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Blood, Sweat, and Beers: Portraits of the Tar Barrel Rollers of Devon by Leon Foggitt

"I grew up in a small town in Devon which has a tradition every 5th of November called Tar Barrels," says Leon Foggitt, a London-based editorial and commercial photographer. "It's very hard to explain to people, it really has to be experienced to be believed."

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Portrait of a middle-aged man with grey hair wearing a cream jumper and black scarf against a light blue background

This is the explanation behind his latest series, Blood, Sweat, and Beers – The Tar Barrel Rollers of Devon. It's based on a local tradition that involves "heavy oak barrels coated with tar being set alight and carried often at running pace through packed narrow streets". The tradition has apparently been going for hundreds of years with no definitive understanding of how it started. Here, Leon photographs some of the local faces keeping the tradition alive.

Leon Foggitt has been commissioned by publications including Monocle, Mens Health, Geo Germany, Morgenbladet, Vrij Nederland, Another Escape, and Water Journal. His work has been featured by The Guardian, Independent and Conde Naste Traveller. Discover more at leonfoggitt.com.

All photography courtesy of Leon Foggitt

Man with dark beard wearing a yellow t-shirt with a white feather perched on his shoulder against a light blue background
Man with moustache wearing striped shirt with green collar, bearing a small wound on his forehead from the tar barrel tradition
Man holding burlap sacks marked with text, wearing a checked blazer and pink scarf against a light blue background
Woman with blonde hair wearing a striped rugby shirt with red collar, photographed against a blue background as part of the Tar Barrel Rollers portrait series
A bearded man wearing protective gear including a padded vest, arm guards and belt stands against a light blue background, part of Leon Foggitt's series documenting Devon's Tar Barrel rollers
Portrait of a bearded man wearing a blue and white jacket against a light blue background, one of the tar barrel rollers featured in Leon Foggitt's series
Portrait of a young man wearing a stained cream jacket with red hood and grey towel draped over his shoulder against a light blue background
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