When I first heard about the Round Table charity fireworks in South Park, my expectations were modest. Honestly, I imagined a few dozen people watching explosions in a muddy field. The reality could not have been more different.
When my friends and I finally stumbled over to the park, late, we tried to get on a bus, but were refused by the bus driver, because, as he said, “It’s a five minute walk!” We were quite stunned at being turned away from a bus, but walking really was the best option. St Clement’ Street had transformed into a party. Tourists, locals and students streamed through the streets, weaving around cars, and bringing traffic to a standstill.
South Park was a celebration on a scale I could not have imagined. Crowds stretched out as far as I could see. Fairground rides glittered in neon reds, greens and blues in the night. All around me were couples shyly holding hands, parents carrying toddlers on their shoulders, and schoolchildren trying to act ‘too cool’ to care about fireworks.
No matter how nonchalant we wanted to act, the DJ from Get Radio Oxford made that impossible. In the run-up to the fireworks, he made us sing along to Celine Dion, wave our phones around like flashlights, and dance to the ‘Cha Cha Slide’. No, this was a place where we had to give up any hope of looking cool and embrace being silly.
Then came the main event: the fireworks.
The only word to describe them was spectacular. Rockets arced in all the colours of the rainbow, and gold sparkles exploded across the sky. It felt like the stars were a little closer to us that night. At times, I flinched because it felt like the sparks would singe my face.
The song choices were magical. They started with ‘Circle of Life’ from ‘The Lion King’, moved on to Rosé and Bruno Mars’ ‘APT’, Ed Sheeran and Arijit Singh’s ‘Sapphire’, and ‘Golden’ from ‘Kpop Demon Hunters’. Hearing these diverse artists, it felt like the event captured Oxford as a home to people from all over the world. In a time of so much tension surrounding immigrants in the UK, it felt like a glittering sign in the sky saying ‘Welcome!’
I’d spent the day weighed down by an essay deadline, but that didn’t matter in the face of this beauty. The boom of each explosion, the strange salty scent of gunpowder in my nose… it made me feel like a little girl at a Diwali party again.
I was surprised to find tears in my eyes. Blame the mid-essay-crisis sleep deprivation, but it felt like a symbolic moment. I am a finalist, so this was my last chance to see the Oxford fireworks. What better way to capture the experience of studying at Oxford than a burst of light and colour that feels lethal while it’s happening, and ends up being beautiful?
With the lighting of the bonfires, the event ended on a more serious note. I have never noticed that fire looks the same whether it is burning down a tower block, consuming a village, or lighting up a party. It reminded me of what a privilege it is to be able to be thrilled at the sound of explosions rather than frightened, as so many people in places of conflict are now.
Expecting a casual night out at the South Park fireworks, I found a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The event has raised over one million pounds for local and national organisations over its history. If you are free next November and have nine pounds to spare, I encourage you to give it a try. It will be a profound, beautiful, and slightly silly night to remember.