Originally Posted by fast bloke

Dunno how it is with you lot over there, but over here you need a special licence to get your paws on cat 4 fireworks. The only way you can get a licence is to be able to demonstrate that you have substantial experience of using, handling and storing cat 4 stuff and that you have held a HSE compliant cat 4 display. Sounds like a catch 22??? Not when you volunteer to help out with the local boat club halloween display - Apparently now I am a professional :roll: (Confusingly, this only works because I am self employed)

Cat 4 stuff costs fek all in comparison to normal garden fireworks. Monster aerial shells cost less than a decent garden rocket and you can get big cakes with 80-100 smaller shells and a few 200mm shells for a couple of hunderd quid. Not the sort of stuff you want to be mixing with beer though. TBTH I think the thrill comes from not dying as opposed to watching the pretty stars