PRO-HUNT supporters turned up the heat on the Government on Monday when a series of beacons lit up the skyline.

The flames and accompanying fireworks filled the skies to mark the beginning of a week of celebrations and protests.

Crowds gathered at Maureen Mace's farm in Esh for the simultaneous lighting of one of 80 bonfires in County Durham.

The event marked the start of the Countryside Alliance's Liberty and Livelihood Week, which will end with a massive march in London this weekend.

Along with the bonfire, each site lit a giant firework rocket, in a chain of explosions in the night sky along the length of the British Isles.

Among those at Esh was farmer Richard Dodd, the Alliance's regional chief executive.

"In times gone by, before the Labour Party was invented, we used beacons to signal danger," he said.

"This is a danger signal for the countryside. There has been a massive decline in farming and rural services and this needs to be highlighted. This is more than just a battle about how we kill foxes. It is a class war.

"There is a whole raft of issues affecting the countryside. This is not just about hunting - it is about looking after your own."

National beacon co-ordinator Charles Mann said: "The beacons provide rural people with an opportunity to speak with one voice, uniting behind a common cause.

"Beacons have been used throughout the centuries to warn and to celebrate. The Liberty and Livelihood beacons will send a warning shot to Government and herald the coming of the largest peacetime demonstration that this country has ever seen.