A taste of things to come. This area has a great tradition of bonfires, the first celebrating Hastings Day on 12th October. There is a second large bonfire parade in Hastings nearer 5th November with the beach opposite Pelham Crescent the site of the enormous bonfire and firework display. Finally Battle just seven miles north has its own bonfire celebration. The effigy at the Battle bonfire is made each year by the illustrator Mark Olroyd.

Mark Olroyd is an illustrator who lives and works in Battle just seven moles north of Hastings and he has been making the effigy for Battle Bonfire for over ten years. Mark is an illustrator working on incredibly meticulous paintings the rest of the year but he enjoys the chance to have his work take center stage in a pyrotechnic theatre. As many as 20,000 turn up for Battle Bonfire. Part of the fun is choosing the subject; this is always a very well kept secret and it takes about a week of very intense work at a secret location to make the effigy. A wooden framework is first made, followed by papier mache which is then painted.

Last year the republican politician Sarah Palin was the effigy. The choice led to Mark and the rest of the Bonfire Boys receiving death threats from right wing american groups. Interestingly the threats were accompanied by pictures of the effigy with the ? deleted from 'Too hot to handle?' thereby making more of an aggressive statement rather than a question for debate. The motto: always be careful with your punctuation;

Battle Bonfire takes place this year on Saturday 7th November. And you can see more of Mark's work on the Arena artist agency website.