Watch the flaming Tar Barrels of Ottery St Mary
A burning barrel rises onto a runner's shoulders and moves through the packed streets of Ottery St Mary, its flames throwing orange light across the faces of the crowd. People step back as the barrel approaches, and another local runner takes a turn beneath it. This is Devon's extraordinary Tar Barrels tradition, a Bonfire Night experience with considerably more fire and crowd movement than a typical display. The precise origins are uncertain, although the custom is widely linked to the seventeenth century and Gunpowder Plot celebrations. Only people born in Ottery, or who own a business there, may carry the barrels. Smaller barrels are carried earlier in the day, with increasingly large ones through the evening and the final Midnight Barrel in the town square. Families often take part across generations, and the entire event depends on the work of local volunteers. For Thursday 5 November 2026 , the children's barrels usually begin around 4pm and the evening barrels from 7pm . Watching is free, but the streets become extremely crowded, roads close from around 4pm and the organisers say the evening is unsuitable for young children, people with limited mobility and animals. Read the organisers' safety instructions before travelling: follow stewards, never touch a barrel and step back rather than run away when one approaches. Add this to your list and witness the night Ottery St Mary turns its centuries-old tradition into a living spectacle.