Light up your autumn...
AS THE days grow shorter, brighten them up with a fire show at a stately home or witness a London pageant that dates back 800 years. Here are
KATIE ROWE’s recommendations for making the most of autumn…
FIRE GARDEN AT CHATSWORTH HOUSE
SEE Chatsworth like never before as its vast gardens roar with flames, transforming the Derbyshire countryside into a riot of colour, heat and sound. See metal trees crackle and blaze, flame-tipped reeds sway in the breeze, and over-sized lilies spouting fire. There’ll be a steel band, a pair of mischievous 17th Century aristocrats and a brass band to greet you on arrival, while Chatsworth House itself acts as a show-stopping backdrop to fire dancers and circus acts performing on the South Lawn on October 31 and November 1.
BRIDGWATER GUY FAWKES CARNIVAL
WHAT do you get if you deconstruct an entire fairground and parade it through the streets? The Bridgwater Carnival Procession is an age-old event in Somerset that takes Guy Fawkes celebrations to a whole new level. The workmanship put into the highly decorative carts – some as long as 100ft – is astounding. See dancing toy soldiers and dragons spouting fire at an eye-popping procession that takes more than two hours to pass through the town on November 7. The carnival is brought to an explosive climax with squibbing – an ancient tradition that sees hundreds of fireworks launched from hand-held sticks.
DURHAM LUMIERE
THE UK’s largest light festival – from November 12 to 15 – spreads a vibrant glow across Durham as LED, 3D and neon installations transform historical buildings, thoroughfares, parks and the night sky. See and hear a 3D whale breaching in front of your eyes, stand in the middle of a huge dome twinkling with thousands of tiny lights, and crane your neck for a sight of neon lights dancing across the vast ceiling of Durham Cathedral.
FESTIVAL OF LIGHT AT LONGLEAT
ALONG with spotting lions and giraffes during a visit to Longleat, make time for an enchanting world of myths and legends as the largest-ever display of Chinese lanterns in Europe lights up more than 30 acres of this Wiltshire estate. You’ll be beaming at the sight of illuminated dragons, exotic temples and even a Terracotta Army, as well as re-creations of some of the safari park’s famous animals, which are even more dazzling after dark. The fun runs from November 13 to January 3, 2016.
LORD MAYOR’S SHOW
WHAT started as an inconvenient journey for the Lord Mayor, who would travel along the Thames from the City of London to Westminster to swear his allegiance to the Crown, has evolved into a pageant of pomp and circumstance, with the lavish State Coach as centrepiece. Join half a million people to celebrate 800 years of this ancient knees-up as hundreds of floats, carriages, vintage cars, steam buses and even penny farthings and bathtubs parade from Bank to Aldwych from 11am on November 14.
More ideas at visitengland.com.