Bonfire Night - sums up why life is worse now.

[Arrrrrrragghhh]

Clearly shows how we have lost touch of real life experiences in favour of some weird commercialised version.

Bonfire night always was finding a house/ family/ venue with enough space for a bonfire on November 5th. Point of the bonfire was to be close enough to keep warm on a cold November night. Sounds, sights and smells of a big wood fire
People would bring fireworks. Everyone knew the name and type of the firework involved. Always the element of danger. Sparklers were a must. Numerous safety films at school and on TV so few injuries but enough to make you be respectful.
You would enjoy some specific bonfire foods - potatoes cooked in thd fire, posh black toffee, cheap hot dogs.

Gradually morphed into local organised events.Ok not so many people have big/any gardens. Still community led volunteering to help build or man a stall etc.

Now my local village is a ticket only event - no sales on the day. The day is a Saturday not the 5th. Food is commercial sellers from out of town and the same ones at every fair or event throughout thd year. No one allowed near the fire. Firework is a showy display away from the bonfire
. LED lights for kids as sparklers discouraged. Basically it’s a pointless organised fireworks show rather than a specific festival for November 5th.

Our local scouts used to do one. Cheap tickets that included a cheap hot dog and tomato soup in a paper cup then lots of good fireworks. But not always on Nov 5th. We often had a family one when DC were small with low noise fireworks and/or a small fire in the fire pit, good sausages with mash and left over Halloween candy for pudding.

Thank you for your service, but Christ, that is shockingly awful to hear. Seems like the fireworks are so much more powerful now too.

I also think they should be restricted to public displays from an environmental perspective and to protect animals and wildlife. Its one thing when you know when the displays are going to be, but the amount of time you hear fireworks for in my estate is unbelievable- goes on for weeks.