to think you should be able to stand near the Bonfire

[FunnysInLaJardin]

Went to the local Bonfire last night. It was in one field, we were all in another dark field separated by a hedge.

The result was everyone froze as no one could get near to the fire. Had to wait an age for the fireworks at 8.30pm in the dark and the cold. You get my drift.

AIBU to think that really on Bonfire Night you should be able to stand around the Bonfire?

We always used to stand quite far back from the fire to get a better view of the fireworks and to beat a quick retreat when it was over, don't think I've ever factored in being kept warm by the fire.

For all the sneerers - at the bonfire DH and DD went to, a fence caught fire and of course when the organisers shouted for everyone to get back, everyone of course surged forward to get a better look.

People, in general and en masse, are usually idiots.

Lots of people blamed H&S for our town having no bonfire this year.
In fact, it was because the bonfire had been repeatedly set off by vandals in previous years so the organisers didn't see the point in building yet another fire for them to ruin.

Iloveautumnleaves ,, that's lovely , with the jacket potatoes

We once had a bonfire in my nans garden but I wussed out and stood in the utility room watching out the window. The grown ups were out there though .

However Nan's garden was not huge by any means so that was the one and only year . . in the 70s

This has nothing to do with h&s banning things it's to do with whomever put on the bonfire not wanting responsibility or liability for idiots acting dangerously. So to mitigate the risk to themselves no one can enjoy it.

Yanbu to want to stand and keeo warm but then you have to build your own and accept responsibility that way. Blame the 'I'm not responsible for my own idiot actions' culture that a lot of people nowadays endorse that others are scared of.

If they allowed you last year it may also be that already people were behaving poorly around the bonfire or had tried to the year before, leading to worries over repeat or worse actions this year.

When I was a teen I remember standing so close to the bonfire that my bonfire toffee that was in my pocket melted.

We live quite near a pub that always puts on an amazing display we can watch from our windows. So we keep lovely and warm inside and don't have to pay the entrance fee .

It doesn't sound like it was worth them having a bonfire if it was in another field behind a hedge.

crazy Yep, Jersey.

Maybe it is because I was brought up in the 70's that I feel as I do.

Oh and of course health and safety measures are vital, just a shame that it spoilt the very essence of Bonfire Night.

We are having our own next year and so lets hope we don't burn the house down.....

OP. Lucky person being in Jersey. We nearly went to the ones in Tamba Park when we were there over half term but we weren't sure how crowded etc they would be. Plus we had seen stuff in the JEP worrying about noise.

I didn't think H&S had reached too far into Jersey, but obviously it is encroaching.

Invite your guests round and tell them the bonfire's next door,

I think the people vigorously defending health and safety have forgotten that it's the people and organisations misusing the phrase 'health and safety' who have created this backlash against it.

I know a company who have invoked 'health and safety' to say that a disabled employee cannot use a mobility scooter in the office, which means they cannot go into work. Apparently the small and nifty mobility scooter is some unspecified health and safety risk to others.

Now, imagine someone says that about a wheelchair user, and you'll see how shocking this is.

It's these kind of people that give health and safety a bad name.

When people in authority use 'health and safety' to lend weight to obstructive, irrational or discriminatory behaviour, you'll get others taking the mickey out of 'elf and safety'.

A barrier around the fire to keep people from getting too close is understandable. Having to stand in a neighbouring field behind a hedge is ludicrous.

When I was young we had a bonfire so fierce that we never even found the foil from our potatoes we put on , never mind the potato bit! Not sure my eyebrows have ever been the same either. Lucky really I'm still here with all the polyester of the 70's!

My dad used to light the fireworks with a blowtorch too. And the BBQ too. The sausages would be cremated on the outside but raw in the middle. I'm sure I must have had more siblings to start with. Remember having tummy ache after too. Such fun! H and S was a dirty word in our house. Mums calmed him down over the years thankfully.

"I think the people vigorously defending health and safety have forgotten that it's the people and organisations misusing the phrase 'health and safety' who have created this backlash against it. "

It certainly hasn't helped, but I also think people assuming that something has been done due to H&S is also to blame.

There's nothing to say the Op's bonfire was subject to "'elf and safety", just speculation.

At least one other poster has suggested it's more likely to do with insurance, which is usually behind a lot of these decisions.

So why don't we blame insurance instead of H&S, I wonder?

Our school firework night had a massive bonfire and no barriers or anything, the heat is usually a good indicator of how far back you have to stand It was lovely.

@tanith the tabloids I'd guess.