Commonwealth: 5 Fab Reasons to Go to an Organized Firework Display

Tonight is Bonfire Night in the UK and some Commonwealth countries (thanks Wikipedia). If you're still deciding whether to hold your own firework display in the back garden or whether to go to a public firework display instead, you have plenty of choice either way.

If you go for the back garden route, many supermarkets have great deals on fireworks. For example, in the UK, stores like Waitrose and Morrisons have deals on fireworks in-store.

But I'm going to suggest that it's better to go to a public, organized firework display, be it at the local park, in your school's fields or in the parish church garden. Here are five fab reasons why this kind of firework display rocks:

1. It's cheaper, obviously. You don't have to spend money on loads of different fireworks. You just pay the price of the ticket and it's done. I've even been able to see firework displays up close for free sometimes. 1 year we went and stood on the edge of Clapham Common and saw everything for free. In fact, it may have been a free firework display anyway. Ones on commons tend to be.
2. Free food! At a ticketed firework display, food is often included in the ticket price. This can be anything from crisps and sausage rolls to full-on barbeques. But whatever you get given, it's better than having to buy and lug home a load of groceries for a private party.
3. The social aspect. Let's face it, you can only fit so many people in your house and garden. But go to a local public display and you get to mingle with the whole community. Party on, dude!
4. Someone else does all the work. Parties are fun - as long as you're not the host. Who wants to be working out how to light a Catherine Wheel and slaving over a hot stove when you can just let someone take care of all the hassle for you?
5. It's safer. In a confined garden, when you're kind of tired and don't really know what you're doing, there's a risk of Firework Night going with too much of a bang, if you know what I mean. It's much better to let the people who've been organizing the local firework display for years to handle business.

So there you go. Whatever you choose to do, have fun and be safe!