Island Life Magazine Ltd August/September 2008 | Page 113

LOCAL BUSINESS

life

Light the
blue touch
paper and
re-train

When you gingerly put a match to the
blue touch paper before retreating to a
safe distance, it is always hard to believe
that the tame little yellow flame will ever
trigger the spectacular firework you’re
hoping to ignite. And then comes the
explosion of spectacular colour and sound.
The story of Jubilee Fireworks,
Isle of Wight, began in just
such a modest way. Eleven
years ago, three dads, whose
children attended Haylands
Primary school in Ryde, were
asked by the head teacher to
be in charge of letting off the
fireworks on Guy Fawkes’
Night. It went well, and for the
third year Martin Hill, Mike
Crookes, and Kevin Goddard
raised enough money - £1,500
– for a really good show. It
was as if someone had lit their
fuse.
“We decided we’d like to
learn more, and eventually
contacted Jubilee Fireworks,
a Midlands-based company,
who were looking for a
south of England arm for
their company,” explains

Martin. The company has
won competitions in firework
displays.
The three, a hotel manager,
a warehouse manager and
an upholsterer, went off for
professional training with
Jubilee, and passed their
category four exams with
the British Pyrotechnic
Association. Since then, life
has become quite spectacular.
They do displays for
weddings at prestigious
venues such as Landguard
Manor in Shanklin and
Appledurcombe in Wroxall for
English Heritage. They have
ambitions to get into Osborne
House, too. If you book them
for a firework display at your
wedding, you are unlikely to
be disappointed. “We can do

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remote ignition, so fountains
can go off either side of the
wedding car as it drives away,”
Martin says. “We can do
anything from a six-minute
display upwards.”
They are not limited to
venues with huge open spaces:
indoor fireworks are also
part of their repertoire. “We
have run courses for theatre
companies, teaching them how
to do indoor pyrotechnics,”
Martin says.
Of course, the beauty of a
firework is that as you watch,
more intricate patterns emerge.
One thing leads to another,
and Martin, Mike and Kevin’s
experience has been much
the same: “We’ve done Ryde
Regatta, Goodwood House in
Sussex – and this year we did

the Isle of Wight Festival,”
says Martin. He adds: “It took
me three years to persuade
John Giddings: but I think
we’ll be doing it again!”
Of course one spark can
ignite a whole box of fireworks
and the connections made by
doing fireworks for the Isle of
Wight Festival are potentially
huge. With soaring ambition
coupled with their expertise
you wonder whether they are
likely to give up their day jobs.
Life is likely to get even more
explosive.
Martin Hill
Jubilee Fireworks
Isle of Wight.
tel: [phone]

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