All our photos from Stowmarket Carnival 2025
The 62nd Stowmarket Carnival brought colour, music and community spirit to the town with thousands enjoying three days of family-fun.
Despite some wet weather, the carnival organisers delivered the event from Friday to Sunday which featured a fun fair, food and drink stalls, a car show of more than 120 classic and modern vehicles along with live music performances and the popular carnival procession which travelled through the town centre, from the Meadlands to the Recreation Ground.
Sunday concluded with a Carnival Praise service — featuring music from Stowmarket Concert Band, topped off by a delayed fly-past by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Lancaster Bomber at 5.50pm.
Simon Burton, carnival chairman, said: “As a committee, we love the carnival and we do it to make people happy.
“I give my utmost thanks to all who continue to support Stowmarket Carnival — including Stowmarket Town Council and Mid Suffolk District Council, local businesses, the general public and most importantly the entire carnival committee, all the helpers and their families.
“The carnival is great thanks to these people.”
This year’s theme was ‘colourful carnival’ and Stowe Veterinary Group scooped both ‘Best in Show’ and ‘Best Performance’ for their vibrant float which featured inflatable animals, multi-coloured bunting and eye-catching costumes.
William Barrow, practice manager, said: “I am so proud of our beautiful float which truly captured the carnival spirit.
“Well done to our multi-talented team, which helped to design, craft and showcase our float.
“We would like to extend a huge ‘thank you’ to everyone who came to the carnival and supported us on the procession route. It was lovely to see so many familiar faces enjoying the event and waving our flags.”
A total of 12 charities and community groups hosted fund-raising stalls free of charge during the weekend.
The carnival committee is made up of around 20 volunteers who are already looking into plans for next year’s event, to be held on July 17 to 19.
If you would like to get involved and join the carnival team, the AGM is being held at Red Gables at 10.30am on Saturday, September 27.