BRIDGWATER Carnival 2020 is STILL going ahead - but not in the usual way...

Organisers of the town's biggest event - which sees around 100,000 people line the streets each year - have come up with a way to hold the event virtually - and answer one of carnival's most enduring questions at the same time.

That one question is simply, ‘what is the best entry ever to grace the streets of Bridgwater on carnival night’?

So, following the decision to postpone this year’s Bridgwater Carnival procession due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival Committee has revealed plans of a unique opportunity to answer this question once and for all on what should have been the 2020 Bridgwater Carnival night.

A ‘best of the best’ virtual carnival will be premiered and streamed online from Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival’s official website (https://live.bridgwatercarnival.org.uk/) at 6pm on Saturday, November 7.

The two-hour film will celebrate the best entries to have taken part in Bridgwater Carnival between 1982 and 2019 – the years when the carnival has officially been filmed - and those featured have been specially selected by the entries and carnivalites themselves.

Then, at the end of the virtual carnival broadcast, viewers and members of the public will be able to choose and vote on their own favourite ever entry in Bridgwater Carnival by downloading a special free app produced by SGS United Kingdom - Customs Services (Shepton Mallet) called ‘CarniApp’, which is readily available from the App Store or Google Play.

The voting window will close on November 30.

Dave Stokes, publicity director for Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival, said: “Safety is always our number one priority, and as reported before, due to the ongoing Covd-19 pandemic and associated restrictions, an illuminated carnival in the style we have been accustomed to in Bridgwater was not possible this year.

“So as a committee we looked at things we could safely do in order to continue the long-standing carnival tradition in Bridgwater in a very low key and symbolic way. And that’s when we came up with the idea of a ‘best of the best’ virtual carnival.”

The virtual carnival project is being kindly sponsored by EDF’s Hinkley Point B power station, and is being made technically possible through the expertise of Maniac Films and Somerset Web Services.

As with previous live streamings of the event, carnival organisers are hoping to raise money for the Bridgwater Carnival charity by asking viewers to make a donation when the ‘best of the best’ virtual carnival is broadcast on carnival night.

Immediately after the broadcast, the ‘best of the best’ virtual carnival will be available to rent for £5 or purchase for £10 on Bridgwater Carnival’s official Vimeo channel https://vimeo.com/ondemand/bgfc.

There will also be an official souvenir DVD costing £10 plus postage and packing (P&P) and 2021 calendars £5 (+P&P) available, and these can be ordered in advance now from Bridgwater Carnival’s online shop https://www.bridgwatercarnival.org.uk/product-category/shop/2020/.

“Over the years there have arguably been many worthy contenders on who should claim the title of being the best ever entry in a Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival procession, and answering this question has not been as easy as some might think," Dave added.

“So it is really exciting that we are able to provide a platform to settle this long standing debate once and for all.

"And now’s the time for everyone to start thinking about who you would vote for if you had to choose the best ever entry in Bridgwater Carnival, and then cast your vote before the year is out.”