About Seaford Bonfire Society
Seaford Bonfire Society is a volunteer-led community organisation based in Seaford, East Sussex, with a local Bonfire history stretching back well into the nineteenth century.
The present society was reformed in late 2010 and staged its first modern celebration in October 2011, restoring organised Bonfire to Seaford after a gap of more than three decades. Today, the society has more than 250 active members and stages one of the largest Bonfire celebrations in the Lewes district.
Seaford Bonfire Society has developed an identity strongly connected with its coastal home. Its motto is “E Ventis Vires” – “From the Wind, Strength”, while its members include purple and grey Smugglers, Pirate First Pioneers and Saxon Second Pioneers.
Bonfire in Seaford Since at Least 1850
The earliest known newspaper reference to Bonfire in Seaford dates from 1850.
The Sussex Express reported that the anniversary was being celebrated in the town in the usual way, with tar barrels rolled through the streets. The wording suggests that the custom was already well established by then.
A large bonfire was traditionally built on the old Beame Lands, in front of the New Inn on the site now occupied by Cross Way Church.
The early Bonfire Boys also took considerable trouble to disguise themselves from the authorities.
In 1864, some appeared in bonnets and crinolines, providing a wonderfully vivid glimpse of Victorian Seaford Bonfire.
Four Processions in One Night
By 1891, Seaford's celebration had developed into an ambitious organised event.
That year there were four separate processions, leaving hourly from 6:30pm and taking different routes through the town. The Volunteer Fire Brigade joined in full uniform, while a number of supposed “policemen” in the procession were rather less official.
Bonfire continued intermittently into the early twentieth century but did not properly return after the Second World War.
It would take another generation before a new society revived the tradition.
Seaford Bonfire and Carnival Society
In March 1972, Seaford Bonfire and Carnival Society was formed.
Its first celebration took place that November, and the organisation expanded rapidly.
By 1976, Seaford claimed to have the longest Bonfire parade in Sussex, with well over 1,000 people taking part.
The following year brought an extraordinary honour.
For the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 1977, members of Seaford Bonfire Society joined other Sussex societies in a torchlit procession at Windsor, leading the route towards Windsor Great Park and a huge beacon.
Seaford's own 1977 procession was also particularly large, with three military bands and a jazz band accompanying the Grand Procession to Martello Fields.
Despite that success, the society folded shortly afterwards.
Reformed in 2010
Organised Bonfire returned when Seaford Bonfire Society was reformed in late 2010.
The first celebration of the revived society followed in October 2011.
Since then, the organisation has grown to more than 250 active members, staging a major home event while travelling to support other societies throughout the autumn.
It is a particularly successful modern revival: in little more than a decade, the society rebuilt a celebration capable of filling the streets and seafront with processions, remembrance, fire and fireworks.
Lord Monteagle and Seaford
Seaford Bonfire Society has a particularly interesting local connection with the Gunpowder Plot through Lord Monteagle.
On 26 October 1605, Lord Monteagle received the famous anonymous warning advising him to stay away from Parliament. The letter was passed to the authorities and helped uncover the conspiracy before Guy Fawkes could ignite the gunpowder.
Later, King James I granted Monteagle land at Seaford, apparently in recognition of his service.
The land was towards the east of the town, around what is now Chyngton.
Because of this connection, Lord Monteagle plays an important role in Seaford Bonfire Society's celebration and can usually be found at the head of the procession.
That gives Seaford a direct local link with one of the central figures in the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot.
The Seaford Shags
Another piece of local folklore concerns the Seaford Shags.
The society's history recalls the stories of people along the Seaford coast allegedly using lights to lure ships onto the rocks so that their cargoes could be taken.
Whatever mixture of history and folklore lies behind the stories, the Shags form part of Seaford's local identity and reflect the importance of the sea to the town.
They also provide a suitably rebellious counterpoint to the more formal figure of Lord Monteagle at the front of the procession.
Pirates, Saxons and Purple & Grey
Seaford Bonfire Society has three clearly defined costume groups.
The society's First Pioneers are Pirates, an especially fitting choice for a coastal town.
The Second Pioneers are Saxons, while the society's traditional striped costume consists of purple and grey Smuggler jumpers.
Together, the three groups give Seaford a distinctive appearance when the society travels to celebrations elsewhere.
The Pirate costume works particularly well against the town's maritime setting, while the Saxons provide another historical identity that connects naturally with the ancient history of Sussex.
Seaford Bonfire Night
Seaford Bonfire Society's home celebration combines procession with remembrance before moving towards the firesite and fireworks.
The first procession leaves the White Lion Hotel, travelling to the War Memorial.
There, the evening pauses for a substantial period of remembrance before the Grand Procession sets off towards the firesite.
The procession then enters the firesite before the Grand Firework Display and bonfire.
That structure gives remembrance a central place in the event rather than treating it as a separate ceremony.
Seaford Bonfire 2026
The 2026 Seaford Bonfire celebration takes place on Saturday 17 October.
The society will once again bring together its distinctive traditions: purple and grey Smugglers, Pirates, Saxons, Lord Monteagle, torchlit processions, remembrance, bonfire and fireworks.
The seafront and Martello Fields provide the setting for much of the event, giving Seaford Bonfire a character inseparable from the town's coastal location.
Fundraising Throughout the Year
Staging a major public celebration requires fundraising throughout the year.
Seaford Bonfire Society organises events including Car Boot & Craft Fairs and a Summer Fayre at Martello Fields.
These events provide opportunities for the wider community to support the society long before Bonfire Night arrives.
The society also receives support through the Seaford Town Council Large Grants Scheme.
Membership
Seaford Bonfire Society has grown substantially since its revival.
With more than 250 active members, the society describes itself as having a highly inclusive and dynamic membership.
Members can participate in Seaford's own celebration, represent the society at outmeetings and help with the considerable practical work required throughout the year.
That participation is what has allowed a society reformed only in 2010 to become one of the larger modern Bonfire organisations in the area.
From the Seaford Shags to Lord Monteagle
Seaford's Bonfire identity draws unusually heavily upon the town itself.
The earliest newspaper account dates from 1850, when tar barrels were already being rolled through the streets. Victorian Bonfire Boys disguised themselves in bonnets and crinolines, while by 1891 four separate processions were taking place in a single evening.
The 1970s revival grew large enough to send members to Windsor for the Queen's Silver Jubilee before disappearing again.
Then, in 2010, Seaford Bonfire Society was reformed for a second time.
Today's society combines Lord Monteagle and his Seaford connection, stories of the Seaford Shags, purple and grey Smugglers, Pirate and Saxon Pioneers and a major procession through the town.
More than 175 years after the first known newspaper account, Seaford Bonfire Society continues to build a celebration rooted firmly in the history and character of Seaford itself.