The magazine of the art-form of the photo-essay “A free, really high quality photo-essay magazine.  Fabulous!” Stephen Fry. British actor, writer and film & documentary maker Aug 2013 BACK ISSUE Carnivals have their roots firmly in history, are found all over the world in one form or another and almost certainly pre-date Christianity.  In Britain, the tradition of the town carnival is thought to have begun during the Victorian era when most towns in the country would organise a yearly festival of revelry. In the small town of Teignmouth on the Devon coast, the carnival is held each year in July and originated around the time that Isambard Kingdom Brunel opened the new railway station in 1846.  These early carnivals were linear processions of different bands, dancers and brightly coloured, horse-drawn floats filled with sailors, ships' masters, fishermen, harbour masters and other local businesses that would make their way through the town watched by large crowds of local inhabitants. Today, although the floats tend to be pulled by combustion engine, the music is mostly piped from loud speakers and the dancing girls are probably more scantily dressed, little has changed in nearly 170 years.  Home-grown characters and tourists on their summer holidays line the streets, waving flags and cheering as the local churches, businesses, beauty queens, marching bands and dancers all vie for attention, and the noisy procession weaves it's way slowly through the streets of Teignmouth for yet another year's carnival. by Damian Bird Carnival Queen. The transformation from child to elf. Nurse float. Carnival revellers. Representatives from one of Teignmouth’s churches. Hallelujah! The heaven and hell float. Angel. Demon. Carnival dancing troupe. Flying dancer. Dog guru. Seeing the light.  Air dolphin. Midsummer night. Bug chat. Menagerie. Belly-dancers pass the Pier. Sea pageant.