Nowhere in the world does a country celebrate their Houses of Parliament “nearly” being blown up!

But every year on the 5th November, the UK spends the evening in the freezing cold, donning woollen hats, scarves and gloves, looking up at the sky as it explodes into a magnificent array of colours, whizzes and bangs. So we have a lot to thank Guy Fawkes for, when his attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605 with barrels of gunpowder whilst King James I was inside,  was foiled!

So where in the capital city can you watch Guy Fawkes fireworks on Bonfire night either on the 5th November or over the weekend?

On Thursday 5th November in Wimbledon Park there will be two firework displays with two bonfires; one lit 15 minutes before each display commences. A great event for both children and adults, there will also be a fair and stalls.
On Streatham Common at 7.30pm, there will be a fantastic firework display with free entry which is the same time as the fireworks on Clapham Common.

At the weekend on Saturday night (7th), head to Alexandra Palace, where for a small entry fee you can enjoy the funfair, stalls, live music, a German Beer Festival and a fireworks display which starts at 7.30pm.

At Battersea Park on the River Thames, the gates open at 6pm for a spectacular display of fireworks at 8pm, with Ealing Cricket Club’s firework spectacular starting at 7.30pm accompanied by music and sing-along tunes.
There will be many more Guy Fawkes fireworks in London but be sure to check the local press to confirm exact locations, times and prices.

The biggest display of fireworks in London however, will take place the following weekend on Saturday 14th November at the end of the Lord Mayors Show. Find a position anywhere along the River Thames between Blackfriars Bridge and Waterloo Bridge, for a spectacular free performance from 5pm.

Daylight hours will be shorter, the days and nights colder but at the end of October the event mainly “celebrated” in America but also gradually continue to become more commercialised in the UK; Halloween!

This year the 31st October falls on a Saturday and not only will there be the usual evening fancy dress parties and trick or treat visits, but also many other presentations and celebrations too…

At the British Library near King’s Cross and St Pancras in London, a 90 minute illustrated talk will be given at 2.30pm about the sensationalised photographs of spirits and ghosts from the late 1800s to early 1900s “Imagining the Impossible” (book in advance £6.00).

Halloween at the London Dungeon starts on the 17th October, and is a real family favourite. Not for the faint hearted and adored by pre teens and older, be prepared to be spooked, pounced on and frightened by the most fabulously dressed ghosts, ghouls and witches. There are also “Dungeon” sites in Warwick, York and Edinburgh.

The Thorpe Park theme park starts is Fright Nights in the middle of October with its Halloween themed nights; open until 10pm. Hampton Court will start its Ghost Tours for the over 12 years at 7.30pm, with tours adapted for 8 to 12 years starting at 5.30pm.

The London Ghost Festival will host numerous events which take place at various venues from the 23rd to 31st with the grand finale being the Halloween Ball at Charlton House, SE7.

To explore London on the spookiest night of the year, why not join the popular The Blood and Tears Halloween Walk starting at the Barbican Tube station? The tour commences at 7pm and 9.45pm, but do book in advance.

What could be a better way to get your Christmas shopping underway than by visiting one of the superb Christmas Markets which will shortly take throughout the length and breadth of the UK?

Next to the Abbey in the centre of Bath, festive wooden chalets will be set up donning Christmas gifts from 26th November to 6th December.  There will be three Christmas Markets in Bristol this winter, with twenty bespoke stalls selling their gifts at Goldbrick House, local gifts available at the Southville Centre and German crafts at Cribbs Causeway.

In London, visit the Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park which will be open from 21st November to 3rd January set in German wooden chalets, and the Spirit of Christmas Fair to be held at Olympia for just five days from 4th November should be quite spectacular! The largest London winter festival however boasting more than 70 stalls, as well as entertainment, music and husky dog sledding, will be in December between Southwark and Blackfriars Bridges on the South Bank, called the “Bankside Frost Fair”.

There will also be the Victorian Festival of Christmas at the end of November in Plymouth, with the Annual Worcester Christmas Fayre and Frankfurt Christmas Market, Birmingham, in the West Midlands.

Throughout December Manchester residents will be able to enjoy their traditional German Market, and in Chester the Christmas Market will have a truly continental flavour too. Along the cobbled streets of the city of Durham will be the Christmas Festival on the 5th and 6th December, with a children’s lantern procession, carols in Durham Cathedral, and over one hundred craft stalls and eateries. Around Grey’s Monument from 23rd November to 5th December you’ll discover the Continental Christmas Market in Newcastle upon Tyne, with the Christmas Market from 9th to 13th December.

Within the castle walls and through the town centre of Caerphilly, Wales on the 12th and 13th December Christmas fun will be had at the Caerphilly Medieval Market.

In Scotland, Edinburgh’s Christmas will start on the 26th November for around six weeks in and around Princes Street.  The Christmas lights will be switched on in the city and there will be an ice rink, funfair and German Market. In Glasgow, the bustling shopping district and St Enoch Square will be transformed into a winter wonderland from 27th November until Christmas Eve.

Fire Eating displays, mulled wine drinking, shopping and eating, as well as Santa visits will be available from mid November to mid December in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

London King’s Cross train station or “Kings Cross” opened in the early 1850’s in London N1 and was named after the area it was built.  Today King’s Cross is the London terminus for the east coast main line with trains run by National Express East Coast and First Capital Connect to destinations such as King’s Lynn, Letchworth, Doncaster, Hull, Leeds, York, Harrogate, Newcastle, Glasgow and northern Scotland. Thameslink trains no longer journey through the station.

The London Underground, otherwise known as “The Tube”, also runs through King’s Cross St Pancras Station via the Circle line, Hammersmith & City line, Metropolitan line, Northern line, Piccadilly line and Victoria line.  St Pancras station neighbours King’s Cross and it is here that the Eurostar train service runs directly to France and Belgium under the English Channel.

Kings Cross car hire is simple to arrange with easyCar and can either be collected from the station if booked in advance or from one of the car hire offices in close proximity to the station.

The actual locale of King’s Cross station is on the Euston Road, postcode N1 9AL, and it falls in both the London Boroughs of Camden and Islington. The British Library is just 5 minutes walk from King’s Cross, with Regent’s Park a short bus journey away.  The area of Bloomsbury next to Russell Square is to the south with all the delights of central London just a hop away!

The closest motorways to King’s Cross are the start of the M1 in Brent Cross, north west London and the beginning of the M11 in South Woodford (to the north east).  If heading to the west of England or Wales, then you will head to the M4 entry which is near Chiswick in west London.

King’s Cross and Euston are located on the edge of the Congestion Charging zone in London, and no fee will be required to pay as long as you stay north of Euston Road or Pentonville Road. Should you drive through the Congestion Zone the current fee is £8.00 per day if paid before or on the day of travel (£10 charge on the first charging day after travel – fines thereafter). There is no charge for vehicles driven in the charging zone between 1800 and 0700 Monday to Friday, or at weekends or during English public holidays.

This weekend is the UK’s August Bank Holiday; the extended holiday period we’ve been waiting for since May!  Some of you may have booked a week’s holiday away using Bank Holiday Monday as extra recovery time before getting back to work, or as part of a few weeks holiday so that you sign off one less holiday day!

Or maybe you’ll use the August Bank Holiday to catch up on the gardening or decorating, enjoying the currently popular staycation!

But what else could you do on Bank Holiday Monday?

In west London, the August Bank Holiday wouldn’t be the same without the spectacular Notting Hill Carnival, the largest festival of its kind in Europe which takes place on Sunday 30th and Monday 31st August!  Over one million people enjoy Notting Hill’s annual carnival and its unique street festivities.

Fantastic Caribbean food stalls vie for your attention as you walk through the streets, drawing you in with their delicious smells, whilst you feel your heart give an extra beat as the many static music systems boom and vibrate through your body.  Whilst your ears, nose and mouth are tantalised, the stunning sights of the vibrant floats travelling nearly 20 miles are views you will never forget. The costumes and carnival floats are quite simply spectacular; glorious multicoloured butterflies reaching 15 feet into the sky, colourful swirls of masquerade dancers, steel bands, multicoloured head dresses waving in the wind, Calypso music, reggae beat, crowds jostling for the best position along the streets – you won’t find anything quite like it in the UK! Note that a number of tube stations (London Underground) are closed in the area of the Notting Hill Carnival so make sure you check the Carnival website for details.

If you are living or holidaying in London with children, many of the Royal Parks put on activities during the August school holidays.  Head to Regent’s Park by the boating lake and visit the Tree House Gallery; an eclectic collection of artists and crafts men (wood work to sewing), as well as actors and charities, inviting youngsters to explore, talk, listen to stories and join in with various activities.  There are two fantastic tree houses as well as the 3 seater swing hanging high and swinging almost over the boat lake, the huge hammock, the Sound Garden, painting on the board and playing impromptu tunes on the outdoor piano – and so much more!

In East Sussex, why not step back in time and head to England’s Medieval Festival, held at Herstmonceaux Castle in Hailsham (29th to 31st August) for the 500th anniversary of the accession to the throne of King Henry VIII? Or there is the Classic Car and Motorcycle Show in the grounds of Blenheim Palace in Woodstock, Oxfordshire on the 30th and 31st August.  Enjoy the display at the Portsmouth International Kite Festival from Saturday to Monday or Birds of Prey demonstrations at Hever Castle in Kent on Sunday and Monday.

The Leeds Festival and the Reading Festival are currently taking place with the Arctic Monkeys performing today in Leeds and Reading on Saturday, Radiohead in Leeds tomorrow and Reading Sunday, and the Kings of Leon, in Leeds on Sunday and today in Reading.

Maybe the seaside or countryside is more to your liking, and the UK has a lot of that on offer!  Formby Beach near Liverpool offers an unspoilt coastline or on the east coast, South Tyneside and Sunderland’s award winning beaches. You could visit Brighton and The Lanes or Blackpool and the Pleasure Beach!

Now what WILL you do?