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WORDS Ashley Roach
PHOTOGRAPHY Jaydon Scott
August 2026 will joyously mark the 60th anniversary of one of London’s most anticipated open-access events: Notting Hill Carnival. The carnival has flourished over six long decades, acting as a constant participant and observer of London’s creative cultural heritage, shaped and fueled by the city’s deep and impactful Caribbean presence. Global financial collapse, fascist riots, embarrassing Prime Minister changes, racist fearmongering from the British press, and even a global pandemic. Notting Hill Carnival (never to be abbreviated to ‘carni’) has seen it all and weathered multiple storms.
What makes Notting Hill Carnival so special and dynamic? Arguably, the celebrations’ origins, and their political weight and cultural relevance, continuously lend legitimacy and vibrancy to London. It remains a mainstay in Caribbean culture and ritualistic practices that are deeply rooted in the liberation of our ancestors’ unwavering fight against enslavement, colonisation and empire; its deeper cultural meaning binds past, present and future generations and custodians of the practice, solidifying the indomitable spirit of Caribbean culture. This is, of course, deeply tied to our African ancestry of resistance and more broadly what is known as the Black Radical Tradition.
It remains a mainstay in Caribbean culture and ritualistic practices that are deeply rooted in the liberation of our ancestors’ unwavering fight against enslavement, colonisation and empire; its deeper cultural meaning binds past, present and future generations and custodians of the practice, solidifying the indomitable spirit of Caribbean culture.
As a diaspora, we owe a great debt to our elders, in particular to Claudia Jones, the communist organiser, journalist and founder of the West Indian Gazette and Afro-Asian Caribbean News, who brought the tradition to the UK as a consequence of her communist status and organising. Jones was deported from America under the guise of Red Scare McCarthyism; a propaganda tool that was used by the US empire to curtail communist organising. Being a Black working-class woman, Jones’ work is arguably foundational to what we currently understand as identity politics. Her work helped shape our understanding of the super-exploitation Black women workers experienced and belonging to three diasporas – Trinidadian, American and British. This further sharpened her position and materialist analysis of capitalism and imperialism. In response to the violence heavily present in Notting Hill and further cemented by the murder of Kelson Cochrane by fascists, Carnival signifies defiance in the heart of the empire and the driving force that pens cultures can be used for to achieve specific political aims.
The zeitgeist seemed to have shifted during Carnival’s 2025 iteration, perhaps due to a campaign spearheaded by Black history educator Kayne Kawasaki, illustrating the origins of Carnival as the result of Kelso Cochrane’s murder by racists in Notting Hill. The billboard helped demonstrate the importance of political history operating as an exercise of using space as a form of resistance. Patrons would have been greeted by the bold and impactful billboard showing Cochrane, and as equally important, the quote by one of Britain’s most recognisable Black organisers and intellectuals, Darcus Howe: “If there weren’t race riots in Notting Hill, I don’t believe that we would have had Notting Hill Carnival. If it wasn’t for the murder of Kelso Cochrane, Carnival wouldn’t have happened.” This quote is harrowing but also reinforces that the practice is one born out of necessity and resistance to the state’s fascist domination.
If there weren’t race riots in Notting Hill, I don’t believe that we would have had Notting Hill Carnival.
Darcus Howe
The taking up of space is used to assert the diaspora’s agency and dignity in a country that fundamentally seeks to extract value from our bodies, alongside making our dwelling unbearable. Speaking with comrade, academic, activist and agitator Janine Francios, we both remarked that Carnival 2025 felt different, and was one of the better years. The history that informed the practice seemed to be at the forefront of our collective consciousness, perhaps in part due to the campaign launched by Kawasaki. Nevertheless, something metaphysical was present. Kawasaki campaign speaks the long-established Caribbean tradition of Groundings; a Caribbean form of knowledge sharing and production, usually practised by the working classes and Rasta counter-culture present in the Caribbean. In order for future generations to understand the liberatory history that is deeply embedded in Carnival, there must be a collective effort to reanimate the history at every possible turn. Workshops, grounding and reasoning corners, public installations, and designated areas to help better communicate this history would then, in turn, help re-radicalise the tradition.
Notting Hill Carnival cannot simply be a commercial endeavour; it must, however, engage in collective forms of knowledge sharing and production to ensure its survival, especially considering fascistic forces that are gaining traction and power. To meet that power head-on, organisers must recentre Carnival’s anti-colonial history as Carnival is one of the principal outward manifestations of the black radical tradition.
Notting Hill Carnival cannot simply be a commercial endeavour; it must, however, engage in collective forms of knowledge sharing and production to ensure its survival, especially considering fascistic forces that are gaining traction and power.
To further understand the socio-political-cultural origins and meaning of Notting Hill Carnival, I spoke with Matthew Phillip, CEO of Notting Hill Carnival, who gave greater insight into the functioning and ongoing commitment of Carnival as an organisation. Our conversation was dynamic, funny, and personally, shifted my mood when concerning the current political landscape; leaving me feeling hopeful. Our discussion touched on many aspects of the diaspora’s love affair with carnival:
Ashley Roach: Carnival has gone through a lot and facism and Farage are on the rise, we have seen mass mobilisation of the right, attacks on our communities; carnival has survived global changes, austerity and Thatcherism, how do you think carnival will respond to the current political climate and what does that look like under a Farage government?
Matthew Phillip: Carnival comes from where it comes from; it sits on a fine line between a festival celebrating something and a protest; sometimes, both of those are blurred at carnival. Carnival isn’t owned by any individual; the people own Carnival.
Ashley Roach: My response to that would be .. Carnival is policed in a different way in comparison to majority white events… look at the use of facial recognition or authorisation of rubber bullets, the mass mobilisations we have been seeing; I believe under Farage, there would be intensification of that type of politics… if carnival stays, it may be under a different format and threat?
Matthew Phillip: A lot of people don’t see it, but Carnival, in its 60 years of existence, has always been a contested space. It’s been a challenge to make the event happen every year… so what started as a community saying “look, this is us, we’re here together, we’re here, we’re proud, and we’re not going anywhere”. It continued much in that way, and it’s really significant for us.
Matthew Phillip: I speak of the roots of Notting Hill Carnival being in the Caribbean, but the deep roots are in Africa. Of course, the drum is the product of this resistance and the ingenuity of a people who had the drum banned, as enslavers feared the enslaved were using it to communicate. This is what led to the creation of the steel band and symbolises a lot of people’s resistance.
The drum is the product of this resistance and the ingenuity of a people who had the drum banned, as enslavers feared the enslaved were using it to communicate.
Matthew Phillip
Ashley Roach: I spoke about the embedded liberatory aspects of carnival, and in particular, the percussion … the drum that connects our global diaspora. From the Caribbean to the continent and the Americas, the drum has guided the spirit of revolution and resistance for generations.
Ashley Roach: The drum helps connect the diaspora, as you have stated. The drum and carnival are active forms of storytelling and resistance.
Matthew Phillip: And that’s precisely why it’s fundamental that the event is on the streets. Carnival gives people two days to feel liberated. Some people in the Carnival community say it’s more important than Christmas! It’s liberating for people as they can share their culture on a grand scale. As well as carnival being a response to serious racism, it is fundamentally rooted in Black culture.
As fascism cultivates and incubates its power, I am concerned that the future of Notting Hill Carnival may be at stake. The right has a long-standing history of attacking cultural institutions by framing them as incompatible with British society or ‘Western values’. These aren’t merely dog whistles, but battle cries that are designed to rally a reactionary white supremacist base, one that will bolster a fictitious imagining of racial homogeneity or British wartime nostalgia. We have already seen what is potentially on the horizon if said forces come into power after the next general election: cutting diversity roles will ultimately mean bolstering and empowering the stranglehold that white supremacy will have over us. The war on woke has acted as a medium for channelling the machinations of white supremacists on both sides of the Atlantic, as we have seen it being used as an instrumental medium to recalibrate and normalise white supremacist talking points that are now readily parroted by our alleged ‘free press’. Perhaps, if Notting Hill Carnival were to be banned, the only reasonable assertion would be to hold it regardless and without the consent of the bourgeois classes to truly capture its revolutionary spirit.
During the run-up to Carnival, often taking place online, the Caribbean diaspora in the UK will often deliberate as to whether Carnival should exercise a degree of gatekeeping, such as the type of music that should be played:
Ashley Roach: I don’t know how ‘online’ you are, and perhaps this is more generational online discourse, but some people may argue that Carnival should strictly be soca, calypso, steel bands and mas, and less space should be granted to non-Caribbean acts and sound systems. Perhaps some commentators would charge some of the issues that impact Carnival with the prevalence and sometimes over-emphasis of Jamaican sound system culture… and perhaps the Brazilian house DJ should do their own thing…
Matthew Phillip: For years, you could say the Carnival’s uniqueness was the fact that we had the static sound system, which other Carnivals around the world have adopted… having been to Brazil… I think the Brazilian carnival is as important as it comes from the same place
Ashley Roach: Because it’s emancipatory.
Mathew Phillip: That history … we share that story.
Matthew Phillip: It’s been a big problem in Brazil, too… That’s the history that we share, so you should be able to come together and push back on that; every element of Carnival is important, from the steel pans to the costumes, the sound system, it’s all connected. We have captured data on this and seen that crowds evenly disperse amongst all the cell systems.
Ashley Roach: So you wouldn’t say no to garage or no to house at Carnival?
Matthew Phillip: This is part of the evolution of Black music. One of the reasons that Carnival remains so popular is because it is so organic. Sound systems are not dictated to by the Carnival Office – DJ’s, bands, etc are free to play what they like. The earlier music was inherently soca and calypso, and would even say this was a precursor to modern rap, but it all comes from a social commentary point of view.
Ashley Roach: Rio Carnival is emancipatory, and I believe that as a diaspora, we should be talking to each other. We should be borrowing and swapping with one another.
Ashley Roach: 2025 felt different; it definitely felt more charged, and perhaps this was due to the Kelso memorial campaign. So I said to myself, “Would there be any future plans to hold public speaking events during carnival to help re-radicalise the history of Carnival?”
Carnival, as we know it, is a product of thousands of people over the decades.
Matthew Phillip
Matthew Phillip: I am not sure about speaking at Carnival; however, that will be very much a part of our storytelling as we approach the 60th anniversary. Carnival, as we know it, is a product of thousands of people over the decades. As well as storytelling, there will also be a documentary so that we can try to enlighten people to that.
Ashley Roach: I think that history is really important, especially around the origins of Carnival, which helps to cement the tradition and what it means socially, politically and culturally.
The emancipation of elements of Carnival should be honoured and centred during the two days of celebration. While political turmoil is sure to intensify over the next few years, one thing is for sure: Carnival should always remain and belong to those who dared to fight against oppression.
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