1966, August. London, The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Notting Hill.

Led by members of the British West Indian community. In 2006, voted one of the icons of  England. It started as a response to the problematic state of race relations (The Notting Hill race riots)

The second largest carnival in the world, second after the one in Rio de Janeiro and the biggest street carnival in Europe. One of it’s influences – the unsolved murder of Kelso Cochrane, a black Londoner on Golborne Rd, in 1959.

Claudia Jones, editor of Britain’s first black newspaper is described as the “mother of the Notting Hill Carnival”

Prince Charles remains a supporter, despite the general concerns for the size of the event.

“By 1970, the Carnival consisted of two music bands the Russell Henderson Combo and Selwyn Baptiste’s Notting Hill Adventure Playground Steelband and 500 dancing spectators.”

Since 2011, there is a Notting Hill Carnival app, now supported by both IPhone and Android.

The Golden Jubilee of the Notting Hill Carnival was celebrated in 2016.

Estimated to contribute about £93million to London’s economy – policing costs are estimated as £6million.

28 August 2017, around 9:30 AM, Emslie Horniman’s Pleasance, Westbourne Park – the start of a 3.5 miles long route. The third day.

Smiling faces from all around the city, gathering. Ladbroke Grove Tube station, closed.

Over 16.000 records played.

Mas-bands (inspired mostly by the West African Mythology and were more scary than sexy), sound systems, steel pan bands, calypso, soca.

70 performing stages. Music. Soul, afro beat, house, funk, drum ’n’ bass, jungle, dubstep, ska, breaks

Around 30 milion sequins, 15.000 feather plumes, 30 litres of body paint.

Loud music. Street food. Dark-skined crowds. Creoles. Dance. Danger. Claustrophobia. Sex. Marijuana. Alcohol. Movement. Urin soaked streets. Sweat. Bodies. Fish net leggings. Jerk chicken. Imperfections. Cellulite. Transparencies. Overweight. Beauty. Waste. Garbage. False eyelashes. Everywhere.

Reggae music. Cultural diversity. Galumphing masses.

Suddently, the word “bootylicious” comes to mind.

Trinidad and Tobago. Belize. French Guyama. The Bahamas. Caicos Islands. Bermuda Islands. Barbados. Cuba. Puerto Rico. Montserrat. Jamaica. Tortola. Saint Vincent. Martinique. Guadeloupe. Curaçao.

Beautifully mixed races.

 

It could have gone either way. Music could have turned to screams of terror, laughter could have turned to desperation, sequins could have been covered in blood. Spirits were high – too high in some’s opinion, thousands of hands holding whiskey, Carribean Twist and Jamaican Rum punch bottles.

Instead, bodies were let loose, people became animals

And it was wild and beautiful