The Mayor of Lewes, Councillor Imogen Makepeace, has taken the generosity of the Town Council to the maximum this Bonfire, personally cooking a supper for staff, councillors and invited guests to enjoy in the historic Council Chamber at Lewes Town Hall while viewing the famous processions.

Lewes Town Council traditionally hosts guests from Lewes’ twinned towns, who join for a more formal viewing of the Bonfire celebrations from the Council Chamber. This year, guests from the twinned towns were unfortunately unable to make it.

The Mayor, and the Town Council’s Communications and Engagement Committee decided to continue the tradition of this hospitality and researched how to make the cultural exchange more of a celebration of Lewes as a whole.

Community Spirit

Lewes Bonfire is impressive not only for the fiery displays and headline-making tableaux, but also the strong community spirit of Lewes. The festivities are run by independent Bonfire Societies, demonstrating year after year how the local bonfire societies work with the statutory bodies to pull off a spectacular event.

The Mayor was eager to celebrate the community in as many ways as possible, saying: “I’ve enjoyed planning, shopping and preparing the soups for Bonfire Supper.

“All ingredients were bought from local suppliers and farmers, with no plastic wrapping to dispose of.”

Bonfire Breakfast

The next morning, Councillor Makepeace woke up early to serve a Full English breakfast for the street cleaners who worked throughout the night to make the town spotless. The Mayor thanked the cleaning team for brightening up the town after its annual street party and observed that as usual they had done an excellent job.

As in previous years, the Mayor and some of the town councillors helped serve toast, tea and coffee. The Mayor thanked everybody who in Lewes whose community spirit once again made the event the highlight of the Lewes calendar.