News / News Wire
St Paul’s Carnival postponed until September
St Paul’s Carnival has been postponed from its traditional day of the first Saturday in July until an as-yet unconfirmed date in September.
In a statement on their Facebook page, the organisers said: “Due to circumstances beyond our control it is with regret that we have had to make the decision to postpone the main Carnival day until September. This is due to ongoing challenges regarding the event management of what is one of Europe’s biggest Afrikan Caribbean street Carnivals.”
They added: “As many of you are aware the organisation is under new management and we are 100% committed to delivering a high quality, culturally relevant and safe, free annual Carnival that is Afrikan Caribbean led in collaboration with wider support.
is needed now More than ever
“Whilst we understand the disappointment, we are confident the community will be behind our efforts and we look forward to working with the community and partners over the coming months.”
St Paul’s Carnival was founded as the St Paul’s Festival in 1968. In recent years the carnival has been beset by problems, with a lack of funding and safety fears forcing its cancellation in 2012.
Disgruntled carnival fans have been taking to social media to express frustration about this year’s postponement.
Coral Elizabeth Little summed up the mood of many: “Fucks Fucking Sake. My Fav Thing Of The Summer Aint In The Summer!”
Kelly Fortress said: “Really sad it’s been running for years then suddenly it’s a problem. The council fools. I’m sure the residents of St pauls can put up a bbq and a rig without an issue. Wait do I feel a carnival coming on regardless. Whos gonna stop us. I say let’s do it anyway.”
Nyomie Brown was more thoughtful: “Carnival has been the 1st day of July for 40+ years and should continue to be. Back when carnival started it’s was just music and food, suddenly everyone needs to apply for licences etc. carnival in September just won’t be right.”
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
