Providing Events with Fireworks and Entertainment.

It’s no real secret that the team at Britannia Fireworks has over 20 years in the Fireworks Business; the Husband & Wife team have been part of the Fireworks business since 1995 where Lee began Fireworks with his Father. Since then Samantha became part of that team and really developed the marketing and organisation of Fireworks Displays and Weddings.

Naturally through that we became involved in so many Weddings and so many Events that we learned very quickly what makes a Good Event and even a Great Event. We have got to know lots of companies which specialise in so many different areas of the world of Events. Each of the companies supplying niche products and services; and each of them are doing a great job.

Now we have decided to take those contacts, that knowledge and begin stitching together our own brand of Event supply and co-ordination. Back in April we decided on Making Britannia Fireworks & Events, the name came from Lee’s own connection with the name Britannia Fireworks, a brand developed by him in earlier years, the fact that we are proudly British as well as a name that will define us as we branch out into European Markets. Samantha who is a great and natural organiser as well as a person who enjoys greatly the involvement in Weddings and all of the more feminine aspect to that side of the industry has added great enthusiasm for providing couples and other businesses with good quality services and products that help enhance their special occasion.

We are well placed already and have a head start when it comes to contacts and services that we can offer. Of course we will be providing Fireworks Displays but added to that we will be promoting other forms of visual entertainment to include Flame Projectors (both real and simulated) Confetti Products for stage use and hand held use at parties. We are also going to provide decorations for Tables, however we will have a slightly different approach to this, we will not be providing balloon decorating services albeit we will be promoting other suppliers, but we will be hosting some pretty unique ideas which are not widely available.

We also hope to start acting as a go between for various agents and entertainers, over the years we have seen some great entertainers, acts and themed ideas which we have used and work really well. Its taken well over 10 years to find some of them and undoubtedly has we not been involved in the business we are we would never have found them, and because of that we are very keen top pass on the people we know and have met, not only to help promote them, but also because we will know that you will be more than satisfied with what they can offer.

When it comes to Fireworks this will undoubtedly be a large part of what we do, but we are hoping to create a new challenge to better serve our customers. One key factor in Fireworks Displays is the ability to supply a quality service all over the UK, with increased travel costs becoming a major factor I am confident that over tie Fireworks Sourcing will become more localised as more companies become less interested in travelling for work. With this in mind our Company will be extending franchises to its network of firers and regions so we can service displays locally to you. Our Fireworks franchise which is on offer will be controlled by strict approaches to Safety, Services and Value for Money, basically the simple ingredients that we have learned in our journey in the last 14yrs.

If you would like information on our Franchise Plans please feel free to contact us at any time at mail@britanniafireworks.co.uk

Wedding Fireworks Displays with Music

Starting in 2008 we decide to try and bring Fireworks with Music to the masses. Despite what people might think there is such a huge difference in standard Fireworks Displays and those which are fired to music.

Yes we use the same fireworks in our music shows as we do in standard shows but its how we use them that is fundamentally different. In a standard show it’s the fireworks them selves which tend to dictate pace, colour and intensity yet with the music show it is of course the music which will dictate the pace of the show which will also dictate the colours and materials used.

Firing and Designing to music is nice because we get the chance to go through themes of colour and noise, quiet sections and heavy sections, the flow varies with the music and it’s a challenge to try and replicate the vision from the audible, to try and take that emotion created by the music and double up with a visual spectacle to.

Having done quite a few Music shows this year with Fireworks and Weddings its also been nice to get more involved with the clients at a more personal level. The music they choose for their wedding fireworks are chosen for a specific a very personal reason. Just last night we had a show where the bride was reduced to tears, the show was set to music from the “Gladiator”, I had a great time creating it as it was a fantastic choice of Music. We topped it off with Nessum Dorma and an entire sequence for the Finale in just pure gold…wow

At the other end of the scale we have put together a short show for this coming week for a Birthday Party, the client had a more tongue in cheek approach to the event and chose to play “Baywatch Theme” knowing full well this would raise smile. Funnily enough I happen to think the Firework Show will look great with that music, the tune and its pace work really well with Fireworks, its quite powerful and the though of David Hassle Hoff running through the smoke is enough for anyone.

Our team competed in the British Pyromusical Championships in 2003 and took a respected 2^nd place, in the following year some of us also helped out All-star Fireworks when they won in 2004 using material imported by Britannia Fireworks.

Needless to say Fireworks and music are in our blood, we enjoy rising to the challenge and fulfilling our clients expectations if not actually surpassing them. We enjoy the challenge of good design and using the materials and effects we have to hand to create a visual spectacular using Fireworks, Pyrotechnics and other special effects. We also enjoy the embrace of modern Firework Firing Technology and the ability it gives us to replicate our vision using a combination of methods and skills, that for the most go un noticed in terms of behind the scenes work. Yet the up front explosion of Fireworks does not and there is nothing better than an ecstatic audience at the end of a show!

The Art of Fireworks New & Old

I personally have now been involved since I was Nine years old that sounds madness in this day and age, especially in the almighty Health & Safety Days that we live in, the blame culture has got us all diving for cover behind administration and Risk Assessments

Of course the art of Fireworks Displays and making Fireworks is centuries old, it’s a form of grand entertainment that has been around longer than most things and its time proven fascination that keeps the industry going despite the enormous changes that have happened recently.

I think its in so many of us, the fascination of Fire and Light, Noise and Explosions, it gets the senses going, the Vision, The Hearing, The sense of touch ands the Fireworks Vibrate through the floor and our bodies. Its this part of it that’s old and part of our very being that makes fireworks interesting, emotional and exciting.

I was once told by my Father that when the audience clap they are applauding the fireworks and not the person who let them off. Now looking back at this, and baring in mind I know how personally my Dad felt about the displays he provided I know he didn’t really truly believe in that sentence. What I take from it and more so in the last couple of years is that its to easy to simply rely on manufactured fireworks, to lay them out and just put a match to them, that leads to complacency and that can lead to a number of things, not least safety concerns and customer dissatisfaction.

Now I have thought long and hard about what he said and as an artist (well kind of) and certainly a person, although slightly shy, one who does enjoy creating attention, and finally and most significantly someone who is very very competitive…mostly with myself! I am striving to be one of the best, and part of this has meant embracing (which we have found pretty easy and a natural step) and investing in some of the latest and best Firework Firing Technology and Computer Software.

This has lead our team to create some pretty awesome displays, you can view one at YouTube . I / We are now forever looking forward at Fireworks and Effects and are pushing to make ourselves one of the best. This will take years for sure, but hey can you imagine a better way of spending your time!

We use the Pyromate Smarthawk, Nighthawk and P45 units as well as our own Wireless small systems and DMX controllers for our flame projectors. As we are aiming to take part in some European Firework Competitions over the next few years we will be extending our hardware and pushing our learning to the limit so we can evolve, educate ourselves and hopefully make our Firework Displays more exciting, more innovative and better to watch.

Fireworks from around the World – Valencia Part 3

Of the Four shows put on each night you notice that as you go from one day to the next the Firework Displays get much bigger, containing far more Fireworks than the previous nights. Many More Mortar Tubes and Shells can be seen along with loads more Roman Candles and Flying Saucers.

This particular show is from the Firing Site of the 2005 Las Fallas celebration and the site is courtesy of Ricardo Caballier from near Valencia. They are without doubt or at least in my opinion one of the best Firework Display Companies in the world. They have a whole cupboard full of international trophies and medals.

Whats even more impressive to me is the fact that they make and manufacture virtually every Firework which is on the site. My own company have imported Fireworks from them before and we have used a good number and variety of Spanish Fireworks over the last 14 years and they are certainly the best we have used. They are so reliable, spot on with timings and the quality of the compositions are also really on the mark.

The show that night in 2005 still sticks out in my mind, the Spanish companies really go in for colour coordination as well as coordination of colours with effects. The themes are really noticeable and you can see that both audience and operator get excited by being able to see these themes as they happen. They also make great use of firing rhythm which helps make the show exciting.

The part that really made an impression on me were the skill and timing used to take effectively small individual fireworks and create symmetrical patterns and firing rhythms’ that really got the hairs on end. It appealed to everyone, even someone who knows absolutely nothing about fireworks, and let’s face it that is the aim to simply entertain and entertain well!.

I brought back to Britannia Fireworks that day a vision that we would use rhythm and skill to create the shows we provided as well as just good quality material. That way the audience are clapping you and not just the Fireworks (as my Father would tell me!)