Newbury Fireworks: Lions Sat 7 Nov, Thatcham Fri 6 Nov

Bonfire night 2026 falls on a Thursday, 5 November, and neither of the district’s two displays is on it. The Lions Club display at Newbury Racecourse is Saturday 7 November. Thatcham’s low-noise display at Kennet School is Friday 6 November.

Visit Newbury, which is Newbury BID, lists it as the Newbury Lions Fabulous Charity Fireworks, running 5pm to 8pm at Newbury Racecourse, RG14 7NZ, and says it “returns for its 53rd year”. That listing was read on 3 September 2026.

That makes this the town’s main organised display. Newbury Racecourse’s own what’s on calendar does not carry the fireworks, because the Lions hire the site rather than the racecourse promoting it. Its November fixtures are the BetVictor Jumps Season Opener on Thursday 5 November, Coral Long Distance Hurdle Day on Friday 27 November and Coral Gold Cup Day on Saturday 28 November. None of those is the fireworks night.

What is confirmed, and what is not

Visit Newbury describes the shape of the evening: “Before the display you’ll be able to enjoy some great food with the Lions BBQ and other food concessions. As always there will be plenty to do, with stalls and games being organised by local charities, magical shows, and of course, the chance to meet Roary!” It then adds, in its own words, “We’ll update this page with more details as they are announced.”

So the date, venue and window are settled. These are not:

• 2026 ticket prices. Not published anywhere on 3 September.
• The exact display time. The 5pm to 8pm window is the event, not the fireworks.
• Where tickets go on sale, and when.

The Lions’ own two websites, newburyfireworks.org.uk and the fireworks page on newburylions.org.uk, both still carry the 2025 event as though it were upcoming. If a search result sends you to either and shows you a November date, check the year before you plan around it.

Last year’s numbers, as the only guide there is

The 2025 display ran on Saturday 1 November 2025. The Lions’ own pages give the detail, and it has been stable for years, so it is the best placeholder until 2026 prices appear.

The 2023 figures come from Kennet Radio’s report of 21 October 2023, which recorded that year as the 50th. Counting on from there gives 53 in 2026, which is exactly what Visit Newbury calls it. The 2025 figures are from the Lions’ own fireworks page. The family ticket covers either two adults and two children or one adult and four children.

Where 2025 tickets were sold: online through See Tickets, and in person at the Tesco stores on Pinchington Lane and Northbrook Street in Newbury, and at Newbury Building Society branches in Newbury, Thatcham and Hungerford. Expect a similar list for 2026, but treat it as last year’s until the Lions publish.

Parking and getting in

The Lions say parking at the racecourse is free, including disabled parking, and that entry is via Hambridge Road and over the bridge. That is the route to use; do not aim for the racecourse’s main race-day entrance out of habit.

One practical point from their own page that matters in November: the public area is all hardstanding, so this is not a display where you sink into a field. Normal shoes are fine.

By train, Newbury Racecourse station sits on the racecourse site itself, on the Reading to Bedwyn line. There is no published shuttle for the fireworks.

Town centre car park charges and free periods are on our parking in Newbury page if you would rather park in town and walk out. Anything live on the roads that week will be on our Newbury roadworks and travel page.

One more rule from last year that changes how you plan. In 2025 the Lions said tickets were limited and had to be bought before the event, “due to the popularity of the event and to ensure the safety of all attending”. Do not assume you can pay on the gate. Their weather policy is the opposite of cautious: “the display will go ahead whatever the weather unless stated on our social media.”

Thatcham: Kennet School, Friday 6 November, confirmed in full

Thatcham has its own display the night before Newbury’s, and this one has every detail published. Kennet School PTAC, working again with Francis Baily PTA, holds the 2026 Thatcham Fireworks at Kennet School on Friday 6 November, with gates at 6pm and the display at 7.30pm, on the school field at Stoney Lane, Thatcham RG19 4LL. That is from the PTA’s own event page.

It is a professional low-noise display set to music, theme still to be confirmed, with food, drink, glow products and indoor stalls selling arts and crafts. This is the seventh year the PTAs have run it. One change from last year: the 2025 listing named a third organiser, Friends of Whitelands Park, and the 2026 one does not.

Tickets are not on sale yet, and the booking page’s own on-sale stamp looks wrong. It reads “On Sale in … Wednesday November 4, 2026 at 22:10:00”, which would put tickets on sale at ten past ten at night, two days before the display. Watch the page rather than that date, and email thatchamfireworks@gmail.com if you need certainty.

For a guide to price and length, the 2025 display ran on Friday 7 November 2025 with the same 6pm gates and 7.30pm start, and was a 15-minute low-noise display set to music from the movies. Online sales closed before the night, but adult tickets were £10 and child tickets £5 on the gate, cash or card.

Bonfire night falls midweek this year

Thursday 5 November 2026 is bonfire night itself, and neither display is on it. The Lions have run theirs on the nearest Saturday for years, and 7 November is the first Saturday after the 5th. Thatcham takes the Friday. So you can do both.

Beyond those two, nothing else is advertised in the district as of 3 September. Newbury BID’s November events calendar lists the Lions display and no other fireworks, and West Berkshire Council does not run one. Hungerford’s fireworks are not a bonfire-night event at all: they close the Victorian Extravaganza in December, and are covered on our Christmas lights page. Village and club displays are typically announced in October, so this page will be updated when they are.

When to check back

Every fact above was read on 3 September 2026 from Visit Newbury’s event listing, the Lions Club of Newbury’s own websites, Kennet School PTAC’s booking pages, Newbury Racecourse’s fixture calendar and Kennet Radio’s contemporaneous 2023 report. The 2025 prices are labelled as last year’s because neither organiser has published 2026 ones.