This section contains all you need to know to access our reviews, how to use them and understand the symbols in each one, how to sort and filter the reviews to your own requirements, and a little bit more about how we review and rate fireworks.

There are three pages in this section. On this page, we'll show you how to access the reviews and what they mean. On the next page, we'll look at sorting and filtering the review listings. And on the final page, more about how we review and rate fireworks.

You can access the other pages using the links on the left, or at the bottom of each page.

Every reader will have their preferred way of browsing our reviews, so we offer several methods of accessing them. The easiest is to browse our main review sections. You can do this from the main review page (click on the main menu bar at the top of any page), or, if you are already in the review section (such as now), you can jump straight to each section by using the extra navigation options at the top of each page. Look for under the top menu bar.

We've grouped the reviews together by type to make it easier to look through them, for example, all the cakes are in one section, all the rockets are in another, and so on. If you're new to fireworks and unsure of the differences between cakes, candles, rockets etc. see our Info Bank for help.

In each section you will see our review summaries. Please note that these are just summaries of the full review, so for further information you should click the appropriate link to show the full review if you want to. Let's take a look at an example and show you:

The item's name is at the top in white, in this case "Sputnik". Following the name, you might see any the following symbols:

: Rated Best Buy, our highest accolade. : Rated Recommended, our second-highest accolade.

These refer to the rating (Best Buy or Recommended) where applicable and are explained in more detail on our how we review and rate fireworks page.

Some item names are followed by a symbol. This means that the main review is free to access for non-members.

Underneath the name is the brand or make of the item. This is the company that has made or imported the item, for example, Black Cat, Standard, Kimbolton, Bright Star and so on.

It is often the case that a firework is manufactured by one company but imported and distributed by another. We generally use the UK brand name in these cases, as the firework is normally made to their specification. In the above example the firework is from the Cosmic range.

Where an item is imported into the UK but is not exclusive to one UK brand or retailer, we generally use the source brand. A good example of this is Vulcan, which is imported by a few UK companies but then distributed to many retailers.

Although we only review UK fireworks, some items are also available in other countries, so look out for the manufacturer's name in the full review. For example, many Brother's manufactured items under the Planet label are also available in the USA, as are some Vulcan items.

We are often asked: Can non-UK readers buy UK-specific fireworks? UK companies will not export to other countries I'm afraid.

To the right of the review summary is some more information about the item. For example:

The price of the item is shown top right, in this example it is £14.99. This was the RRP at the time of review. We only judge fireworks based on their RRP, where known. This price can, of course, change after the review is published.

The duration is taken from the specific item on test, and is an approximate value. Some items will not have a duration, or it won't be relevant, for example with rockets whose main effect only lasts a second or two.

We do not include fuse burning time in the durations. This can vary from firework to firework.

Durations should be taken as an approximation only! Be warned: Fireworks can and do vary in duration from the ones under test - this is normal as most fireworks are put together by hand and fusing can vary.

Other symbols which might appear here are:

: Firework is category 2 (Garden, 5m spectator distance). : Firework is category 3 (Display, 25m spectator distance). : Firework has no noise (ie. no bangs, screeches, loud breaks etc). : Firework has no bangs (may still have other noises, eg. screeches/crackles). : Firework is noisy (may include bangs or other loud sound effects). : Firework is very noisy (mostly bangs or includes sections of loud bangs). : Firework contains interesting noise effects (screeches, hummers, crackles). : Firework contains colours (other than gold or silver).

Of particular interest in today's noise-wary society are our new and symbols. These will help you find fireworks that either have no bangs, or are almost silent. Surprisingly, there are lots of very good fireworks that fall into these categories, so don't be too worried if you're tasked with staging a quiet fireworks display.

Even quiet or silent fireworks may have launch "thuds" from each shot going up. This is unavoidable and we do not count this in our classification of the firework's noise level.

Underneath is the main review summary:

On the left you'll see what we call a "static" image of the firework (where available). This is typically from the firework before or after firing. Its presence indicates that a separate "static" page exists for members, to show the firework in more detail. These pages can be accessed via the main review, and often contain shots of the firework and its label and any other interesting points.

On the the right you'll see what we call an "action" image of the firework. This is taken from the video or still images, and its presence indicates that a separate "action" page exists for members. This page will normally include a mix of pictures and video, so members can see what the firework does and judge it for themselves.

In the middle, a brief summary of the firework, followed by a link to the main review. You can also click on either thumbnail image to jump to the main review.

Whilst you can use the summaries and scores to form your firework shortlist, we strongly recommend that you take a few minutes to read the full review. This includes much more information about the firework and member comments where available.

Finally, the review summary ends with the following:

On the left is the date when the review was added to the site (where available, older reviews may not be dated). In some cases you will also see this symbol: which not surprisingly, means the review is a new one.

Some reviews will also have a symbol here which indicates that we have updated the main review since it was added. Updates could include a change of effects, specification, price and so on. A date will show when it was updated.

Many reviews have a symbol here. This means that the main review has downloadable video.

On the right is a counter showing the number of member comments the review has. In the above example, three members have left a comment which you can read in the full review. Comments can include those made by another person present at the firing, the firer themselves, a UKFR member who was acting as a part of a review jury, or any member that has tried that particular firework.

Finally on the right is the firework's current rating. The reviewer and any member who has tried or seen the firework can rate it out of five for EFFECTS and also for VALUE. These scores are added to give an overall score out of ten. You can find more information about this in the next section.

Underneath each summary is a navigation bar:

When you access a review you will see a screen similar to this:

The first part of the review is identical to the summary and contains the firework name, brand and key details. Underneath this is the actual review, and you can click on the left or right pictures (if present) to access further pages showing the item before firing, or in action, and so on. The action page, if present, would contain the downloadable video clips.

The firework's rating is then shown but also broken down into its component scores for EFFECTS and for VALUE. You can click on Rate it! or any rating graphic to vote.

Additional Resources prompts you to click on any images for further pages, if they are there.

If there are any comments made by other firers who were present for UKFR, or any members who were acting as an "official" jury, these will be listed under a heading called Firer or UKFR Jury Comments.

Comments submitted by members will be listed under Member Comments. In the above example three members have left a comment. Early comments (pre-2003) have no date attached to them, newer comments state when the comment was made.

Underneath this you will be prompted by the symbol to leave a comment, if you have seen the firework in action yourself.

Finally, there are some links which offer further help, and navigation prompts.

Additional information included in the reviews should be self-explanatory. If you're not a member yet, you can browse some sample reviews in the free section.

The review index offers a complete listing of all our current reviews, in abbreviated format. This is particularly useful if you want to browse the complete database, want to see all the fireworks reviewed from a particular brand, and so on.

You can access the review index by clicking on the option at the top right of the page.

A typical entry will look like this:

The name of the item is shown on the left, which is also a link to the full review itself. This is followed by the rating or type of review, and the following abbreviated symbols are used:

: Rated Best Buy (average score >= 9/10 with 5 or more votes). : Rated Recommended (average score >= 7.5/10 with 5 or more votes). : Review is free to access for non-members.

The Brand column shows the brand and Type indicates whether the item is a cake, candle, rocket and so on. This is followed by the price, and duration (where applicable).

The Key column includes the same keys as explained above in the review summary section.

The Score (Votes) column shows the item's score out of ten with the number of votes in brackets followed by a graphical representation of the score.

If you are a member and see fireworks which you have tried and they have a symbol meaning that no member has yet rated the item please take a few minutes to do so. Your opinion as a member is valuable, and it will help other readers decide which fireworks to buy.

This is the first of three pages in this section. Our next page covers sorting and filtering the review listings. And on the final page, more about how we review and rate fireworks.

If you require any additional help after reading these sections, try our Info and Help page.