This last weened of August, the streets of west London will come alive in a way they haven’t for the past two years. Notting Hill Carnival is “back where it belongs”, in the words of its chief executive Matthew Phillip, for the first time since 2019 after which it was cancelled due to the Covid pandemic.

In 2020 and 2021, the event was reimagined through televised and digitally streamed virtual adaptations. These were widely praised, but those involved will agree nothing compares to the sounds, smells and sights of Notting Hill in real life.

More than two million people are expected to attend the event this year, which is Europe’s biggest street party, the second-biggest carnival behind Brazil’s. The dazzling costumes make the carnival a fashion show of some sort.

Source: The Skuup