it was being sick. I just felt that these evil-minded morons purposely aimed at this area of elderly people. Some of the fireworks sounded like mortar bombs. I'm now dreading New Years Eve !

We had some "quite" fireworks here last night for YGC and their little friend. No huge bangs, that had sausages in rolls and treats - lovely ???

I used to love bonfire night, when it was one big event on 5 November, with family celebrations but now it is mainly impersonal large firework displays. Nice, but not as nice.

I still remember one fireworks night as a child. I was staying with friends and it was a children's story book bonfire night. My friend lived in a farm cottage down a long muddy lane before the sky was polluted with light. The stars were shining, there was a huge bonfire, lots of fireworks, which were spectacular against a black sky and then indoors to soup, baked potatoes and flapjacks. Perfection.

There was one little thing. Like you seasider, I got tiny burns on my coat from bonfire sparks. Unfortunately I was wearing an expensive school uniform gaberdine coat (my only winter coat, school and holidays) and my mother was not best pleased when she saw them.

Oh yes, I remember all of that plus the catherine wheels nailed to the fence and rockets launched from milk bottles.
The memory of the small singes on my maroon anorak (I'm sure there were others over the years) made me smile. I used to love writing my name in the air with my sparkler.