WITH a theme of Animals on Parade, this Saturday’s Colchester Carnival promises to be a wild and fanciful feast for the eyes.


There are two main parts to the mammoth event, which has been organised by the Colchester Round Table and Colchester Ladies Circle.


The first is the fun day staged in Upper and Lower Park which kicks off from 11am and will run through to 8pm.


With fun activities ranging from zorbing, a bug zoo and karting there’ll be plenty to keep little and big kids amused.


A fusion of cultures will be created in the Tent of World Dreams on Hollytrees Lawn, where entertainment will include Napalese, Indian, Boudica Samba and Bollywood Dancing.
 

The bandstand will include a multitude of performances to suit all tastes, including the St Michael’s community primary school choir, the Overflow Gospel Choir and the Harwich Brass band.
 

And that’s all aside from the main event - the 3pm procession leaving from Abbey Fields.
 

More than 50 floats, vehicles and foot entries are set to take part to make the route through the town centre to Castle Park truly buzzing.
 

This year’s procession theme of Animals on Parade has been chosen to celebrate the 50th birthday of Colchester Zoo.
 

Most of the entries will either be dressing according to the theme or decorating their floats in a wild way.
 

John Godfrey, carnival chairman, said: "Carnival day is the part that the public get to see but it's the culmination of months of preparation.


“Myself and the whole team behind the carnival are volunteers and I'm proud of what they've managed to achieve during their spare time and around their busy working lives.
 

“In what is our third year, I really do hope everyone that comes along to the Castle Park family day and the procession has a great time. We can't please everyone all of the time but we've tried to ensure that we've got a good variety that we have something for the majority."
 

Colchester Carnival has been sponsored by Weston Homes and is supported by The Daily Gazette.


Profits from this year’s carnival will be distributed to local good causes in the form of grants.