August festivals: Notting Hill Carnival

A celebration of the local Caribbean community living in this part of London since the 1950s, the Notting Hill Carnival is now a world famous, explosion of reggae music and vibrant Caribbean culture in all its bright multi-coloured glory. There are steel-band competitions, a special children’s day celebration and the final three-mile parade of floats and carnival dancers dressed in spectacular costumes – and of course, there’s lots of delicious Caribbean food such as traditional Jamaican patties, jerk chicken and curry.