CelebOMG

Hundreds of thousands of people have attended Europe’s biggest annual street party.

Carnival floats, dancers, food stalls and 40 static sound systems entertain onlookers on the 3.5 mile route through the streets of west London on Sunday and Monday. It’s thought as many as 600,000 people will visit the event.

More than 1 million hours go into making and decorating the costumes.

The Notting Hill Carnival began largely as a multicultural riposte to the Notting Hill race riots of 1958, and started out as an indoor festival in St. Pancras Town Hall before moving outdoors.

Claudia Jones is seen as the mother of the Notting Hill Carnival. She was a feminist and black rights campaigner from Trinidad who helped to organize the first carnival with the slogan “A people’s art is the genesis of their freedom”.

Source: Westminster Council