A torch throws a narrow beam, but daily life during an outage needs area light: to eat by, read to a child, or cook safely. A lantern fills a room with steady light and frees both your hands.
Unlike candles, an LED lantern is a fire-safe light source you can leave unattended around children and pets — a real advantage when the power might be out for hours.
Set it in the middle of the table or tent for shared light during a power cut or camp evening. Many double as a hanging light or a soft night-light on their lowest setting.
Keep it charged and stored somewhere you can find in the dark. A lantern you can grab immediately is worth far more than a brighter one you have to hunt for.
Look for a lantern that runs for many hours on low and recharges by USB, so you're not reliant on a drawer full of batteries.
A dimmable lantern lets you save power on a low setting for long nights, or go bright when you need to work.
A flat base and a hook or handle let you stand it on a table or hang it in a tent, doorway or under a shelf.
Torches are for moving and searching; lanterns are for living. A kit really wants both.
A rechargeable lantern left for months can self-discharge. Top it up occasionally so it's ready when the lights go out.
A bright, rechargeable lantern that lights a whole room or tent with soft, even light. A fire-safe alternative to candles for power cuts.
A rechargeable LED lantern that throws a wide, even light rather than the narrow beam of a torch, which makes it the better tool for lighting a room or a tent during a power cut. It runs off its own built-in battery and recharges over USB, with brightness and runtime settings so you can trade light output for a longer burn. A sensible backup to keep charged on a shelf alongside your torches.
A cheap, cheerful battery lantern that throws light across a whole room or tent, which is far kinder on the eyes than a torch during a power cut. It is light enough to hang from a hook or carry between rooms, and inexpensive enough to keep one on each floor. A no-frills backup for dark winter evenings.
Fifty unscented tea lights with an 8-hour burn time each — a cheap, compact way to keep light in the house through a power cut. Longer-burning than the usual 3–4 hour tea lights, so a few will see you through an evening without constant relighting. Stand them in jars or a proper holder on a non-flammable surface, and keep a torch handy for moving around.
An affordable rechargeable head torch with a motion sensor for hands-free switching, an IPX6 waterproof rating and five light modes. A practical hands-free backup for power cuts, dog walks and jobs where you need both hands. Not a premium beam, but plenty for close-in tasks around the home and garden.
Industrial-grade chemical light sticks that glow for hours with a single snap — no batteries, flame or sparks. Safe, reliable light for outages, marking and signalling.
A straightforward, bright handheld torch from a battery brand most people already trust. It's the one to leave in a kitchen drawer, the car door pocket or a coat pocket for when the lights go out. Nothing clever — just reliable light on demand.
A bright, hands-free head torch for power cuts, checking the fuse box or moving around outdoors after dark. Water-resistant and runs on easily stored AAA batteries.
A four-pack of compact aluminium LED torches with batteries included — cheap enough to stash one in every drawer, car and bag so there's always light within reach in a power cut. They're basic rather than high-output, but for the price you get reliable pocket lighting and useful redundancy, which matters more in an emergency than raw brightness from a single expensive torch.
Handheld LED flashlight providing reliable illumination. Essential for navigation, signalling, and camp tasks after dark.
A reliable LED headlamp provides hands-free illumination for navigating, setting up camp, and performing tasks in darkness. Essential kit for any UK survival scenario where torchlight alone won't cut it.
A calm, practical comparison of UK emergency lighting: torches, head torches, LED lanterns, candles, wind-up and solar. Strengths, weaknesses and a simple home setup.
A practical UK guide to preparing your home for named storms, staying safe indoors during high winds, coping with power cuts and dealing with the aftermath.
A calm, practical guide to preparing your UK household for power cuts: reporting on 105, lighting, warmth, fridge and freezer food safety, charging phones, and medical needs.
