The Leeds Carnival, also called the Leeds West Indian Carnival or the Chapeltown Carnival, is the longest running West Indian

British African-Caribbean community

The British African Caribbean communities are residents of the United Kingdom who are of West Indian background and whose ancestors were primarily indigenous to Africa...

 carnival in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, having been going since 1967. The carnival is held in the Chapeltown

Chapeltown, West Yorkshire

Chapeltown is a suburb of north-east Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England, and is the centre of the city's British African-Caribbean community. It is approximately one mile north of Leeds city centre...

 and Harehills

Harehills

Harehills is an inner-city area of east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is approximately north east of Leeds city centre. Harehills is situated between the A58 and the A64 .- Overview :...

 parts of Leeds

Leeds

Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...

 every August bank holiday

Bank Holiday

A bank holiday is a public holiday in the United Kingdom or a colloquialism for public holiday in Ireland. There is no automatic right to time off on these days, although the majority of the population is granted time off work or extra pay for working on these days, depending on their contract...

 weekend. 150,000 people were estimated to have attended the 2009 event.

It is a 3-day event, climaxing in a carnival procession on Bank Holiday Monday, which starts and finishes in Potternewton Park

Potternewton

Potternewton is a suburb and parish of north-east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, situated between Chapeltown and Chapel Allerton, mainly in the LS7 postcode. It is between Scott Hall Road on the West and Roundhay Road on the East, with Harehills Lane on the North...

 in Chapeltown. A parade of floats and dancers makes its way along Harehills Avenue, down Roundhay Road in Harehills, along Barrack Road and back along Chapeltown Road to the park, where a wide range of stages and stalls provide entertainment and refreshment for carnival-goers. Since 2005 this event has been covered by the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 station 1xtra in conjunction with Notting Hill Carnival

Notting Hill Carnival

The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual event which since 1964 has taken place on the streets of Notting Hill, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea , London, UK each August, over two days...

.

Carnival Queen and King

The Carnival Queen is chosen on the Friday before, and in 2008 for the first time a Carnival King was chosen: they were Davina Williams and Tyrone Henry. The 2009 King and Queen were Tony and Nicole Isles, who are father and daughter.

History

Its founders were Arthur France, then a Leeds University student from Saint Kitts

Saint Kitts

Saint Kitts Saint Kitts Saint Kitts (also known more formally as Saint Christopher Island (Saint-Christophe in French) is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean...

, who is longstanding Chairman, and Ian Charles, who was still Co-ordinator in 2008. Arthur France proposed what would be the first Caribbean-style outdoor carnival organized by people of Caribbean origin in Europe. As the local Caribbean association was not forthcoming, he formed his own committee, and Ian Charles's home became a factory for costumes. Five contestants entered the first Carnival Queen Show, won by Vicky Seal as the Sun Goddess. They joined bands and dancers in a procession from Potternewton Park to Leeds Town Hall

Leeds Town Hall

Leeds Town Hall was built between 1853 and 1858 on Park Lane , Leeds, West Yorkshire, England to a design by architect Cuthbert Brodrick.-Background:...

, where a steel band competition was followed by a dance. About a thousand people attended. The Leeds performers were invited to participate in the Notting Hill Carnival

Notting Hill Carnival

The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual event which since 1964 has taken place on the streets of Notting Hill, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea , London, UK each August, over two days...

 later the same year.

In the 1970s a procession route was established from Potternewton Park and back again via the city centre. The steel bands were on human-powered wheeled platforms. In 1977 crowds of 10,000 were reported for a largely trouble-free 3-day event (in contrast to the Notting Hill Carnival of the same time).

The 1980s established a shorter route around Chapeltown and Harehills, and also sponsorship by local organizations. A Carnival Prince and Princess (children 3 to 13) were also chosen. Attendance reached 40,000 in 1988.

In 1990 the Carnival was essentially trouble-free, but 3 people died in violence in the area afterwards. The decade saw increased professionalism by the now very experienced Carnival Committee and the introduction of lorries to carry bands. 1997 was the 30th anniversary and Arthur France received the MBE

MBE

MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...

for his work with the local community. Arthur France's daughter is now a teaching assistant at St. Peters CofE Primary School

2007 was the 40th anniversary, with crowds of 100,000 for the first time. It was also the 25th anniversary of the Leeds West Indian Centre, and the bicentenary of the abolition of transatlantic slavery. Ian Charles also received the MBE.

External links

• www.leedscarnival.co.uk Leeds Carnival Organizers' website
• BBC NEWS Leeds enjoys 41st Carnival
• BBC image galleries Pictures of 2008 Carnival