Singed hair, tattoos and merch in tar barrels town

Shop owner Eva White said people support the business "an awful lot"

Tattoo artists and hairdressers are among those in a community getting ready for one of their busiest times of the year.

Up to 20,000 people are expected to the Ottery Tar Barrels in Devon on Wednesday, to watch local people run through the streets with flaming barrels above their heads.

Among participants are Les White, 69 who is the oldest involved, and Jessica, 7 who is the youngest - and the latest in a long line of family members to take part.

Mr White's advice to Jessica was to wear "a warm woolly jumper" while she told him she was "excited and a little bit nervous".

The true origin of the event is unknown but it goes back centuries, and multiple generations of Jessica's family have been involved.

Only people from Ottery St Mary are allowed to take part, and she will become the ninth from her family.

A total of 27 flaming barrels will be carried, or rolled, through the town, between 16:00 and 23:59.

Jessica told Les White she was "excited and a little bit nervous" for the event

"My grandad has been training me in his garden and I've been doing a little bit with dad as well," Jessica told Mr White, as she sat on one of the oak barrels.

"I'm think I'm going to wear my England barrels t-shirt, but my mum will sort out the rest, so I don't know what I'm going to wear."

Mr White replied: "A nice woolly jumper will be good for you.

"I'm going to wear my old jeans, boots, and I have a couple of old rugby shirts, with a jumper, and a waistcoat with a towel around my head."

Although Mr White and Jessica are both involved with this year's event they will not be taking part at the same time.

Only those who are from Ottery St Mary are allowed to take part in the barrel rolling

The children's barrels will begin at about 16:00 GMT and continue through the afternoon, before the lighting of a bonfire in St Saviours meadow at 18:30.

At 19:00 GMT the women's, men's and intermediate barrels get under way, reaching a climax several hours later with the 'Gurt Big Un' - The Midnight Barrel.

When asked if Jessica ever thought she would lift the big barrel one day, she told Mr White: "If daddy's going to do it, I'm doing it."

Tar Barrel merchandise

The popularity of the event means there is a shop where people can buy official merchandise.

Among items on offer include collections of coasters, T-shirts, hats, and items such as tar barrel lamps and clocks.

Eva White runs the shop and is secretary of Carnival and Tar Barrels Committee, and said: "The runners support us an awful lot, yes."

A walk inside will reveal collections of coasters, T-shirts, hats, and items such as tar barrel lamps and clocks.

"The runners support us an awful lot, yes," Eva White, owner of the shop and secretary of the carnival and tar barrels committee told BBC Radio Devon.

"But they will probably wear older clothes instead of our merchandise while they're rolling, because when you're playing with fire your clothes might get a bit singed."

Ms White said alongside her work in the shop, her role on the committee guarantees her day is set to be "very busy".

"I've got to meet with the sub-committee and hand out their high visibility vests and then I'm just generally running around doing odd jobs."

Carol Adshead-Wotton, one of the event control staff, said she "gets a buzz" from the Tar Barrels

Lots of planning has gone into making sure the evening runs smoothly.

"We coordinate and direct the public to anything they need to know," Carol Adshead-Wotton, one of the event control staff said.

"We have to confirm with the barrel marshals when they can light each barrel, and if the crowd is too much in one area, we then we coordinate the crowd to relieve the pressure in the town."

Ms Adshead-Wotton said despite the volume of people expected to descend upon Ottery St Mary, she is more excited than nervous.

"We get the buzz from it as well," she said.

"People just need to come and support the event, and just seeing it for real because you've got to see it to believe it and enjoy the atmosphere of the town."

'Blisters and burns'

The tradition also has an impact on the hair of many of the participants.

"People tend to keep their hair longer before Tar Barrels, mainly for protection," Petra Brown, who runs The Barber Shop, said.

"And then afterwards they all tend to come to me and I have to deal with the aftermath."

She added: "It's usually a bit of singeing, and sometimes the barrels might leak a little so the tar actually gets on their hair.

"They often have a lot of burns on their ears and blisters on the back of their necks."

Petra Brown has lived in Ottery St Mary for 35 years and said Tar Barrels is like "Christmas" to her

Ms Brown said Tar Barrels is one of her favourite times of the year.

"When you hear the cannons go off in the morning, it's like Christmas Day to us," she said.

"It's just the most exciting time of the year and it makes me so proud to be an ordinary resident. I love it."

'Ottery life'

Along with haircuts marking the event, others look for more permanent reminders.

"Not only do we tattoo the barrel carriers, but a lot of people who come to see Tar Barrels come and get tattoos with us afterwards," Emily Davis, manager of Rivers of Ink tattoo studio said.

"There's various designs, some of them are of barrels with flames, some are of phrases, and others are of otters.

"There are people who have been doing the barrels for most of their lives and normally one or two of them have tattoos simply because it's a huge part of who life here in Ottery."

The Ottery Tar Barrels 2025 will be streamed on the BBC iPlayer between 19:00 and 21:00 GMT.