It will be interesting to see how many Brigg people set off fireworks to welcome in the New Year next Thursday as December 31 gives way to January 1, 2021.
Some may feel it inappropriate in view of the ninth-month Coronavirus emergency, while others might consider it a good time to light the blue touchpaper to demonstrate a belief that the virus will be overcome in the not too distant future.
This set us thinking about 2021 and whether Brigg's early November communal firework display might be reintroduced at the Recreation Ground.
Most people in Brigg will remember going down to the Rec from the late 1960s or early 1970s through to 2009 when they were discontinued. Crowds of up to 2,000 used to attend - depending on the weather.
Such events are expensive to mount and require a great deal of voluntary help, with obvious 'elf and safety' issues to be addressed, and costly insurance to be secured.
Originally, these communal celebrations - with huge bonfire, hot food, stalls and sideshows - were organised by a joint committee of volunteers drawn from many local clubs and groups; later, Brigg District Lions took charge.
In 2010, and then again in 2012, there were unfounded hopes that these crowd-pleasing events might resume.
The Jolly Miller pub/restaurant at Wrawby and the Sutton Arms at Scawby subsequently hosted Bonfire Night celebrations which many Brigg folk supported. But although there were displays for the public in these neighbouring villages, our town could not match them, which seems a shame.
Perhaps it's time to consider re-forming a joint organising committee along the lines of the one which did such worthy work decades ago. The 2021 version might receive welcome input from active organisations which support worthy causes like the Lions, Rotary, Round Table and the Freemasons.
Brigg Town Council has pledged financal help to many 'major events' over the years and might be approached for support.
As firework displays involve so much pre-planning, now might be a good time to consider whether something could be set up for November 2021.
In the latter half of the 1970s, Brigg Town Cricket Club was tasked by the joint committee with building the bonfire at the Rec - carefully sited on grass between the two football pitches. A large lorry was taken to Scunthorpe steelworks to collect 'scap' railway sleepers which were kindly provided by British Steel Corporation for a nominal charge. These were piled up to provide the base of the bonfire.
One year we also visited Spring's riverside jam factory to collect piles of surplus wooden furniture, which ensured a particularly successful blaze.
PICTURED; Local people enjoying a communal firework display in the 1990s at Brigg Recreation Ground.
