Throughout Britain people celebrate Guy Fawkes night, also known as Firework Night. This festival is celebrated on the fifth of November because this was the night that Guy Fawkes tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill the King. This is the story of what supposedly happened.

It was 1605 and the ruler at that time was the harsh King James the First, who believed in the "divine rights of kings" and took little notice of Members of Parliament. James found a country, which he inherited on the death of Elizabeth 1, divided by religion and although he managed to make enemies of both Catholic and Protestant people he was looked upon as a Protestant king and the persecution of Catholic people and non protestants continued. Guy Fawkes was a Catholic and at that time, when Catholics were burnt or tortured for their beliefs, he joined a group of Catholics to help blow up the Houses of Parliament. Members of this group included Robert Catesby, John Wright, Thomas Percy and Thomas Winter, and later Francis Tresham, although the best remembered of the group is of course Guy Fawkes.

Initially, a house was rented next door to the Houses of Parliament and it was proposed to dig a tunnel from the cellar to the House of Lords. There, barrels of gunpowder would be piled and when the King and the Members of Parliament were assembled for the opening of Parliament on February 7th 1605, the barrels would be ignited. Guy Fawkes was given the task of lighting the fuse. It was realised that the job of digging would be a slow process and with the postponing of the opening of parliament Fawkes then rented a cellar directly under the House of Lords. Small barrels of gunpowder were ferried across the river Thames by night and taken one by one to the cellar, where they were covered in firewood.

Again the opening of Parliament was postponed, this time to November 5th. During this period of waiting one of the plotters (probably Francis Tresham), wrote to Lord Mounteagle (his brother-in-law) with a warning not be go to the ceremony, he was told that "they shall receive a blow... and yet shall not see who hurts them". Once again, Guy Fawkes was left alone in London while the other plotters went round the country rousing their fellow Catholics to get ready to fight after the death of the King. He was to spend the day prior to the ceremony in the cellar. A special slow burning fuse had been prepared and placed in position. Suddenly there was a knock at the door and outside Fawkes found Lord Mounteagle and the Lord Chancellor. He was asked who he was and what he was doing. Fawkes replied he was a servant of Thomas Percy (the cellar had been hired in his name). The two men had a quick look in the cellar, which revealed nothing other than stacks of firewood ready for winter. Guy Fawkes, after contact with Thomas Percy to report the incident, returned calmly to the cellar.

However, his sense of relief was short lived, for late that night a magistrate and a file of soldiers suddenly appeared and Guy Fawkes was overpowered. A more thorough search of the cellar soon revealed the thirty six barrels of gunpowder and Fawkes was taken away. King James himself questioned Guy Fawkes and although he admitted to plotting to blow up the Houses of Parliament he would not give the names of the other conspirators. Eventually, the rest of the plotters were caught and all were executed on 31st January 1606, except for Francis Tresham. He was sent to the Tower of London were he died shortly afterwards of what was thought to be poisoning, though this was never proven.

And to this day November 5th is celebrated as a commemoration of the successful foiling of the Gunpowder Plot.

Yorkshire Parkin (12 Pieces)
Ingredients:
8oz of wholemeal or plain flour
½ level teaspoon salt
1 level teaspoon each of ginger, mace and nutmeg
6oz medium oatmeal
1oz soft dark brown sugar
4 oz each of golden syrup and treacle
2oz margarine
2 level teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
8fl oz warm milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
4oz seedless raisins (optional)

Method:

• Pre-set oven at 325F. Sift flour, salt and spices together into a mixing bowl
• Stir in oatmeal and sugar. Gently melt the treacle, golden syrup and margarine over a low heat
• Make a well in the centre of the flour mix and pour in melted ingredients
• Dissolve bicarbonate of soda in warmed milk and add to mixture with lightly beaten egg
• Add raisins and add mix to a soft batter. Pour into a lined greased meat tin (about 8 x 10 inches)
• Bake in the oven for 40 minutes. When cooked it should be an even brown colour and should have shrank away slightly from the sides of the tin. Leave to cool and if possible keep in an airtight tin for at least a week before eating.

Bonfire Toffee Apples
Ingredients:
10 small crispy eating apples
10 wooden sticks
12 oz soft brown sugar
1/4 pint water
2 oz butter
4oz golden syrup
1 teaspoon of lemon juice

Method:

• Remove the stalks from the apples and wash and dry them
• Put a wooden stick into each one
• Butter a baking tray or greaseproof paper
• To make toffee, put sugar and water into a heavy based saucepan and heat gently until sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally
• Have a bowl of water and a brush beside you to wash down any sugar granules which may stick to the side of the pan as you stir
• When all sugar is dissolved add the butter, golden syrup and the lemon juice and stir until well blended
• Increase heat and boil rapidly without stirring until the toffee reaches a temperature of 290F or soft crack stages
• Remove from heat and allow bubbles to subside
• Dip apples one at a time into the toffee making sure they are completely covered
• Twirl around for a few seconds to allow access toffee to drip off then plunge into a bowl of cold water
• Remove and stand on prepared baking sheet or greaseproof paper
• If the toffee begins to harden before all the apples have been dipped warm over a very low heat until liquid again
• Toffee apples may be stored, wrapped individually in greaseproof or waxed paper, but keep them in a dry place