Norwich fireworks: no city display, and what is on

Norwich has no city-centre fireworks display, and has not had one since 2019. If you are searching for one, that is the answer, and it has not changed for six years. Bonfire night 2026 falls on Thursday 5 November.

The city council’s own events planner currently lists five things for the rest of 2026: Run Norwich, the Shine Night Walk on 3 October, Norfolk and Waveney Mind’s Night Walk and Silent Disco on 10 October, the Festive Lights Switch-on on 19 November and the Christkindl Market from 11 to 20 December. There is no fireworks display on it.

What happened to the Big Boom

The Big Boom was the free council display fired at Norwich Castle. It last ran in November 2019. The 2020 and 2021 events were lost to the pandemic, and it was then cut as a budget saving worth around £33,000 while the council was finding £6.2m of reductions.

Asked in July 2023 whether it would return, council leader Mike Stonard told Greatest Hits Radio that there was “a shortage of funds and the event budgets had to be cut back”, and that “sadly, for the time being, I don’t think they will be back”. Nothing published since has reversed that.

The nearest big display is at the Norfolk Showground, and its 2026 date is not set

The largest organised display near the city is Autumn Lights at the Norfolk Showground on Dereham Road, NR5 0TT, which is inside our patch even though the event is billed as a Norfolk one rather than a Norwich one.

As of 6 September the organiser’s own Norfolk page says “Date TBC” for 2026, and the front of the site says “New for 2026: COMING SOON”. There is a 2026 email alert list but no date and no tickets. The 2025 event was Saturday 1 November.

What the organiser has left up is the 2025 running order, labelled as last year’s schedule, which is a fair guide to the shape of the night but not a promise about this one:

• 3pm: gates, street food, bars and funfair open
• 5.40pm: fire show
• 6pm: Spark! drummers
• 7.40pm: children’s fireworks and effects show
• 9.15pm: grand finale fireworks

The site’s own FAQ gives the two pyromusical displays as roughly 7.40pm and 9.15pm, with gates from 3pm and open until 8.30pm. A separate timeline block on the same page says gates at 4pm, so treat the gate time as unconfirmed until 2026 details go up.

Two things the organiser does state clearly: parking is free and included with a ticket, and sparklers are prohibited. Ear defenders can be bought on the gate or at the bar, which is worth knowing if you are taking small children to a display that runs two full firework shows.

Be careful with the listings sites

Search for Norwich fireworks and you will land on aggregator pages headed “Fireworks Displays in Norwich for 2026”. They are not 2026 listings. Every entry on ukfireworksdisplays.co.uk’s Norwich page on 6 September carried a 2025 date or older, including an entry for the Norwich Castle display that is still advertising Friday 3 November 2017. One listing gives the Showground postcode as NR5 0TP; the correct one, on both the organiser’s site and the Norfolk Showground’s own contact page, is NR5 0TT.

The community displays those pages list around the city, at Old Catton, Sprowston, Spixworth, Taverham and Thorpe St Andrew, are all outside the Norwich city boundary, and none of them had published a 2026 date when we checked. Scout groups and parish councils tend to announce in early October and put tickets on sale late in the month, so the useful time to look is the first fortnight of October, not now.

If you are staying in the city

There is no council display to plan around, so there are no road closures to plan around either. Our Norwich roadworks and travel page carries anything that is genuinely shut that week, and parking in Norwich has the city centre options if you are heading out to a display at the Showground and want to leave the car in town first.

We will update this page as soon as the Autumn Lights 2026 date is published, and if any organiser announces a display inside NR1 to NR5.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a fireworks display in Norwich in 2026?

Not in the city itself. Norwich City Council’s free Big Boom display at the castle last ran in November 2019 and has not returned. The council’s own 2026 events planner lists no fireworks display of any kind.

Why did the Norwich fireworks stop?

The 2020 and 2021 displays were lost to the pandemic, and the event was then cut as a saving of around £33,000 while the council was finding £6.2m of budget reductions. In July 2023 the council leader, Mike Stonard, said he did not think it would be back for the time being.

Where is the nearest big fireworks display to Norwich?

Autumn Lights at the Norfolk Showground, Dereham Road, NR5 0TT. It is billed as Norfolk’s biggest display and ran on Saturday 1 November in 2025. The 2026 date had not been announced as of 6 September; the organiser’s own page says date to be confirmed.

When is bonfire night 2026?

Thursday 5 November. Most organised displays in Norfolk are held on the nearest Saturday rather than on the night itself.

Is parking free at Autumn Lights?

The organiser says yes, parking at the Norfolk Showground is free and included with a ticket. Sparklers are banned, and ear defenders can be bought on the gate or at the bar.

Sources

Norwich City Council events, Autumn Lights Norfolk, Norfolk Showground contact page, UK Fireworks Displays, Norwich, and Greatest Hits Radio Norfolk, “Norwich’s ‘Big Boom’ fireworks display unlikely to return”, 10 July 2023. Checked 6 September 2026.