Celebrate carnival at home this bank holiday

This weekend we would have been celebrating Europe’s biggest street party- the Notting Hill Carnival. Like so many of our national events, it sadly has been cancelled due to Covid-19.

We are a hospitality business, and we love a party! We were determined not to miss out on this carnival celebrating Caribbean culture. So #bmfamily 💜💚 to the rescue. I asked my creative colleagues, Sunil, Pete and Daryll for ideas and ways to recreate the Notting Hill Carnival vibe at home.

I haven’t attended the carnival since I was young, my memories are of exotic street food, pulsating music, dressing up, dancing and most of all having fun. We’ve got all bases covered so you can create your own carnival at home. Have a party with our music playlist from Sunil Varma (AKA Vinyl DJ) and street food recipes from Pete Redman and Daryll Young.

Food

Carnival food is bursting with colour and flavour, lots of spices, hand-held and easy to eat. From Jerk chicken and curried goat to rice, beans and ackee, there is something to tickle everyone’s taste buds. Pete and Daryll have created a delicious recipe for Jerk Pork Bun – sometimes described as the culinary equivalent of a mouthful of fireworks!

Drink

Carnival drinks taste of sunshine, with lots of rum, coconut and fruit juices. Try our recipe for a classic Caribbean Rum Punch. It’ a celebration of the Caribbean’s rich history as the birthplace of Rum.

Variation: You can replace the Pineapple and Orange juice with 4 cups of Passion Fruit juice, or leave out the rum to create a mocktail. You can use more than one rum brand. Usually, darker rums are used for drinking straight because of their more distinctive flavours. Light rums are used in cocktails like Piña Coladas, Mojitos or any other rum-based tropical drinks. However, it’s your drink- make it how you like it to taste!

Music

Create the carnival music atmosphere with our Carnival playlist specially created by DJ and chef Sunil Varma. You can find it on iTunes.

Escravos de Jo (feat celia Vaz & dom Um Romao) 

Friends from Rio

Living Carioca

Antonio Tony Graci

Fast Wine

Machel Montano

So Long

Nadia Batson

Everybody needs love

Slim Smith

Al Capone 

Prince Buster

Pra Vida Inteira 

Silva & ivete Sangalo

Mas Que Nada

Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66

Carnaval Loco

M. Aaron Heick

Girls of Ipanema

Scott Christian Marzullo

Why not add your own sound too with some home-made instruments!

Costumes

To complete the carnival vibe, remember to dress up. If you can’t get a costume, keep it simple and sparkly with face paint, glitter and some feathers to make a headdress. There are some great face painting ideas on Pinterest. If you are feeling even more creative here’s a video showing how to make a feather head dress.

Digital carnival

For the first time, Notting Hill Carnival will be digital. Four channels will stream performances and entertainment over the bank holiday weekend. It starts with a live countdown on the large screen at Piccadilly Circus.

When special events are cancelled it really makes us appreciate the things we miss. We look forward to celebrating next year’s carnival when it’s back after coronavirus. Everyone in the #bmfamily wishes you a great bank holiday weekend.