Review: Kaboom fireworks go for gold

If only all weekends could end like this. Not with Downton and a whimper, but with a bang. And a flash. And the Superman theme blaring in our ears.

Kaboom ensured that both Sunday night and the half term holiday was despatched in a blaze of explosions worthy of York’s favourite fire starter Guy Fawkes. The fireworks were fantastic.

The pyrotechnics were only a part of the evening. There was a carnival atmosphere at Rawcliffe Country Park when we arrived, ushered to the plentiful parking by a well organised team.

By that time the junior display had already taken place in the Sparkler Park and the bonfire – a notable omission owing to difficulties obtaining permission at last year’s Kaboom – was well alight.

With the funfair next to the main stage everything felt more inclusive. Fire jugglers added to the festival feel.

The mud underfoot was a reminder of recent torrential rain, and how lucky we were to have such a clear, calm night for the fireworks. Although not as freezing as 2012 we had double-socked against the cold which proved a wise precaution.

Hot dogs, burgers and chips in hand we positioned ourselves in front of the stage. We were hoping to be spared the low point of last year’s event, a painfully unfunny skit about Guy Fawkes.

Unfortunately, however, it happened again. This time it was the “hilarious” routine with a David Tennant lookalike Doctor Who and Fawkes, which which the crowd watched in silence as frosty as York car windscreens later that night. At least it was mercifully short.

Technical difficulties saw the countdowns both for some laser lights and the fireworks display itself repeated with increasing desperation.

And when the fireworks finally started, the decision to position them directly behind the stage meant that the lower half of the display was blocked by the giant TV. The crowd had to split into two halves, bunched either side of the stage, to get an unblocked view.

That said, the fireworks were wonderful. Set against a selection of stirring sci-fi and superhero theme music, the black sky became a canvas for vibrant red, green and yellow illuminations.

We weren’t sure which was the giant firework, said in the previews to be visible from seven miles away. But there was one particularly awesome moment when a cascade of gold filled the sky and hung there like a celestial weeping willow.

Then it was over. We would have preferred a live band playing some party anthems, or at least a disco, to the amateur dramatics. That would also have given us a reason for staying around.

Instead we went home, having enjoyed a light show worthy of Fawkes’s home town.