Fireworks

Bonfires, toffee apples, sparklers, sausages, burning guys, cold hands clutching hot baked potatoes and of course fireworks... all part of a traditional Bonfire Night celebration.

The tradition dates all the way back to November 5th 1605 when Londoners lit bonfires in the streets to give thanks that their King was safe. The bonfire parties quickly became a tradition, which spread across the country and has survived 400 years.

So, next time you're standing in a freezing cold field, in the dark, watching a tatty old guy burn on a bonfire, spare a thought for those desperate plotters and their planned victims won't you?

Vocal piece by the pupils of Burntwood School, TootingYou might know the beginning of this rhyme - have a listen to the children of Burntwood School in Tooting chanting the whole thing. Children began chanting this about 200 years ago, while they collected money and firewood for Bonfire Night.