THE PIONEERS OF NOTTING HILL CARNIVAL PLAQUE

In 1965, over the August Bank holiday weekend, three musicians from Trinidad embarked on a 30 minute walk in West London which changed the history of the capital forever!

There was nothing unusual about this walk led by a man named Russell Henderson, who had been invited to attend a weeklong multi-cultural fayre organised by a local activist named Rhaune Laslette. The only difference was Henderson, and the two musicians accompanying him, Sterling Betancourt and Ralph Cherrie, were expert steelpan instrumentalists. During their historic walk, people started coming out of their houses to listen to the quality of the music being played by these three calypsonians.

Unbeknownst to these pan-playing pied pipers, they had just lit the spark, and led the first processional parade for the phenomenon called the Notting Hill Carnival.

At noon, on 24th August 2018, to kick off the August Bank Holiday Carnival Weekend, Henderson, Betancourt, and Cherrie, along with 67 other Carnival Pioneers, were honoured with a blue plaque. The only difference was this plaque was the world's largest blue heritage plaque ever made!

The Notting Hill Carnival Pioneers Plaque is temporarily based at the Venture Community Association, 103A Wornington Road, W10 5YB, the site of Britain's oldest Pan Yard (built in the 1950s).