Carnival with Don Letts
Carnival is currently off air
Saturday 28th August, 8pm
The Notting Hill Carnival is one of the biggest free street parties in Europe. Every August Bank Holiday weekend, hundreds of thousands of people descend on the west London borough to marvel at the costumes and the parade, as well as enjoy brilliant music and yummy food.
The Notting Hill Carnival is a bona fide institution and celebrates and reflects our country’s racial and cultural diversity. In Carnival, Grammy winner Don Letts tells the incredible story of the enormous cultural event in this pulsating UK premiere documentary.
What is now Europe’s largest street party started out in 1959 as a response to the worst racial violence the streets of London had ever seen. Immigrants from British colonies had been invited to the UK after WWII left the country shattered and in desperate need of reconstruction. But with this immigration came the threat of racial tensions. Carnival began when over 100 Caribbean Londoners came together using music and dance in a show of harmony. Now, legendary, boundary-busting musician and filmmaker Don Letts tells the incredible story of the multicultural celebration that attracts over 1,000,000 people to London every year.
A balanced mix of reality and history, Carnival brings together previously unseen archive, an eclectic soundtrack and interviews with the likes of Norman Jay, Sir Trevor McDonald, Miquita Oliver, Jazzie B and Paul Simonon of The Clash.
Charting the evolution of the carnival from a West Indian calypso party to the emergence of popular sound systems (including Norman Jay’s Good Times), this unique and insightful documentary brings to light how this beloved event has become a true expression of London’s diversity.
What is now Europe’s largest street party started out in 1959 as a response to the worst racial violence the streets of London had ever seen. Immigrants from British colonies had been invited to the UK after WWII left the country shattered and in desperate need of reconstruction. But with this immigration came the threat of racial tensions. Carnival began when over 100 Caribbean Londoners came together using music and dance in a show of harmony. Now, legendary, boundary-busting musician and filmmaker Don Letts tells the incredible story of the multicultural celebration that attracts over 1,000,000 people to London every year.
A balanced mix of reality and history, Carnival brings together previously unseen archive, an eclectic soundtrack and interviews with the likes of Norman Jay, Sir Trevor McDonald, Miquita Oliver, Jazzie B and Paul Simonon of The Clash.
Charting the evolution of the carnival from a West Indian calypso party to the emergence of popular sound systems (including Norman Jay’s Good Times), this unique and insightful documentary brings to light how this beloved event has become a true expression of London’s diversity.
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