The festival was called Love Albert Road and it was the first of two that would be held on consecutive years before rising policing costs closed it down. As you can see from my photographs of the street event there was no sign of any police and we didn’t witness any trouble there at all during either year that we visited. Read into that what you will.

Part of the festivities along Albert Road included a parade celebrating Thailand and its culture. It’s interesting to note many years later that this was quite likely my first encounter with any Thai people at all and only a month and half after this event I would be visiting Bangkok as part of my honeymoon.

We spent about an hour in Albert Road walking along the length of the closed-off street three or four times, enjoying the different bands performing music along the pavements and getting some good Portsmouth and Southsea people-watching done too. We had a pleasant enough time that we’d go back the following year too.