Notting Hill Carnival will Happen Online this Year

The famed Notting Hill Carnival, a unique event in London’s cultural calendar, will happen online this year. This is the first time in history that the two-day parade and street festival, held over the last weekend in August annually as a celebration of the British-Caribbean community and Black British culture will happen off the streets.

“Due to the current coronavirus pandemic, the Notting Hill Carnival 2020 has been cancelled, but some celebrations are taking place online,” the organisers wrote on the event’s website.

“Dance to the sound of steel bands and calypso music, join food and drink shows and learn more about the carnival and its people in interviews, over three days of live streams,” it added.

 

 

 

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A post shared by Notting Hill Carnival (@nhcarnivalldn) on Aug 2, 2020 at 8:58am PDT

Led by members of the British West Indian community, the event was first held in 1966 and has happened every August since. The carnival is truly staggering in size, drawing as many as 2.5 million attendees and spreading across most of West London.

According to organisers, the full digital Notting Hill Carnival line-up is yet to be announced. The “Carnival Warm-Up” is bound to happen on Saturday, Aug 29, following the carnival culture from 9 am to midday, followed by the grand event that includes Steelpan show, calypso, and soca from 6 pm to midnight.

Followers will be able to stream the event by joining in on three different channels including the Parade Channel, the Sound System Channel, and the Main Stage. Check out the event’s website to stay updated on the schedule. The organisers are already hoping to bring back the event in-person for 2021.