“Oyster shells” by Gerry Atkinson
Carnival is an ancient art form with centuries of tradition behind it
by
The Whitstable carnival dates back to 1897, the Rio carnival to 1723, the Venice carnival to 1162.
Some European carnivals are even older. In Eastern Europe elaborately costumed men perform rituals intended to drive away evil spirits. The costumes cover the body and include wooden masks of animals, with large bells attached to the belt. Around new year and before Lent the men will walk and dance through the villages scaring away the spirits to ensure a good harvest. Some people estimate this particular tradition may date back 6,000 years.
The idea of a procession in which a cast of mythological characters parade through the streets can be traced back to the Triumphal processions in Imperial Rome, when the Emperor would lead a parade to celebrate his military victories. The gods of the Roman pantheon would attend in the form of statues mounted on carts. There were also parades and celebrations honouring specific gods, such as the Saturnalia or the Festival of Vesta. Later, in Christian times, the parades became more plebeian in nature and the gods were replaced by saints and figures from Biblical and popular mythology.
But it’s not just confined to the West. Similar parades take place in India, in South East Asia, and throughout the far East, only the gods are figures from the Indian and Chinese pantheons. You occasionally see such parades in the UK, when Radha Krishna Temple devotees bring out their effigies of Krishna, suitably decked out in colourful finery, and usually characterised by a pair of very large eyes. The devotees will dance and sing beside the carriage, which is decked with flowers, to the accompaniment of drums and cymbals.
I suspect that such parades are as old and as widespread as humanity itself and are the natural expression of our humanity in all its wild exuberance. I imagine that wherever humans have trod we’ve created festivals to celebrate our humanity and that, very often, this has taken the form of a street parade.
Magical Act
Carnival is a magical act. Magic is the entry into our ordinary world of disruptive imagination. The point of carnival is to disrupt. We disrupt the traffic. We disrupt the town. Everything comes to a standstill as carnival passes by. We follow a predetermined route through the main drag, where the passing traffic from Canterbury and Herne Bay usually flows. We seal off the streets and make them our own. The cars and lorries and buses that normally fill our roads are banished and replaced by these fantastically adorned floats, full of figures from the imagination. We invite the public to join us in our observances. We invoke the spirit of playfulness. We bring joy and laughter to the streets. We bring our town to life.
So far our carnival has lasted 128 years. It has survived two world wars and a pandemic. Let’s hope that it can continue spreading its magic for another 128 years at least.
On the day…
The 128th anniversary CARNIVAL takes place on Saturday 2nd August 2025. Assemble along Pier Avenue and Northwood Road from 3-3.30pm.
HQ for the day will be at 15 Pier Avenue, in a gazebo in the garden.
LATE ENTRIES are accepted on the day till 4.00pm, but it will help to register early with the entry form in the program or on the website: https://whitstablecarnival.co.uk. Sign in at HQ and then find your place in the procession.
JUDGING starts at 4.15 prompt. All entries must be in position by 4.00.
CARNIVAL ENTRIES: please approach along Northwood Road from its junction with Tower Parade/Tankerton Road (where the laundrette is).
COLLECTING TINS and collecting buckets will be available from HQ.
THE PROCESSION starts at 5.30, passing Tankerton Circus at 5.40, Tower Parade 5.50, the Duke of Cumberland 6.10 and the East Kent at 6.30. These times are approximate. You should be at your vantage point early to get a good view. Please don’t let children run into the road as the procession passes.
PLEASE DO NOT THROW COINS as this has been known to damage property and is one of the reasons carnival has been less well attended in recent years. If you would like to make a donation, please put your coins in the collecting tins as they pass. All money received on the day will go to our participating charities.
ALTERNATIVELY you can DONATE via the QR Code to the right. Off The Wall Club is managing these donations for Whitstable Carnival.
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