the big interview
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otting Hill doesn’t have Britain’s only carnival, you know. Other cities took note early on (Bristol has also hosted a major carnival since the ’60s) and, in more recent years, Bath has got in on the action too. Ours, however, has a slightly different flavour to big city carnivals, making it perhaps a little more like Notting Hill when it first started out as a hippy street party inspired by London Free School. That said, it’s got quite a lot in common with the Rio de Janeiro Carnival too. (There’s certainly a shared love of flamingo-pink outfits and high-tempo samba.) Each year there’s a different theme: 2018 brought together three of the biggest carnivals – Rio, the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival, and Mardi Gras – for a cacophony of fun and noise, while this year the theme is ‘Express Yourself.’ You’re a music guy at heart, aren’t you, Stuart?
I started out as a journalist before cutting my teeth booking gigs for my best friend, Craig Sutton – formerly The Flamenco Thief – who, fortunately for me, is a phenomenal guitarist. Between 2013 and 2014 we toured Europe, driving from Bath to Istanbul and back in a Vauxhall Astra estate, and when we weren’t on the road I’d return to Bath, where an old friend of mine, Robbie Verrecchia, was leading the charge for a carnival to be established in the city. The first year it did happen, I pitched in, building a pretty scrappy website, designing the event flyers and posters and booking some live bands, and by 2015 I had to give up the touring lifestyle due to ill health, and started programming live music for a
wonderful festival in Bruton called Farmfestival – and inevitably getting sucked further into the world of Bath Carnival. These days I spend most of my time trying to keep the carnival alive in Bath, splitting the remainder of my day between Farmfestival and Glastonbury, where I’m involved with the West Holts stage.
“The reason we have a carnival here in Bath is because enough people believe it needs one”
You make it sound like it’s hard to keep it going…
The reason we have a carnival here in Bath is because enough people believe it needs one, and are willing to make enormous sacrifices to make that happen. Back in 2013, a small group – notably Robbie – managed to make it a reality, and as a community we need to keep that spirit alive. We have more in common with each other than we have differences, and carnivals are a platform for us to come together and celebrate what we have in common – as well as what makes us unique. Funds, we’d imagine, are a perennial problem…
In 2013 that was definitely the biggest obstacle, and it’s still the case today – but on a much bigger scale. The project has gone from operating on a shoestring budget of around £3,000 to over £70,000 in just seven years – testament to its growing popularity, but also a reflection of the rapid rise in costs relating to delivering a free event for Bath. Years ago, local councils were in a position to help fund community carnivals, but these pots of money have all but disappeared. If we’re not careful, it could ultimately spell the end for the carnival in Bath. We’re guessing it’s always evolving, of course…
Stu’s having fun, but that rash around the eye still doesn’t seem to have cleared up…
That’s one of the beautiful things about it. We’re always taking inspiration from other carnivals, cultures and traditions around the world. In fact, this was the basis of last year’s theme: Carnival Cultures. Because we’re not limited to any one specific style of carnival, ours totally unique, a complete melting pot of cultures. For instance, Rio is synonymous with high-tempo samba, St Paul’s with the bass-heavy sound system culture, while at Mardi Gras in New Orleans they boast incredible marching brass bands. At Bath Carnival we celebrate all of this, and over the years we’ve explored other styles, such as maracatu drumming, steel pan floats, salsa, capoeria, moko jumbie, even Irish dance! That said, Bath Carnival was born out of the samba community in the city, and there’s a huge appetite for Brazilian percussion at the final event. A lot of the Bath Carnival team make the annual pilgrimage to Brazil to perform at the carnival there. For me, personally, I’ve enjoyed raising the standard of Party in the Park, bringing it in line with the rest of the event. It has now blossomed into a wonderful free World Music festival, with the diverse cultures featured in the procession now reflected on the main stage: everything from reggae to bossa nova, Afrobeat to Americana. And anyone can get involved?
That’s one of our key values. Throughout the year our carnival artists engage with a huge range of community groups, local schools, special needs organisations and homeless charities, as well as the general public. For the past few years, we’ve had an LGBT+ bloc in the procession, and in 2017 we helped launch the first ever Bath Pride in the city. Indeed, the Carnival is open to everyone, with one simple, important rule: that the procession should only be used to promote unity, and to celebrate the diversity here in the city.
28 I BATH LIFE I www.mediaclash.co.uk