5am
Hatherleigh Carnival · Keeping the barrels burning

Tar Barrels

Blazing barrels, flaming torches and a 5am start.
The fiery heart of Hatherleigh Carnival.

The Tar Barrel Sub Committee

Keep the barrels burning

The present Tar Barrel Sub Committee was formed in 2005 and works alongside the main Carnival Committee. The aim of the Sub Committee is to raise funds to “keep the barrels burning” for future generations. In previous years the committee members have taken part in a barrel pull, in which they pull the unlit barrels around a circuit and collect money from people who pass by.

Each year the members of the Tar Barrel Sub Committee wear official t-shirts, a different colour each year. These are given to committee members once they have attended the health and safety briefing.

2005

Sub Committee formed

7 gal

Of tar, give or take

5am

First barrels ablaze
Line-up of the Hatherleigh Tar Barrels Team 2025 in matching navy T-shirts outside a house Team 2025!
Volunteer lighting the tar barrels with a flaming torch in the dark Light the barrels!
Behind the scenes

Made by hand

Every torch carried on carnival night starts life in a field outside town. Volunteers cut and sort the sticks, then wrap and wire hessian sacks around the heads, one torch at a time.

Meanwhile the barrels are tarred over and over again in the shed, using approximately 7 gallons of tar, until they gleam black and are ready to burn.

Many hands make light work!
Black and white photo of dozens of handmade tar barrel torches with hessian coffee-sack heads stacked against a shed
Three volunteers wiring hessian coffee sacks onto the ends of torch sticks outdoors
Young child in a blue raincoat holding a handmade torch with a hessian sack head
Black and white photo of a volunteer wiring wooden sticks together to make a torch frame
Volunteer wrapping hessian sacking on a wooden table as a child watches, with stacks of sacks nearby
Two men wrapping a hessian sack around a torch head while a boy watches
Black and white photo of volunteers gathered around piles of cut wooden sticks for torches
From tar pot to torchlight

How the barrels burn

Months of preparation, two sets of barrels and a very early alarm call.

Volunteer in white overalls coating wooden barrels with black tar inside a corrugated shed
The lead up

Tar, sticks & elbow grease

In the lead up to the day of the carnival many hours of hard work and commitment go in to preparing the barrels and torches. This includes cutting down the sticks for the torches and tarring the barrels many times over using approximately 7 gallons of tar!

Friday night

The Children’s unlit barrel pull

The unlit barrels are pulled up to Oakfield Road by the children of the town and surrounding areas on the Friday night, ready for the 5am first run.

Two blazing tar barrels on a sledge being hauled through the street, with flames streaming behind
Saturday · 5am

5AM Barrel Run

At 5am the first set of barrels are set alight at the top of Market Street, and pulled ablaze through the streets of Hatherleigh to ‘cleanse the town with fire and ward off evil spirits’.

Team pulling flaming barrels down the high street past onlookers
After the carnival procession

The final barrel run

The final barrel run is pulled along the same route after the carnival procession is over and has been cleared.

🔥

Only people who have attended the health and safety briefing and are wearing the official t-shirts can pull the burning tar barrels on carnival day.

Raw, pagan energy since 1903

Fire in the streets

Tap a photo for a closer look at the 2025 tar barrels.

Man in a fur-hooded coat holding a burning torch to light a tar barrel
Team members hauling the blazing tar barrels through the town at night
Long shadows cast by the flaming tar barrels along the town's walls
Tar Barrels Team members walking in the red and blue lit street
Burning tar barrels being rolled through the dark crowded street
Tar barrel team members holding tall flaming torches in the street at night
🙌

A huge THANK YOU

The committees would like to say a huge THANK YOU to Chris Hancock who has donated all the paraffin for this year and next year. Without this there would be no burning barrels!

Keep the barrels burning

Help light the way

Every barrel pull, bucket collection and fundraising event helps keep this fiery tradition alive for future generations.

Fundraising events Our history Get in touch

Support your carnival

Keep the flames burning

Since 1903, Hatherleigh Carnival has lit up our town with blazing tar barrels, floats and fun. It’s run entirely by volunteers, and every donation helps cover road closures, insurance and safety costs, keeping this unique tradition burning bright.

Make a one-time donation

Every donation, big or small, helps keep Hatherleigh Carnival running.

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