London's Guy Fawkes Celebrations
November 5th is Bonfire Night, so who was Guy Fawkes?
Mike Gerrard rounds up some of London's Bonfire Night celebrations, to give you time to plan what to do on November 5th
For information on London's Guy Fawkes Night in 2007 click here.
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As it was London's Houses of Parliament that Guy Fawkes failed to blow up on November 5th, it's not surprising that the England capital has some of the biggest bonfire celebrations in the UK. Some people might think these days that we're blowing up the wrong guy (and Guy Fawkes is, by the way, the reason we call a man a guy), but if you just want to see fireworks and drop the politics, London's skies will be full of rockets in early November - mostly November 4th, as November 5th is a Sunday this year.
So who was this guy Guy Fawkes? He was born in York in 1570, and though his father was a strong Protestant, Guy converted to Catholicism when he was about 16. Later he went and fought for Catholic Spain against the Protestant Dutch, and learned a lot about explosives during his time with the military. When he returned to England he was recruited to be part of the Gunpowder Plot, hatched by Roman Catholic conspirators to blow up King James I when he opened the Houses of Parliament on November 5th, 1605. They rented a cellar underneath the buildings and packed it with 1800 pounds of gunpowder.
One of the conspirators leaked the information to a member of the House of Lords, concerned that fellow Roman Catholics would also be hurt or killed in the explosions. Fawkes was arrested in the cellar on the morning of November 5th, tried and then hung, drawn and quartered.
Today's celebrations with rockets and explosions give an indication of what might have happened if the Gunpowder Plot had succeeded. Guy Fawkes himself would certainly have gone up with a bang. One of the best displays is at Alexandra Palace, which you might think a risky thing to do, given that the Palace has had two bad fires over the years. Other good ones are at Battersea Park and Blackheath, and a week later the Lord Mayor's Show is also climaxed with an amazing display along the River Thames. The best viewing points are on Victoria Embankment, Blackfriars Bridge, Waterloo Bridge or along the South Bank from the National Theatre to the Tate Modern.
DID YOU KNOW?
Fawkes, who is Albus Dumbledore's pet Phoenix in the Harry Potter books by JK Rowling is named after Guy Fawkes.
FURTHER DETAILS
Alexandra Palace: Tel: 020 8365 2121; November 4th; Opens 4.30pm, fireworks 7.30pm; admission: suggested donation of £2 (adults) and £1.50 (children)
Battersea Park: Tel: 020 8871 7530; November 4th; Bonfire lit 7.30pm, fireworks 8pm; admission: £5, under 10's free
Blackheath: Tel: 0871 700 0685; November 4th; Fireworks 8pm; Admission: free
Ravenscourt Park: Tel: 020 8753 3597; November 4th; Open 6.30pm, children's fireworks 7.15pm, bonfire 7.30pm, main fireworks 8pm; Admission: £5 (under 5's free)
Lord Mayor's Fireworks Display: Tel: 020 7606 3030; November 11th; Fireworks 5pm; Admission: free
To read about Guy Fawkes becoming an English Icon, visit my blog page here: http://ukirelandtravel.suite101.com/blog.cfm/guy_fawkes_becomes_english_icon
Read about Walking Dickensian London by clicking here.
Read about downloadable MP3 walks for London by clicking here.
