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Notting Hill Carnival

Europe's largest street festival, held in west London over the August bank holiday, with its costume parades, steel bands and Caribbean food. Clear narration for A1-B1 learners, and a good way into talking about festivals in your own country.

The Notting Hill Carnival fills the streets of west London for two days every August bank holiday. It grew out of the Caribbean community in the 1960s, when a celebration of Caribbean culture answered a difficult period in the neighbourhood's history, and it is now one of the largest street festivals in Europe.

Sunday belongs to families and the children's parade; Monday is the main procession, with costumes that take a year to make, steel bands, sound systems and food stalls the length of the route. For a lesson, the pictures do half the work: parade, float, costume, feathers, steel band, spectator are all visible, and the natural follow-up question – which festival would you show a visitor to your country? – needs no preparation at all.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Notting Hill Carnival?

A huge street festival in west London, held every year over the August bank holiday weekend. It grew out of the Caribbean community in the 1960s and is now one of the largest street festivals in Europe, with costume parades, steel bands, sound systems and Caribbean food.

When does the carnival take place?

On the Sunday and Monday of the late August bank holiday. Sunday is traditionally the family day with the children's parade, and Monday is the main adult parade, when the streets are busiest.

What vocabulary comes with this topic?

Carnival words are concrete and easy to picture: parade, float, costume, feathers, steel band, sound system, procession, spectator. They fit naturally into describing pictures and into talking about festivals in your own country.