Fireworks were a type of explosive fired into the sky to produce decorative lighting effects. They were typically used in completely inoffensive ways, as with celebrations.
History[]
The aural similarity between fireworks and guns was something the Second Doctor, John and Gillian once used to defend a South American village. Beset by a much larger and more aggressive people, one village seemed doomed to annihilation, until the Doctor rigged a system of fireworks to mislead the raiding party into believing the village was much better-defended than it actually was. (COMIC: The TARDIS Worshippers)
In the 19th century, fireworks would be set off during funerals in China in order to scare away spirits. This happened when George Litefoot's father died. (TV: The Talons of Weng-Chiang)
Fireworks were regularly used in the United States to mark the Fourth of July. On hearing typical Fourth of July fireworks in New York City, newly arrived Italian immigrant Angelo Colasanto mistook them for the sounds of battle. (TV: Immortal Sins)
In 1941, the Doctor brought fireworks to Calcutta to celebrate Navratri with Kamalnayan Bajaj. (PROSE: Ghosts of India)
In 2000, fireworks were set off in San Francisco to celebrate the new millennium. (TV: Doctor Who)
The appearance of the London Eye when activated by the Nestene Consciousness (TV: Rose, PROSE: Operation Mannequin) during the Dummy Massacre in March 2005 was compared on the Who is Doctor Who? website to fireworks and St. Elmo's fire. (PROSE: Dummy Massacre)
When Earth was returned to its proper location in space thanks to the Tenth Doctor and the "Children of Time", many locales set off fireworks. One prominent display was seen over the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia. (TV: Journey's End)
Fireworks were displayed to mark the start of the 2012 London Olympics on 27 July 2012. (TV: Fear Her)
In 2017, there was a freshers' party in a park nearby to 11 Cardinal Road, which included a fireworks display which was visible from Eliza's room. This convinced Eliza to kill herself. (TV: Knock Knock)
By New Year's Eve 2021, Jeff had fireworks stored in the basement of ELF Storage, which the Thirteenth Doctor used to destroy the facility shortly after midnight on New Year's Day 2022. (TV: Eve of the Daleks)
The Thirteenth Doctor brought her friends to see cosmic fireworks as they completed nineteen visits to different New Year's Eves in history. Graham O'Brien told her that it was the best fireworks display he'd ever seen. (TV: Resolution)