Notting Hill Carnival crowds defy London rain for annual celebration

LONDON (Reuters) - London’s famous Notting Hill Carnival transformed the streets into a sea of colour and sound on Sunday as revellers joined one of Europe’s largest open-air parties in their thousands despite heavy rain in the British capital.

The carnival featured steel bands, dance troupes and elaborate floats, with many among the crowds hurling paint and coloured powder at each other while dancing on the city’s streets.

A celebration of Afro-Caribbean community, the two-day event has its roots in a 1964 London procession to bring people together despite racism and a lack of opportunity that blighted day-to-day life.

Police deployed metal-detecting arches to counter potential knife crime and have been additional stop-and-search powers at this year’s carnival based on intelligence and after a spate of violent crime in London over the past week.