A riot of colours and festivity marked the 2012 Notting Hill Carnival; glimpses from the two-day extravaganza

Held every August Bank Holiday since 1966, the two-day long Notting Hill Carnival is considered to be Europe's biggest street festival setting the streets of West London abuzz.

The festival originated in 1964 as a way for Afro-Caribbean communities to celebrate their own cultures and traditions and has since been celebrated every year, with display of an amazing array of sounds, colourful sights and social solidarity.

This year, too, thousands of revellers thronged the streets on August 26 and 27 to bask in the music, dancing and festivities that culminated in a colourful Caribbean-inspired parade.

Click on to catch glimpses of the just-concluded carnival.