Lawrence Noel is credited with bringing the first costumes to the Notting Hill Carnival, in 1973. Grew up in Trinidad. Lawrence, his wife Joan, and the family continued to make mas (masquerade) costumes at their home in Leytonstone, and in 2002 their son Roland took over the responsibility. Their costumes have also appeared on Top of the Pops and leading the 2002 Golden Jubilee parade on the Mall.
The BBC article provides an insight into the work involved: "Months of organisation and planning go into running his Trinbago Carnival Club and preparing for Europe's largest street festival each year. Every week club members meet at the family's house to plan ahead and help create costumes. They start making the first prototypes in May. As each one is made, created from a wire skeleton which is covered with fabric, they are handed to performers to save on space in the house. It can be an expensive business, and performers are expected to contribute something towards the cost of the costume."
This photo is captioned "The couple have been involved in carnival for 30 years".
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