Guy Fawkes Night, UK

Britain is a country that many tourists talk about, notably for its horrendous weather, cream tea, and of course the British "stiff upper lip." Yet over this weekend nothing will dampen the moods of its residents, because the annual Guy Fawkes Night celebrations will be taking place at venues all over the country.

Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Bonfire Night or Fireworks Night, is an age-long British tradition celebrating the foiling of the Gunpowder Plot, an attempt to assassinate the Protestant King James I of England. Led by Robert Catesby, a group of Catholic conspirators planned to implant and detonate a series of explosives in the Palace of Westminster on the evening of November 5th 1605, when the King and most of the English Parliament were inside the building. Guy Fawkes, the protagonist of today's festival, was in charge of preparing the explosives. However, the plot was discovered at the last minute and Fawkes, with many others, was tortured and executed. November 5th, what would have been the day of the assassination, is nowadays a night of celebration and fireworks for the British, although many events take place on the weekend surrounding this date.

The night itself involves firework displays and the building of a bonfire (hence the forementioned names), on which a dummy known as the guy (after Guy Fawkes) is burned, to the cheers of the crowd. Toffee apples and other bonfire treats are traditionally eaten, and the children are also given sparklers to wave around, carefully supervised by adults. You may even see children sitting around with a guy in the run-up to the event chanting "Penny for the guy", yet this is rarely seen nowadays.

Many British households hold their own bonfires with their family and friends, yet organised displays with fireworks and funfairs will be taking place all over the country, including London.

(Photo by Scanroaches)