Vibrant scenes from London's 50-year-old Notting Hilll Carnival

30 Aug 2016 11:19 AM IST

Hundreds of thousands of revellers took to the streets to celebrate London's Notting Hill Carnival.

The carnival traces its roots back to Caribbean music festivals in the 1950s (Photo: AP)
\"take to the streets using song and dance to ventilate all the pent-up frustrations\" was the initial idea (Photo: AFP)
Rhaune Laslett started it when Notting Hill was considered a slum and called the first carnival, featuring a steel band, \"a celebration of poverty\" (Photo: AFP)
With close to a million people attending, the carnival is now said to be the world's second biggest after the one in Rio (Photo: AP)
In the 1970s the carnival often had a political tinge and reflected racial tensions (Photo: AP)
The carnival proper started in 1966 when local resident Rhaune Laslett organised a \"jump up\" for local children in Notting Hill (Photo: AP)
Feathered dancers, steel bands and earth-shaking sound systems featured in the vibrant celebration of British Caribbean culture (Photo: AP)

The carnival traces its roots back to Caribbean music festivals in the 1950s (Photo: AP)

Hundreds of thousands of revellers took to the streets to celebrate London's Notting Hill Carnival.