New Year's Eve Winter Carnival

New Year's Eve is a holiday known to many as a time to get drunk with friends and family, a time to reflect on the past twelve months and prepare for the year ahead. It would be fair to say that my start to 2014 didn’t necessarily go off with a bang, but rather with a fizz, as I topped up the coke in my glass and prepared for a night in on the sofa. For some reason I just wasn’t feeling up to going out and welcoming in the New Year with a hangover, but I did make sure I waved farewell to 2013 by attending the New Year's Eve Winter Carnival.*

The New Year's Eve Winter Carnival is an annual event that has taken over Newcastle City Centre for the past seven years. After changing it’s format three years ago, this free family event now celebrates the last day of every year with an impressive parade through the streets and a dazzling finale of fireworks. Over 40,000 people turned up to this year’s event to help spread their festive cheer.

Carol Bell, Head of Culture and Major Events at Newcastle Gateshead Initiative explained that the carnival is: “based on nordic traditions, so it is sort of loosely celebrating the North East’s connection with Northern Scandinavia.” 

To display that connection throughout the parade, the carnival included a whole host of mythical creatures from flying fish to Black Elves and Odin’s wolves, which marched through the streets of Newcastle much to the delight of the crowds. Around three hundred people take part in the parade, with almost all of the participants coming from the Newcastle area.

Stephen Bell, a volunteer from Newcastle said: “I was here last year and I enjoyed it so much I decided to come back this year. I didn’t expect to be part of the serpent again, I thought it might have been a different role but I’m quite happy to do it again. It’s just great being around the different colours, the atmosphere and everything is fantastic. You get a massive buzz.”

The carnival is organised by Carol and her Newcastle Gateshead Initiative colleagues. They also work with independent companies such as Manchester based production company Walk The Plank, alongside Bravura Carnival Arts who are responsible for the costumes, as well as freelancers and community groups. 

As Newcastle Gateshead Initiative are a public private partnership, the carnival is funded with help from both Newcastle and Gateshead Councils, 170 local businesses and they often receive additional funds from the Arts Council to help with new commissions and taster sessions.

It’s clear how much hard work goes into every aspect of this event, and while the parade may only travel a short distance from Monument to the Civic Centre via Northumberland Street, it certainly captures the crowd and boosts community spirit. The world serpent and fire-breathing ship were just two of my favourite aspects of the parade, but nothing prepared me for the firework finale. Having previously been described to me as a “small” firework display by Carol herself, I was taken aback by the breathtakingly powerful fireworks which shot into the air in time to the music for around ten minutes. If parades aren’t your thing, you should at least come down for the community vibe and the fireworks.

Marian and Alan Bates of Gateshead said: “It [the event] was fabulous and better than last year. It is suited for all ages from young to old.”

While the New Year's Eve Winter Carnival is an early event kicking off at 5pm in order to cater for families, it is one of the biggest free New Year's Eve Celebrations. It solidifies that people want to celebrate the forthcoming year, and gives them the option to celebrate with there community before heading out to bars and restaurants or returning home. Carol said: “I think the event creates a sense of pride and the 300 people that are in it just have a fantastic time - it helps in terms of their confidence. I think it shows that this is a great city and there are lots of innovative things going on that will continue for the rest of 2014.”

While there are no concrete plans in place for next years celebrations, I think that the New Year's Eve Winter Carnival does a fantastic job of portraying the talent we have in the North East and is a great event for anyone looking to celebrate. I’d even go as far as labelling it a “must-see”, and I’m even considering volunteering for 2014’s event just so I can witness it all over again.

Words: 775

*this post is for a university project