Rain fails to stop visitors from enjoying the 2018 Felixstowe Carnival

Thousands of people turned out to enjoy the sights and sounds of Felixstowe Carnival – despite suffering a washout on the third day.

East Anglian Daily Times: Felixstowe Carnival procession. Picture: www.visitfelixstowe.org.uk Felixstowe Carnival procession. Picture: www.visitfelixstowe.org.uk (Image: Picture: www.visitfelixstowe.org.uk)

The event, which has been celebrated in the town for more than 60 years, started on Friday night with a Proms Night at the Beachside Events Arena.

It featured a number of swing bands, including the 22-piece Essential Sounds Big Band and the Three Chordettes.

Floats brought a splash of colour to the parade on Saturday as the main procession rolled into the town, setting off from Colneis Road during the afternoon.

Decorated to match this year’s Pantomime theme, the floats made their way through the town towards the seafront – much to the delight of crowds.

Members of the Britannia Pipe and Suffolk Samba bands, alongside majorettes, were among those taking part in the carnival’s pantomime.

Carnival royalty – including 17-year-old queen Sophia and her three princesses Evie, Roxy, and Olivia kept an eye over proceedings.

Despite several weeks of scorching temperatures, on Sunday the weather took a turn for the worse – leaving organisers to make the tough decision to cancel the final day of the carnival.

Chairman Julie Bellamy said: “We had quite a lot of rain in the morning and the winds got stronger and stronger.

“We had to take down some of the temporary structures we had put up and it was not safe to set the fireworks up.

“The decision has been made with everyone’s safety in mind.”

Despite the rain Mrs Bellamy said this year’s event had seen the biggest procession in the carnival’s history – and that spectators believed it was the best parade they had seen for a long time.

“Everyone had a wonderful time,” she added.

The carnival takes around 12 months to plan and is manned completely by volunteers. Organisers are now considering setting up a crowdfunding page to make up some of the potentially lost donations – and to keep the event running into next year.

A statement on their Facebook page read: “We have been asked by the public about the opportunity of setting up a JustGiving page for donations, this is something we will arrange in the near future for those who wish to make a donation to allow future carnival events to continue to take place.”

East Anglian Daily Times: The rain held off for the 2018 Felixstowe Carnival Parade on Saturday 28 July. The Pantomime theme brought much fun and colour to the procession. Picture: Tim Garrett-Moore The rain held off for the 2018 Felixstowe Carnival Parade on Saturday 28 July. The Pantomime theme brought much fun and colour to the procession. Picture: Tim Garrett-Moore (Image: (c) copyright newzulu.com)

East Anglian Daily Times: The rain held off for the 2018 Felixstowe Carnival Parade on Saturday 28 July. The Pantomime theme brought much fun and colour to the procession. The rain held off for the 2018 Felixstowe Carnival Parade on Saturday 28 July. The Pantomime theme brought much fun and colour to the procession. (Image: (c) copyright newzulu.com)