About Hastings Borough Bonfire Society
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society is a volunteer-led organisation responsible for bringing a spectacular torchlit procession, bonfire, effigy and fireworks display to Hastings each autumn.
The present society was formed in 1995, reviving an organised Bonfire tradition in Hastings and St Leonards that stretches back well into the nineteenth century. In 2025, Hastings Borough Bonfire Society celebrated its 30th anniversary.
Today, the society describes its home procession as the longest single torchlit Bonfire procession in Sussex. Its route takes members and visiting societies from the modern seafront into the historic Old Town before finishing at the beach, where the bonfire, secret effigy and grand fireworks display await.
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society also has several traditions unmistakably connected with its home town, including its red, gold and royal blue Smugglers, the East Hill beacon and a ceremony commemorating the rebellious history of the America Ground.
Bonfire in Victorian Hastings
Organised Bonfire in Hastings predates the modern society by well over a century.
The society's historical research traces the beginnings of the local organised tradition to St Leonards in 1854.
It grew remarkably quickly.
By 1879, five societies were active in Hastings and St Leonards, and by 1882 there were ten different societies processing.
That makes Hastings an interesting example of a town where Bonfire was once represented by numerous separate local groups rather than a single organisation.
Although those earlier societies eventually disappeared, their history provided the background against which Hastings Borough Bonfire Society was created more than a century later.
Formed in 1995
The modern Hastings Borough Bonfire Society was formed in 1995.
That year saw the return of a major organised Bonfire celebration to Hastings and the beginning of several traditions that remain part of the event today.
Rather than simply recreating an earlier society, the new organisation developed an identity drawing directly upon Hastings itself.
Its colours were chosen from the town's history as a Cinque Port, while the society adopted Smuggler costume and incorporated local historical events into its annual procession.
More than three decades later, the result is a celebration that feels particularly connected to Hastings.
Red, Gold and Royal Blue Smugglers
The main costume of Hastings Borough Bonfire Society is Smuggler dress.
When the society was formed in 1995, members adopted striped jumpers using the historic Cinque Port colours associated with Hastings: red, gold and royal blue.
The choice of Smugglers is especially appropriate to the area.
Hastings and the surrounding coastline have a long association with smuggling, particularly during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, when high taxation on imported goods made the illegal trade in items such as tea, spirits and tobacco enormously profitable.
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society's Smugglers therefore give it an identity closely connected with the maritime history of the town, while the distinctive three-colour stripes make members immediately recognisable in procession.
The East Hill Beacon
One of the traditions created when Hastings Borough Bonfire Society was formed is the lighting of the East Hill beacon.
The beacon has been lit on every Hastings Bonfire Night since 1995.
Its origins are particularly interesting.
The beacon was originally lit by the Hastings branch and Women's Section of the Royal British Legion on 8 May 1995, commemorating the 50th anniversary of VE Day.
Later that year it became part of the newly formed society's first Bonfire celebration.
From its position high above the Old Town, the beacon provides a dramatic opening to the evening.
Torches are brought down from East Hill to meet the main procession, physically carrying the fire from one of Hastings' most prominent landmarks into the streets below.
The America Ground Ceremony
Perhaps the tradition that most clearly distinguishes Hastings Borough Bonfire Society from other societies is the America Ground ceremony.
It commemorates a remarkable episode in Hastings history.
During the early nineteenth century, a community of merchants, traders and residents developed on land reclaimed from the sea outside the established boundaries of the town.
When Hastings Corporation attempted to assert control over the settlement in 1828, the inhabitants resisted.
The dispute resulted in unrest, and the residents raised the Stars and Stripes and declared themselves independent – leading to the area becoming remembered as the America Ground.
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society commemorates that rebellious episode during its own procession.
The America Ground ceremony takes place around Robertson Street, connecting the modern celebration directly with a piece of Hastings history that embodies the town's famously independent character.
The Secret Effigy
Another eagerly awaited feature of Hastings Bonfire is the society's secret effigy.
The subject is known only to a small group of members before being revealed on the day of the celebration.
The effigy allows Hastings Borough Bonfire Society to comment on local, national or international events with a mixture of satire and humour.
Previous subjects have included parking attendants, while the society's 2012 effigy celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.
In 2015, three seagulls became the subject – provoking considerable discussion around Hastings before meeting the same pyrotechnic fate as their predecessors.
The secrecy surrounding the subject means that discovering what has been built on the beach has become part of the anticipation surrounding Hastings Bonfire.
The Longest Single Procession in Sussex
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society describes its Grand Procession as the longest single torchlit Bonfire procession in Sussex.
The route takes full advantage of the shape and history of the town.
The procession travels along the seafront and through Hastings Old Town, passing through streets including Robertson Street, Pelham Place, Marine Parade, Rock-a-Nore Road, All Saints Street and High Street before returning towards the firesite.
Members of Hastings Borough Bonfire Society are joined by visiting societies, drummers, banners and other groups, creating a procession that stretches through both the Victorian seafront and some of the oldest streets in Hastings.
Eventually the procession returns to the beach, where members throw their torches onto the bonfire together.
Bonfire on the Beach
Like Eastbourne, Hastings has the advantage of being able to stage its bonfire beside the sea.
The firesite is on the beach in front of Pelham Place, where the bonfire is constructed before the celebration.
Much of it is built from shipping pallets, while the society specifically avoids treated timber, MDF and chipboard because of the fumes they can produce when burned.
There is even an unusual job waiting for volunteers the following morning.
Although pallets containing nails can be used, members return to the sand after the event with large magnets to remove the nails from the firesite.
It is a small detail, but one that illustrates the less glamorous work involved in putting on an event of this scale.
The Children's Guy Competition
Hastings also keeps the tradition of making a Guy alive through its children's Guy-making competition.
Children under 16 are invited to make their own Guys, which are judged before the evening procession.
The winning Guy receives the distinction of taking pride of place on the bonfire.
It provides younger residents with a direct role in the day's celebrations and keeps one of the oldest elements of Bonfire Night visible alongside the much larger modern procession and fireworks display.
Fireworks and Renegade Pyrotechnics
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society has developed considerable expertise in producing fireworks displays of its own.
The society operates a commercial fireworks subsidiary, Renegade Pyrotechnics, staffed by trained volunteers.
The team stages displays for events such as parties, weddings and local schools, with profits helping fund the fireworks for Hastings Bonfire. The society says this arrangement has allowed the annual beach display, in most years, to be provided without requiring central society funding for the fireworks themselves.
It is an unusual example of a society developing a specialist activity into a practical way of financing its own celebration.
Thousands Raised for Local Causes
Hastings Bonfire is also an important fundraising opportunity for local organisations.
Approved charities and community groups can take part in collections during the procession, receiving a percentage of the money they help collect.
The sums involved can be substantial.
In 2019, almost £6,000 was collected for charity during the celebration.
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society says its procession allows it to raise thousands of pounds for local community groups and charities, giving the huge public turnout a purpose beyond the spectacle itself.
At the same time, the society must raise significant funds simply to stage its free annual celebration.
Fundraising therefore continues throughout the year through donations, sponsorship, events and activities organised by members.
The 2026 Grand Auction alone raised £5,604.19 towards the cost of that year's Bonfire celebrations.
Membership and Volunteering
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society is run by volunteers, and there is considerably more to membership than walking in the procession.
Members help with fundraising, preparing the bonfire site, making and handling equipment, organising the procession, marshalling, producing the effigy and completing the enormous clean-up operation afterwards.
The society meets at The White Rock Hotel, with regular meetings traditionally held on the second Tuesday of each month.
Members can also represent Hastings at celebrations elsewhere during the season, supporting the societies that travel to Hastings for its own event.
Hastings Bonfire 2026
The 2026 Hastings Bonfire celebration takes place on Saturday 17 October.
Once again, Hastings Borough Bonfire Society will bring together its distinctive traditions: the East Hill beacon, America Ground ceremony, Smugglers, visiting societies, drummers, flaming torches and the long procession through the town.
The procession will eventually return to the seafront for the bonfire, the unveiling and destruction of the year's secret effigy and the grand finale fireworks display over the beach.
And when the crowds have gone home, society volunteers will return to begin the clean-up – including collecting the nails left behind in the sand.
A Bonfire Celebration Unmistakably Hastings
Hastings Borough Bonfire Society may only date from 1995, but the traditions surrounding it reach much further back.
Organised Bonfire societies were active in Hastings and St Leonards from at least 1854, with ten societies processing by 1882.
The modern society has taken that history and built something distinctly connected to its town.
Its red, gold and royal blue Smugglers reflect Hastings' Cinque Port heritage. The East Hill beacon connects the procession with one of the landmarks overlooking the Old Town. The America Ground ceremony remembers the residents who challenged the town authorities in 1828, while the secret effigy gives the society an opportunity to continue that independent and satirical spirit.
Add the longest single torchlit Bonfire procession in Sussex, a bonfire on the beach and a major fireworks display, and Hastings Borough Bonfire Society has created a celebration with a character very much its own.
More than 30 years after its formation, Hastings Borough Bonfire Society continues to fill the streets of Hastings with fire while keeping the town's history, independence and community firmly at the centre of the celebration.