Bonfire Night 2026: Fireworks Rules on Thursday, Nov. 5, Cut-Off Times and Buying Dates

Bonfire Night is Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, and fireworks may be set off until midnight that night, according to GOV.UK’s “Fireworks: the law” guidance. On other nights, the page says, you must not set off fireworks between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. The date is 12 days from Saturday, Oct. 24.

This story sets out the cut-off times, the buying period and the history behind Guy Fawkes Night, with a one-page timeline you can print.

What time do fireworks have to stop on Bonfire Night?

The normal rule is simple. No fireworks between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., GOV.UK says, except on four nights of the year when the limit is pushed later: Bonfire Night until midnight, and New Year’s Eve, Diwali and Chinese New Year until 1 a.m.

Night	Fireworks cut-off (GOV.UK)
Most nights	11 p.m.
Bonfire Night, Thu., Nov. 5, 2026	Midnight
Diwali, Sun., Nov. 8, 2026	1 a.m.
New Year’s Eve, Thu., Dec. 31, 2026	1 a.m.

Diwali falls on Sunday, Nov. 8 this year, according to our Diwali 2026 story. That puts a 1 a.m. cut-off three days after Bonfire Night.

When can you buy fireworks?

Only at set times. GOV.UK says private buyers can get fireworks, sparklers included, from registered sellers during fixed periods, and the autumn one runs from 15 October to 10 November. That window closes on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 17 days after Saturday, Oct. 24, and five days after Bonfire Night itself.

GOV.UK also says you cannot buy “adult” fireworks if you are under 18.

Why is Bonfire Night on Nov. 5?

Royal Museums Greenwich says the Gunpowder Plot itself was foiled in the early hours of 5 November 1605. It describes how, in the early hours of Tuesday 5 November, Fawkes was found dressed in a cloak and hat. A later Act provided for “a Public Thanksgiving to Almighty God every Year on the Fifth Day of November.”

Is Bonfire Night a bank holiday?

No. GOV.UK’s bank holidays page does not list Nov. 5 for England and Wales, so it is a normal working Thursday. The next bank holidays there are Christmas Day, Dec. 25, and the substitute Boxing Day on Monday, Dec. 28, 2026.

When do displays take place?

Often on the weekend. With Nov. 5 on a Thursday this year, many organized displays move to the Friday or Saturday nearest to it. Times vary by town, so check with the council or club running yours.

How does the UK clock change fit in?

UK clocks go back one hour on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, 11 days before Bonfire Night. Our UK and Europe clocks story explains the change and the time difference with New York. Remembrance Sunday follows on Nov. 8, covered in our Remembrance Day 2026 story.

Mark each date on the November 2026 printable calendar or the printable weekly calendar, and see the November 2026 important dates story for the rest of the month.