St Pauls Carnival in Bristol has been cancelled once again. There was talk earlier in the year of the carnival going ahead, but recent news has confirmed that the carnival will not take place; organisers say that it will be back, bigger and better, in 2018.
The carnival, which in the past has attracted crowds of around 100,000 people, has now been cancelled for the third consecutive year. A new organisation, St Pauls Carnival Community Interest Company, made up of volunteers, is now in place. Councillor Carole Johnson, director of the organisation, said they did not have the time to arrange a 2017 carnival, but instead were concentrating on building ‘strong foundations’ for a 2018 event.
Johnson said that she wishes to bring the event closer to its roots, as she remembers it from her attendance as a child – a celebration of arts, music, dance and African Caribbean culture. As 2018 will mark the 50th anniversary of St Paul’s Carnival, it is hoped that waiting until next year will mean an event worthy of this landmark, that marks the historical importance of carnival to the city.
