THE annual Pill carnival returns to Newport this bank holiday Monday after a two-year absence due to covid and promises to be the biggest yet.
Hundreds of people are expected to line the streets of Pill for the city’s carnival featuring a parade, funfair, music, and dancing.
This year the carnival celebrates the 60th anniversary of Jamaican independence from the UK.
The carnival will also celebrate our monarch Queen Elizabeth II and her 70 years of service on the throne.
Zion the lion will lead the procession. Photo: Urban Circle
Organiser Ann Barton is delighted with its return and says there is a lot to be celebrated.
She said: “We are going to put on a fantastic carnival, we have missed it the past two years. It will be nice to have something positive bringing people together after covid.
“Five floats dropped out last minute, but we still have fifteen floats. We have the carnival queen float which is dedicated to the queen for her 70 years in service to the country.
“It will be a fun family day out for people to enjoy as we have a fairground with a range of food stalls from different cultures to enjoy.
“We will have reggae music there and a Jamaican stall, with Zion the lion leading the parade procession.”
Two young dancers prepare for pill carnival video: Urban Circle
The parade will start at 1pm from the Pill Dock gates and will proceed down Alexandra Road, Commercial Road, Cardiff Road, Mendalgief Road before ending at the Pill playing field.
On the playing field there will be a big fairground with rides, different food and drink stalls with a stage providing live music.
This year Pill Carnival Committee have teamed up with Urban Circle to create ‘Zion the Lion’ which highlights the Caribbean culture.
Mohammed Fez, digital content producer at Urban Circle, is delighted at the final product created by a group of young people in the arts industry.
He said: “It was created to bring some pride into the Pill carnival, the lion is a figure of carnival Caribbean culture, so it is a representation of that.
“The lion will be parading at the front of the procession, behind that will be twelve smaller masked lions and scattered throughout the rest of the parade will one hundred smaller faced lions too.
Group of dancers on Lynettes summer vibe float in 2019
“We have a mobile sound system that will go through the procession which is pedal powered, then they end up at the field which will be a musical stop for DJs at the final carnival end point.
“I am very excited for the parade as we haven’t had a carnival in three years, and it will be a chance to bring some joy to the area of Pill. It’s a historic event which has been going for decades.
“The weather is forecast to be great so even better, as people are excited about its return.”
The youth work team of Urban Circle and G-Expressions will be at the carnival for dance, workshops, and activities
The Pill Carnival is set to return on Monday, August 29, kicking off with the parade on Alexandra Road at 1pm.
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