The Barrels of Tar, Ottery style

Every year on 05 November, or 04 November if the 5th is on a Sunday, Ottery St Mary ignites, literally, an old tradition known as Tar Barrels.  It's been going for hundreds of years.  The exact origins are unknown, but probably started after the gunpowder plot of 1605.  Various alternative suggestions for burning barrels have included fumigation of cottages and as a warning of the approach of the Spanish Armada.  

The event involves barrels, lined with tar, lit and hoisted onto a local's shoulders, then the bearer runs up and down a road or two.  The barrels start at 16:00 with the children's barrels, far smaller than the adult version, but still with similar risks.  Each child/adult is hoodie'd up (is that a word?), and their hands covered in fire proof mittens.  As the evening progresses the size of the barrels increases as more senior children run their barrels, then then men's and women's barrels start and carry on for the rest of the night.

Ahead of this somewhat mad event, there is a year's worth of prep.  Money needs raising, all the health and safety concerns need to be addressed/mitigated (on the night the local library is the command centre and they fly drones to keep an eye on the action/crowds), and roads closed.  In the central square of Ottery, local businesses board up their properties to ensure that no barrel or crowd falls into their shop.  Boots reminded us they were still open despite the boarding.

The first event of Tar Barrels is the firing of the rock cannons around 0530 (I never hear them but other locals do).  And then the cannons are fired throughout the day before the first barrel is run.   My friend Emma is an authorised cannon firer and we ended up watching the 13:00 firing with her.  They look like guns but, on closer inspection, are mini cannons, detonated by hitting the ignition point.

As the day progressed, Ottery turned into a Covid-like lock in, with no vehicle entry/exit and we were all in it together.

Fortunately, because we live on one of the barrel runs, we could pop in and out as we pleased.  I find the crowds quite overwhelming after a while and need to retreat for some peace.  We did, however, realise that they were running a barrel up and down our road so got some ring-side views!