Romfest - Sunday 26 September 2010

A colourful carnival procession, led by a life-size mechanical steel elephant, will be making its way through Romford Market Place this month as part of Romfest, an event to celebrate Havering's Cultural Olympiad and the London Week of Peace.

More than 200 youngsters from across Havering will be taking part in the procession, which has been put together by arts company Emergency Exit Arts and the Grand Union Youth Orchestra.

Entitled 'Carnival to Silk Road', it will bring together hundreds of local people and will feature elements of world music, dance and design from Caribbean, Chinese, Indian and Eastern European cultures, culminating with a performance on the main stage.

Dancers and musicians from Abbs Cross and Frances Bardsley Schools will join the procession, as will primary school children and around 30 youngsters who took part in a summer carnival club at Fairkytes Arts Centre, where they prepared their carnival costumes and learnt music and dance routines.

Read more here from LB Havering's website

Ideas for things to do in September

Here's a round up of some things to do in September:

From Friday 3 to Sunday 5, (and the first weekend of every month) at the South Bank by the Royal Festival Hall, the Real Food Market takes place. There may also be a Real Food Festival later in the month (23 to 26).

From Thursday 9 to Sunday 12, the third annual Kings Place Festival takes place (near Kings Cross). This is the only event I’m mentioning in this post that costs. One hundred 45-minute concerts in four days, including classical, contemporary, blues, avant-garde, world, folk, jazz and spoken word. Each concert costs £4.50 online (check website for discounts available) and performances will run from morning to midnight. New at the festival this year: the Rotunda's Food Market (see website for more details).

Also, on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12, there is the Thames Festival. To pick out just two events: on Saturday, the Feast on the Bridge takes place on Southwark Bridge. On Sunday, there are fireworks between Waterloo and Blackfriars bridges. Click those links to find out more ... and to find out about much more going on at the festival besides!

On Saturday 18 and Sunday 19, there is the Open House London weekend. Over 700 buildings new and old all over London celebrate design excellence by opening their doors at no charge to the public, all within 48 hours. There are also neighbourhood walks, architects’ talks, cycle tours and more. If you are at all interested, you should be able to get a guide from your local library. You can also check out locations online.

A bit more Fairtrade coverage on TV

Here's one way to get some good Fairtrade coverage on TV:

http://www.battlefront.co.uk/12th-campaigner/play-fair-pay-fair/

The BBC looks at the benefits of Fairtrade chocolate

From the BBC website earlier this week:

It has been 18 months since Cadbury began using only Fairtrade cocoa to make its Dairy Milk bars.

The Fairtrade system means farmers get a premium for their cocoa, and the price they are paid never falls below a living wage.

So, what has this change meant for cocoa farmers in Ghana and what does the future hold after the Kraft takeover of Cadbury?

David Gregory has been finding out.