Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Festival-goers dance in empty streets as virtual event draws to a close

A handful of revellers have been dancing through empty streets as the first virtual Notting Hill Carnival 2020 draws to a close.

The biggest street party in Europe moved online for the first time in its 54-year history after it was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The August Bank Holiday carnival normally attracts more than a million people to the streets of Notting Hill to celebrate London's African-Caribbean communities and culture.

However, this year the west London neighbourhood was eerily empty while an array of video and music was streamed online instead.

But a few lone dancers could still be seen donning colourful carnival costumes and dancing along the traditional procession route.

Djorn Fevrier, who has never missed a carnival, dressed up in a purple outfit on Monday and walked the route in Notting Hill for its last day.

Pilates instructor Juliana Campos also danced through the empty streets in a magnificent feather costume to celebrate the occasion.

The carnival kicked off with a countdown on the big screen at Piccadilly Circus on Friday night.

But the real festivities began at midday on Saturday and the parade - the biggest event of the festival - was also turned into a virtual event.

The incredible costumes and outfits that Londoners are accustomed to seeing on the streets of Notting Hill were presented in the online parade, featuring around 30 traditional street performance groups.

Virtual guests had the choice of 14 sound systems, with performers including King Tubby’s, Rampage and Volcana as well as performances from 15 esteel bands, carnival performers and 20 dancehall and soca artists.

All of the four channels of the virtual event – which cover Culture, Parade, Sound Systems and the Main Stage – were streamed on LetsGoDo.com as well as YouTube.

Matthew Phillip, the carnival’s executive director, said that despite the event being held online because of the Covid-19 outbreak, the celebration of black British life was vital, especially in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement.

He told the Guardian: “For more than 50 years carnival has been a statement that Black Lives Matter.

“That’s normal practice for us, it’s not something that we’re just jumping on now because of the current global climate and what’s going on. Carnival has been making these statements for 50 years.”

On Saturday, dozens of anti-racism protesters lay down in the road outside Notting Hill tube station to demonstrate against systemic racism.

The campaigners carried signs that read "The UK is not innocent" and "Enough is Enough" as they blocked oncoming traffic.