Hadrians Wall illuminated from coast to coast

After the tremendous turnout for the event, some bright spark in Newcastle decided to light the fireworks in broad daylight, tantamount to a crime. Apart from that fiasco, the whole event was a real success. Thankfully these turned out to be just the warm-up fireworks and the real thing came later, along with a trapeze artist on a heliosphere (just like the Romans would have used).

Over 12 thousand hand selected volunteers were involved in lighting the 500 beacons along the 84 mile-long Wall National Path Trail from Segedunum Roman fort at Wallsend in North Tyneside through Northumberland to Bowness-on-Solway in Cumbria.

The fireworks were spectacular said many of the spectators and although they feared at several points for the safety of the girl stuck on the bottom of the heliosphere, a good day and night was had by all.

The 4,000 large crowd which gathered at Wallsend witnessed a startling performance by the German Theatre group Apu which climaxed with four winged angels standing atop the site’s observation tower as the first of the beacons was lit, all filmed from above by a camera crew in a helicopter (and you thought there was a recession on) this was all topped off with what can only be described as a fireworks display. As it was a fireworks display. Of course, it would be irresponsible for us here to fail to mention that with 500 large fiery beacons marking the Romans wall that there was more than one “Roman Candle” being lit that night (and the award for the worst joke of the day goes to…).

The event, which captured national attention, was used to bring more awareness of the World Heritage site that marked the Roman Empires most Northerly point. It is worth mentioning here that although the Romans were able to capture most of Europe with ease, they were unable to take Scotland finding the Scottish methods of fighting (using broken buckfast bottles) to scary for them, the wall was built to keep the invading barbarian hordes from the North from invading their empire.