Revellers have been urged to stay off the streets as the Notting Hill carnival moves online for the first time in its 54-year history. Notting Hill carnival may be cancelled – but it lives on in my heart | Candice Carty-Williams Read moreMatthew Phillip, the executive director of Notting Hill carnival, said people should enjoy the event “at home safely” in order to help protect the future of the carnival. He said cancelling the carnival had not been an easy decision: “We did it in the interest of safety, so we would urge people to stay at home, stay away from the streets of Notting Hill. “If they really do love carnival, they wouldn’t come on to the streets of carnival. They would want to protect it in the same way that we have as organisers and the carnival community.”Singer-songwriter Don-E said he was “gutted” about the carnival being cancelled as he had been attending since the 1980s, but was pleased to be part of the virtual event, dubbed Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas.

Source: The Guardian August 29, 2020 13:18 UTC