Why the Leeds Castle firework events sold out…

Today those who pay to attend professional firework events expect more for their money than ever before. Now firework displays have to offer more than just fireworks – no matter how good the fireworks are and so when I attended Leeds Castle on Sunday night I wanted to be wowed.

Leeds Castle held their sell-out firework events on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th November and themed them as ‘Go Wild’.  The ticket price didn’t just include the fireworks and a few food stalls, ticket holders could arrive from 2pm to enjoy the castle grounds, cafes and gardens including the children’s play area, maze and a falconry display before heading over to the main event.  Over-looking the castle, the fireworks area held at least 15 food stalls, a live music tent, stand up comedy and a fun fair.

I attended with my husband and toddler and I found it the perfect family outing.  So what made it so good?  The layout of the food stalls and fairground was large enough to give people space but small enough to view from one end to the other (brilliant for those with children who flew around in excitement), the way the crowds were managed in the scramble back to their cars after the fireworks was calm and efficient and the staff (and tractors) were on-hand to push start any cars that got stuck in the mud.  All those pluses are before mentioning the fireworks!

The show itself lasted a full half hour and lit up the sky with explosions of colour to rival the Aurora Borealis.  ‘Go Wild’ was a great theme with light displays and fireworks exploding in sync with the animal themed music (‘Dog Days are over’ by  Florence and the Machine, ‘Hey Hey we’re the Monkees’ by the Monkees and a finale from the musical ‘The Lion King’ to name just a few).

A minor set back occurred due to the weather on the night – the wind blew the fireworks smoke across the castle obscuring the images projected onto the magnificent building.  That did take away one element of the entertainment but the fireworks themselves were magnificent.

The weather held out and the fireworks spreading across an inky black starlit sky showed them at their finest. I feel it was a well organised, fun event for all the family and would recommend visiting next year – if you are lucky enough to buy tickets before they all sell out!