AS THE Ilminster Carnival celebrates its centenary this year, the Chard and Ilminster News looked back at previous editions of the event.
With the help of the carnival committee and the newspaper’s archive, we now also have information about the very first carnival, held in October 1922.
The following information comes from more recent editions of the event to remember how the town celebrated the carnivals.
The main focus will be on an online event that was organised when the carnival could not take place due to the Covid pandemic. In 2020, the carnival created a poll to find out the best entries between 2009 and 2019.
Information published on the Ilminster Carnival’s website said: “Each week from July to October in 2020, we created a poll to find out the best Ilminster Carnival entries from 2009 - 2019.
“Each week the poll featured the entries that came 1st in their class. The winner then went into a final poll where the winners from each year went head-to-head to determine the public's favourite Ilminster Carnival entry.
“This online event was part of our 2020 virtual Ilminster Carnival. We organised a variety of events and activities online as we were unable to hold our annual carnival procession due to COVID-19.”
A message on the Ilminster Carnival’s website read: “The procession of illuminated floats is part of an ancient tradition.
“The floats can be up to 100 feet long and covered in thousands of light bulbs.
“In 2022 we celebrate 100 years of Ilminster Carnival. We have lots planned to celebrate our centenary year so keep an eye out for updates.
“Many of the larger entries come from Ilminster, including Harlequin, Gemini, Xtreme, and “One Plus One, reflecting how important carnival still is to the local community.
“These magnificent entries consisting of Floats, Majorettes, Walkers, and Dance Troupes are the result of many months of hard work by the clubs.
“We hope to raise as much money as possible to go back into the town of Ilminster and to ensure the carnival continues for years to come.”
The photo gallery shows some photos of the winners from past editions that then took part in the online competition held in 2020.
All photos by Ilminster Carnival Committee.
More information about this year’s carnival and its centenary can be found here.
For more information about The Best of Ilminster Carnival Winners visit the carnival’s website.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here