Friday, November 07, 2008

WHAT IS BONFIRE NIGHT? - RAMSEY SKYWATCH






I mentioned Bonfire Night in previous post this week, but what is it and who was Guy Fawkes?

Bonfire Night, 5th November


We celebrate Bonfire Night 5th November around the UK and Isle of Man by building Bonfires and placing an effigy usually made by children, known as a guy on top of the Bonfire and finish of the night with organised Fireworks displays, mine being Ramsey Mooragh Park. A common practise in the lead up to Bonfire Night is for children to ask you for "a penny for the guy" they have made. Toffee apples are the biggest selling sweet around this time, but each area has a variant.

There you go. That's what Bonfire Night is and these are a few fireworks I took in Ramsey. Do you have anything like this in your part of the world?

To join skywatch go to SKYWATCH
The concept was Dot's, the next host WIGGERS WORLD the guardians of skywatch now are Tom, Imac and Sandy.


128 comments:

Ann said...

Lovely firework images. It seems as though we are having a whole week of Bonfire parties down here. :-)

G. Crappy said...

These are stunning images!! Thank you!

Anonymous said...

I had completely forgotten about Bonfire Night! Great shots.

Louise said...

Nice bonfires!!

Carole said...

Wonderful!!! I did not know that Bonfire Night was connected to Guy Fawkes. I remember learning about him somewhere along the line. :) Always an education at your site.

Anonymous said...

They are great pictures. I haven't taken any firework photos in Glasgow, but took some in Sibiu last year (not for bonfire night - these were summer fireworks) so they will appear on the blog at some point. Most of them were rubbish, but there were a few I was pleased with.

I love your top picture especially, what great colours.

Angie said...

These are absolutely stunning shots.

Kim said...

I love that first one, but all of them are so pretty.

Anonymous said...

You did a great job photographing the fireworks. I find that hard to do and I'm impressed with these shots.

Profile Not Available said...

Very nice history! I have heard of this, but didn't have any details!

PJ said...

If only I knew how, or had the camera, to catch fireworks as well as these.
By the way, there are "babooshkas" on http://bostondailyphotoblog.blogspot.com/

Photo Cache said...

Very interesting tradition. Love your shots. They are fabulous. Thanks for sharing this with us.

Anne-Berit said...

Oh,these are beautiful,love it:o)

Texas Travelers said...

Great photos and thanks for refreshing my memory with the great narrative.

Don't have anything like this in Texas. Back in the old days, we took cattle rustlers and horse thieves, and stretched their neck on the nearest Cottonwood tree.

Come visit,
Troy

imac said...

Love your shots of fireworks.

Pat - Arkansas said...

Beautiful photos of the fireworks, and interesting history of Guy Fawkes, Babooshka! Thanks.

bowledover said...

I did not have fireworks so thank you for sharing these.
Great pictures and as always a lovely write up.

marley said...

Now these are the sort of photos I wanted to take. (Note to self - take tripod next year!)

Thanks for fleshing out the details, I didn't know some of that.

Unknown said...

Lovely set of photos!
My favorite is the first one.

Have a nice weekend.

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Babooshka: What a great story and we don't have anything like that. The closest we come is when we celebrate our independce with firworks, no effigy of anyone.

Reader Wil said...

Your fireworks photos are really very good! We don't celebrate Guy Fawkes night, that stands to reason, but we have fireworks on the 30th April when we celebrate the Queen's birthday. And we have fireworks on New Year's Eve.
You wrote a good post with a lot of interesting information.

Sylvia K said...

I love you photos and all the interesting information. I knew about Guy Fawkes, but not all the details and it was great reading! Do love history. The fireworks are spectacular!

Livio Bonino said...

What a wonderful fireworks, especially the first one.

ChrissyM said...

Gorgeous fireworks I especially like the blue ones. Very nice. I live in New York USA and we have a 4th of July celebration with fireworks and at some of the New Years Eve (Dec. 31) events there are fireworks. Bonefire night sounds found though.

Hanna Regen said...

Very very beautiful! So nice fires!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful celebration. Great shots and sky.

Guy D said...

FANTASTIC shots as always. Thanks for sharing!

Cheers!
Regina In Pictures

Anonymous said...

We threw Russell Brand as a Guy on.
Cool fireworks.

Anonymous said...

There's only one thing wrong with these photos and that is....I didn't take them......They are fantastic especially the last one. Stunning. Thanks for posting.

EG CameraGirl said...

No bonfires, but we do celebrate Canada Day (July 1) with fireworks. ;-)

Pearl Maple said...

Guy Fawkes is an interesting part of history and your firework photos are fantatstic. Thanks for sharing with everyone in Sky Watch Friday.

Brad Myers said...

Good photos for sky watch, it is always nice to see something different, well done.

Hope said...

Stunning fireworks photos! Thanks for the explanation in your post...very interesting!

airplane5312 said...

Very Nice! Fireworks are tricky but you got them. If you're interested check out my firework shots (in the tags) sometime.

Christina S said...

WOW! Probably some of the best firework shots I've seen. Love em!

Kate Blackhurst said...

Fantastic firework photos. Bonfire/Guy Fawkes Night has good memories for me. It is celebrated here in New Zeland, but I don't understand why, because it seems a very British thing to me. I wrote about it on my blog here: http://crouchinggiraffe.blogspot.com/2008/11/guy-fawkes-night.html

Cheers
Kate

Larry D said...

Great skywatch, Excellent photos, interesting post!

Anonymous said...

LB,

You nailed it! You guys kill me with your history.

Cape Cod Washashore said...

Those are fabulous fireworks photos! =)

Kahshe Cottager said...

You did a great job capturing the fireworks! I never seem to get the timing right!

Thanks for visiting my SWF! Have a wonderful weekend!

Ann said...

Brilliant fireworks. I love fireworks, they are illegal here now without a licence so we are only supposed to have big public displays. My area completely ignores this and so I get to see wonderful backyard fireworks displays at New Year - all totally illegal, of course.

Jeanne said...

These are great shots of fireworks but even more I love the history behind the evening. Thanks for sharing it.

Dar's Foto Faze said...

Beautiful shots. I really enjoyed the history. Thanks so much for sharing. Really like the pervious post.

Ken Mac said...

I LOVE THESE EXPLOSIONS1

Anonymous said...

Amazing fireworks---really beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful photos. The history you shared here about Guy Fawkes is pretty unique I think. Nothing like it in the U.S.A. that I know of. But I'm no historian. Have a great weekend!!

Jim said...

Hi Babs, these are nice fireworks pictures. Thank you. We have a bonfire night at the University of Texas A & M (Aggies) about fifty miles from here.

Officially the bonfire has been cancelled for several years when eleven were killed (burned to death) at the celebration.
I hadn't known about Guy Fawkes.
..

Laughing Orca Ranch said...

Stunning!!

Thanks for explaining Bonfire Night, too.

Happy Sky Watching!
~Lisa
New Mexico, USA

Unknown said...

Very beautiful! Enjoyed checking out your blog :^)

Linda Reeder said...

The fireworks shots are fabulous.
I am assuming that you are celebrating Guy Fawkes for his effort and not that his plot was stopped? I do have trouble keeping my British history straight. Do I have this right?

Anonymous said...

Beautiful shots. You must have had all your camera settings perfect!

Anonymous said...

Lovely fireworks that sparkled up the sky!! :)

Rinkly Rimes said...

Bonfire Night! That brings back memories!

And your partner's cartoon is brilliant. I have a great friend here in Newcastle, Australia, who is the local cartoonist and he comes up with some brilliant things.

Laura ~Peach~ said...

awesome photos!!!!! Happy SWF!

Jan said...

Very interesting post. Love the photos and the history.

Mary said...

Great fireworks photos...so clear! And great information about Guy Fawkes. I read a lot of English books that mention it but never completely understood. I suppose our 4th of July fireworks are the closest thing we have.

Anonymous said...

Absolutely spectacular fireworks shots. Well done. P.S. I did know the story of Guy Fawkes -- except for the "Guido" part. Guido Fawkes? Can't get over that one!!

magiceye said...

wow! incredibly beautiful captures!!

Anne said...

Firework never ever fail!!

Happy weekend from Anne in Norway.

Baruch said...

Clear stunning captures. The first 2 are definitely my favs

Sandra said...

These are magical indeed! Bye and greetings from Croatia!

Anonymous said...

simply gorgeous!

Suzanne said...

Wow your fireworks are so stunning. Great photos and thank you for sharing.
Happy SWF.

Catherine said...

I've read a couple of day before an american blog explaining that particular historical moment. You illustrated it perfectly today. What kind of perfect camera do you get to take so wonderful pictures of fireworks? I wonder. Maybe it's your talent. It's great, Babooshka. Thanks to share, the History and the picture.

Rune Eide said...

Imposing picture of the fireworks - I have never managed that. But I'll try again the coming New Year's eve - if the weather holds....

Anonymous said...

Pictures that go with a BANG!

Indrani said...

Whoa! Mind blowing!!

Inkivääri said...

Just gorgeous pics of fireworks!

Dragonstar said...

Wonderful sky-flowers!

Gerald (Ackworth born) said...

good summary of the history - Ruby in York is going to use some of the info I sent her on her blog shortly.

I'm pleased to say that we haven't had too much noise from early fireworks this year.

Anonymous said...

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Gemma Wiseman said...

Such vivid colours in the night sky! Absolutely beautiful!

Michele said...

Oh these are fun and bright... I do so much love the fireworks.... amazing! =)
~Michele~
Mountain Retreat- Canada

Tanya Breese said...

Wow Babooshka, amazing!

Patricia said...

Thanks for sharing the history and congratulations for the photos, they are so nice! I love fireworks!
Cheers,

MumbaiiteAnu said...

Wow, stunning shots of fireworks.

Webradio said...

Thank You for the good explain...
Very nice photos...

Ivar Østtun said...

Excellent bonfires. Great idea for SWF.

Dewdrop said...

Such an interesting tradition! I knew nothing about any of that! It's ironic that you celebrate it with all that gunpowder (in the fireworks). Beautiful, no stunning captures of the fireworks. I love the one with the water reflecting the roman candle. Awesome!

Eki said...

That's a fabulous view, Babooshka! Grand!

Anonymous said...

Amazing pics! The first one is my favorite! Thank you for stopping by! :)

antigoni said...

Awesome photos.

Raquel Sabino Pereira said...

This is one of the best sky watch friday's posts I have ever seen!!!!

Merisi said...

Beautiful fireworks,
but better not think about being tortured hung drawn and quartered! ;-)

Anonymous said...

Wow! Not much else to say is there?

AphotoAday said...

SUPER great shots... Interesting information as usual...

Fiona said...

Wow your pics are amazing! I tried to take some of the fireworks and lets just say you couldn't tell what they were! x

Torsdag 1952 said...

Number one and two are very special, I love the delicate composition.

Anonymous said...

Great photos taken. We only have twice a year for fireworks.

Tootie said...

Really nice photos of the fireworks. I have trouble with that type of photo with my inexpensive camera. :-)

Rob said...

Impressive! I've tried in vain to capture fireworks displays, and I have given up.

tr3nta said...

great great night firework shots... beautiful... just beautiful.

Naturegirl said...

There was LOTs to celebrate on Nov. 5! The fireworks were perfect for the
Historical occasion!

Pat said...

I had to write a report on Guy Fawkes in 10th grade and that's how I know who he is...was. He would have been pleased with your great fireworks shots.

DeniseinVA said...

Brilliant photos! Growing up in the UK I know something of the Guy Fawkes history but yours was one of the most informative posts I have ever read on the subject and I learned a lot more. I also enjoyed your previous post on the election, so well written. Thank you!

Ursel said...

Great images, impressive, thank you!
Love the blue ones.

In the comic book series and later the movie "V for Vendetta", (futuristic tale, Sci-Fi thriller), "V" is dressed in a Guy Fawkes mask and is following the same steps of Guy Fawkes.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for commenting on my blog - I still get so excited when that happens! I discovered your site while bloghopping, and now I've bookmarked it...because your work sounds very much like what I'd like to be doing. I'm hoping to glean useful tidbits and tips from your blog!

rob said...

Beautiful!! you are a master!

Marie said...

WOW!
Great post :)

Cloudia said...

Amazing images, illuminating information, a TOP POST!
Very well done; thanks for inspiring us all to reah higher!
aloha from Waikiki!

Sastha Prakash. said...

Beautiful photos. I just wanted to tell you in India we have something like this event and it is called Diwali.

The legend goes that Rama the incarnation of Vishnu kills Ravana a demon king and every year this event is celebrated by burning the effigy of Ravana. It is symbolically the victory of good over evil. And we burst a lot of crackers and burn enough fireworks to create smogs and traffic jams.

The events are the gist of Ramayana (one of the greatest Hindu epics the other being Mahabharatha)

I found it very cool and thought I would share it with you.

Keep doing the good job. :)

Daryl said...

I have serious fireworks envy ..

:-Daryl

Unknown said...

Stunning firework shots, Babooshka!

Suz Broughton said...

What a great surprise for SWF! Stunning shots!

geoff said...

Gunpowder, Treason and Plot. Excellent series.

shaker said...

Amazing !

Jim Klenke said...

Great fireworks pictures. I cant wait to try to take them again during 4th of July.

Anonymous said...

WOW, wonderful colors. Thanks for stopping by my blog!

Me said...

Beautiful photos! It looks like a fun time for all.

Mary said...

Wonderful fireworks shots!!! Happy SWF. :)

Becky said...

You did a fabulous job capturing the fireworks. Well done! I spent a Guy Fawkes' Night in London in 2003, and it was quite noisy! What a fun holiday.

Anonymous said...

Truly awesome photos!

Mary Stebbins Taitt said...

Pretty images! Nice story, interesting.

chrome3d said...

That firewroks show makes my dark day too!

Arija said...

Wonderful fireworks! 40 years ago we still celebrated gunpoder, treason and plot. Unfortunately in Australia the fire danger season has already started and fireworks are banned. It does save on eye injuries to the unexperienced or just plain stupid but takes out all the fun and excitement as well as the historical significance. Guy Fawkes day has been forgotten except for those of us who have long memories.

Arija said...

Wonderful fireworks! 40 years ago we still celebrated gunpoder, treason and plot. Unfortunately in Australia the fire danger season has already started and fireworks are banned. It does save on eye injuries to the unexperienced or just plain stupid but takes out all the fun and excitement as well as the historical significance. Guy Fawkes day has been forgotten except for those of us who have long memories.

Anonymous said...

Really wonderful shot, I realy love it. We have something like this here in Bangkok to celebrate the King's birthday on every 5th of December.

Cath said...

These are absolutely fantastic shots and your explanation of Bonfire Night reminds me of what a gruesome lot we are!!

At over 118 comments Babooshka, don't ever doubt that you are one of the best bloggers on the net. ;0)

 gmirage said...

Ah wonderful fireworks!!!!! Bonfire night is a sure hit!

SandyCarlson said...

I live this story!

Gretchen said...

Gorgeous images!

Glennis said...

Guy Fawkes night is celebrated every 5th Nov, here in New Zealand, it is not a holiday, but most people buy fireworks to let off, and its lovely to see all the sky rockets going up on the night.Sadly a few young guys abuse them so now days the sale of fireworks is very severely restricted. Also there are public desplays in most towns on that night. As daylight saving has started by then, we all have to wait til about 9.30pm for darkness to fall so we can let the rockets off. I love the night, not everyone does ofcause,

Glennis said...

Guy Fawkes night is celebrated every 5th Nov, here in New Zealand, it is not a holiday, but most people buy fireworks to let off, and its lovely to see all the sky rockets going up on the night.Sadly a few young guys abuse them so now days the sale of fireworks is very severely restricted. Also there are public desplays in most towns on that night. As daylight saving has started by then, we all have to wait til about 9.30pm for darkness to fall so we can let the rockets off. I love the night, not everyone does ofcause,

Anonymous said...

Stunning fireworks photos. It's reallg great and thanks for sharing. Also, thank you for dropping by in my SWF entry.

Gowri Mohanakrishnan said...

How did you ever capture these? Amazing pix!

Anonymous said...

oohh how wonderful. More fireworks to enjoy. Yours were certainly very pretty.

Belgrade Daily Photo said...

Very lovely fireworks images!

kRiZcPEc said...

most beautiful set of fireworks. Nice!

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