Back in the early hours of November 5th 1605 Guy Fawkes and a band of co-conspirators tried, and famously failed, to blow up King James I and the Houses of Parliament. Their plot was foiled when Guy was found guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder in the cellar of the House of Lords, and people gathered around bonfires across the country to celebrate the survival of their government buildings and of their king.
These days, we still 'remember remember the fifth of November' gunpowder plot with fireworks displays everywhere from Penrith to Penzance. But no area has a Bonfire Night celebration to match, or even challenge, that of the East Sussex town of Lewes. Last weekend, Chet and his friends boarded the 'bike train' from Brighton to Lewes to check it out.
All aboard the bike train
Cycling in convoy with a huge speaker at the front and a van at the back blocking traffic, the bike train was pretty epic. The eight mile ride took around 45 minutes and before Chet knew it he was watching Lewes' bonfire societies parade effigies of unpopular figures of today (ahem Donald and Theresa) to their fiery fates.
Guy Fawkes himself makes an appearance
Once the parade was over each of the societies lit a bonfire to burn their effigy and hosted a fireworks display in a nearby field. Chet's highlight? 'Everything'.
...we're already planning for next year's celebrations. If you are too we'll see you on the bike train. All aboard!
