Every 5 November, villages and towns across Britain light bonfires and set off fireworks to mark Guy Fawkes Night. In the East Devon town of Ottery St Mary, though, the infernos aren’t stationary.
Here, in a centuries-old tradition, tar-lined barrels are set ablaze and carried around the carnival-crowded streets on the shoulders of local folk.
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Participation in this unique tradition is a treasured rite of passage for residents, who take the event extremely seriously; for spectators, it’s a thrillingly incandescent spectacle.
First-timers typically walk away from the event wide-eyed, with slightly singed eyebrows and hair smelling of smoke, wondering “well, how did that get past the health-and-safety police?” Though not for the faint-hearted, this is one of the most exciting and bizarre folk events I’ve ever experienced.
History of Ottery's burning barrels
Over the centuries, barrels have been set ablaze for various reasons, including emergency communication during times of attack – for example, when the Spanish Armada was sighted off the English coast.
The detailed history of Ottery’s burning barrels has, sadly, gone up in smoke, but its roots date back many hundreds of years – possibly even to pagan times, when fire was used to purge evil spirits.
The lighting of bonfires has long been part of ancient autumnal traditions, such as Samhain, which evolved into Halloween in the Christian era.
But the origins of the widespread community celebration of Guy Fawkes Night (also known as Bonfire Night or Fireworks Night) on 5 November date back to that night in 1605, when the namesake plotter was caught with explosives beneath the Houses of Parliament while attempting to execute a scheme, hatched by several prominent Catholic conspirators, to blow up King James VI and I.
The foiling of the Gunpowder Plot was first celebrated with fires on the day Fawkes was arrested and the anniversary is still marked in the same way today, with effigies of Fawkes often burned on large communal bonfires.
Many English towns and villages also have traditions of torchlit processions and barrel-rolling competitions, but at some unknown point in time the people of Ottery decided to combine these concepts by setting fire to the barrels, picking them up and running around with them. What could possibly go wrong?
What happens at Ottery's burning barrels?
The action starts at dusk with the children’s event (honestly!), during which kids hold small – but definitely burning – barrels on their heads.
After this rather alarming warm-up act, the big barrels are brought out. There are 17 of these, the insides of which have been regularly daubed with tar over the preceding months – a priming process that makes them burn extra-bright on the big night.
Traditionally, each barrel is sponsored by one of Ottery’s historic pubs, although only four of the town’s original 17 alehouses remain: The Kings Arms, The Volunteer, The Lamb & Flag and The London.
At set times (published in a fundraising booklet available on the night), barrels are set alight outside each of these establishments and rolled around until they are properly ablaze. Each barrel is then hoisted onto the shoulders of a designated carrier, who runs around the streets before passing the blazing vessel on to a teammate.
Carriers maintain the intensity of their inferno by performing spins to invigorate the flames, and keep hold of the barrel for as long as possible, even as it starts to disintegrate around their ears in a shower of sparks. Barrel-holders typically wear a hoodie (to stop their hair catching fire) and protect their hands with hemp sacking.
Only designated locals are allowed to handle the barrels, but the anarchic feel of the event is amplified in streets jam-packed with up to 15,000 people who come from far and wide to watch. Barrel-carriers strictly avoid booze until they’ve done their run, but many in the crowd have been sipping cider for hours by the time the evening reaches a fiery conclusion with the ‘Midnight Barrel’ – and things can get pretty boisterous.
As I quickly learned during my first visit – at the cost of my eyebrows – you need to stay nimble when a big-bearded bloke holding a burning barrel charges in your direction.
How can you get involved?
Ottery Tar Barrels takes place on 5 November, unless that date falls on a Sunday, in which case it shifts to the Saturday. You attend this festival at your own risk, and it’s not suitable for young children or dogs.
Ottery St Mary also hosts a carnival around this time, usually on the Saturday before 5 November, when a flame-lit procession passes through the town to a giant bonfire.
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