Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival, UK
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Content of this article
What is Bridgwater Carnival?
The Bridgwater Carnival is an annual celebration with a parade of illuminated floats that tours several towns during the carnival season. This carnival dates back to the time of The Gunpowder Plot in 1605.
The purpose of the carnival is toraise money forlocal charities and its main attraction is the huge trucks with hundreds of light bulbs that illuminate the city in thewinter season. They are about 40 glowing trucks 30 meters long that are accompanied by music and a fantastic scenography. The large vehicles pay tribute to books and popular children’s movies, historical moments and places.
The carnival attracts a large number of visitors, managing to register up to 150,000 people who come from all over the country and the world to witness the show. One of the most anticipated ceremonies is the ‘squibbing’; an explosive tradition in which hundreds of fireworks are pointed skyward, achieving a luminescent rain effect. This ceremony is the one that takes place at the end of the show, being known as the closing ceremony.
Squibbing is a celebration where they use fireworks to create a luminous shower at the Bridgwater Carnival
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When is Bridgwater Carnival
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TThe Bridgwater Carnival will take place on approximately the 6th of November, culminating in late February or early March.
Bridgwater Carnival History
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The beginnings of these very particular carnivals date back to 1605 and takes as reference to a character named Guy Fawkes, who was part of a Catholic group that tried to kill the King James. In addition,he is the character most associated with the attempt of the Burning of Parliament. Formerly, celebrations were carried out through large bonfires. Also, many locals wore masks and other types of clothing to go unnoticed and perform any kind of uncivilized activity. In addition, they took advantage of the bonfires to burn figures of Guy Fawkes, the pope and other religious figures.
The tradition continued to evolve until the end of that century when the theme of the carnival changed. The carnival got out of control, leading to a wave of violence and disorder. Authorities came to the scene to extinguish the fire. However, the participants were not happy with the action, which led to the wave of violence growing even more. The people involved began to lash out at the firefighters and authorities. One of the firefighters was James Ware, who was ready to put an end to the celebration. However, the crowd lashed out at him, causing him physical harm. For this reason, it had been suggested to create a control committee for the festivities, which generated support from the population and in 1881 the first carnival committee was created.
One of the particularities of these carnivals is the famous “squibbing”, uan activity that comes from the name of a local firework called “squib”. This ceremony is a procession that takes place at the end and consists of people holding a large stick with “squibs” at the end of each one, causing them to generate a kind of “pyrotechnic rain” quite pleasing to the eye.
Where is the Bridgwater Carnival
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The Bridgwater Carnival takes place in different venues in the town of Bridgwater simultaneously. Some of the venues where the events take place are Cornhill, High Street, St Mary’s Church, Angel Place and the town center.
Bridgwater’s carnival floats are full of color and lights
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How Bridgwater Carnival is celebrated
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Carnivals are distinctive for their large trucks that are decorated according to certain children’s books. Tthese themes are not mandatory; however, they are the most commonly used themes. On this occasion, the parades are carried out by trucks and not allegorical floats proper as is customary in many other regions of the country and the world. These “floats” are built by various clubs in the city, who donate all the proceeds raised during the festivities.
The trucks include both music, and decoration of the structure and of course, the participants of said floats must be dressed following the theme of the truck. These trucks or “floats” are imposing, some can be up to 50 meters long, 5 meters long and 4 meters wide. During the carnivals at least 60 of these floats are presented, full of light, music and shows. They begin touring the city at 6pm, ending at approximately 8pm. The parade is a little more than a kilometer long and at the end of the route, the fireworks rain with the so-called “squibs”.
Tips for going to the Bridgwater Carnivals
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If you want to attend the carnival, we recommend that you plan your trip in advance. Also, make a travel itinerary and make reservations at your preferred lodging. You won’t want to miss this wonderful celebration, full of lights and fireworks.
If you want to know more about tourism in this country, I recommend this guide:
Events at Bridgwater Carnival
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The carnival has several simultaneous events during the festivities and all of them end 15 minutes before the start of the main parade. The events that are organized early on start at 10 am and are mainly made up of live concerts, performances, bands, choirs, dances, samba performances, other visual arts events and some activities for children, including processions and parades.
The event with the most prominence is the parade of thethemed trucks that travel around the town with an incredible show of lights, colors and music. The parade lasts about 2 hours and at the end there is the closing ceremony with the iconic “squibbing”.
Squibbing is held at the end of the Bridgwater Carnival Parades
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Bridgwater Carnival Parades
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The grand parade starts at 6pm, this mainly consists of large and imposing carriages or trucks which follow a particular theme and contain different decorative elements such as lights and scenography. Likewise, each truck has a number of people who dramatize or are part of the theme of the floats.
The parade starts at 6 pm and ends around 8 pm, covering a couple of kilometers of route. At the end, the long-awaited ceremony of “squibbing” takes place.
Parade route
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Floats take a 2-hour tour around town during Bridgwater Carnivals
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The parade or procession starts at 6pm on Parkway Street, continues along Bath Road Bridge, Cross Riffles, Eastove. It arrives at Salmon Parade, Carnival Inn, Cornhill, Penel Orlieu, ending at The Clink. Street.
Somerset apple cake is a typical moist cake of the region
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What to eat at Bridgwater Carnival
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One of the typical foods of the region is Cornish pasties, a wheat flour pastry filled with vegetables and meats. There is also the cake of the region, famous for its apples, Somerset apple cake, a moist cake of apples typical of the region.
The town of Bridgwater also offers different places where you can taste its varied cuisine. Some of the most outstanding places are: The Crown Inn, The Babbling Brook and The Lamb Inn.
Cornish pasties are flour pasties stuffed with meat and vegetables typical of the region
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Travel Insurance
From Carnavalesdelmundo.org we recommend to hire a good insurance to visit this carnival and to know the rest of the country. For being our readers we offer a 5% discount on all IATI insurances. Read more information about all insurance offers here:
What to see and do inside Bridgwater Carnival
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Before the big carnival event, you can attend the various live music events or performances that are located in various parts of the city. Also, within the carnival you can see the imposing floats or trucks, full of lights and colors passing through the streets of the town.
To finish, you can watch the closing ceremony with thefireworks, where you will witness a brilliant fireworks shower.
What to see and do outside Bridgwater Carnivals
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The town has a few tourist attractions that you can visit on your next visit, some of the highlights are:
Burrow Mump
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It is a hill and historical site. This place has a ruined church, a listed building dating back to 1793. The hill overlooks the Tone River and the Cary River which connects to the Parrett River.
Bridgwater Carnival Centre
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It is a historical museum containing the various photographic and written records of the local carnivals. Here you can buy official merchandise and get information about the events.
Bridgwater Blake Museum
It is a historical museum that contains pieces of the different events that took place in the town. The museum is the former home of the Blake family, family of an important naval commander.
Safety at Bridgwater Carnivals
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Bridgwater is a safe locality, you can feel comfortable walking the streets during the day or night. However, it is important to always keep an eye on your surroundings, especially when you are in a place with a large number of people. Use common sense and contact the relevant authorities if you see any unusual activity.
Also, be sure to keep your belongings in a safe place to avoid misplacing them. Also, we recommend the following products to keep your belongings safe:
Weather at Bridgwater Carnival
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During the days of Bridgwater Carnival, the weather is somewhat chilly, with a temperature between 0 and 7 degrees Celsius. It is recommended that you pack clothing that is ideal for this weather.
All Bridgwater Carnival floats have a specific theme
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How to get to Bridgwater Carnival
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How to get there by plane
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The nearest airport to Bridgwater is Bridgwater International Airport. From here you can transport yourself to the locality from various modes of transport.
How to get there by train
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From the airport, take a bus to Weston-super-Mare station on the A3 line. Once there, take a train to Bridgwater.
From London you can travel to Bridgwater from Paddington station to the town of Bridgwater.
How to get there by car
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From the airport take the A38 freeway to Bridgwater.
From London you can reach the town via the A303 freeway. The drive is 3 hours.
Where to stay at Bridgwater Carnival
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Holiday Inn Express – Bridgwater
3 star hotel 3km from the town center. Rooms have television and private bathroom. Facilities offer restaurant, bar and free wifi.
The Old Vicarage Hotel & Restaurant
Hotel 150m from the center. Parts of the building date from the 14th century. Facilities offer bar, restaurant and free wifi.
Admiral’s Table by Marston’s Inns
3 star hotel 4km from downtown. Rooms have TV and private bath with shower or tub. Facilities offer restaurant, bar and free wifi.
We recommend you use Booking.com to book hotels at a good price, check more information here:.
Thank you for reading
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