Carnival time at Brick Lane

Stave off those Carnival withdrawal symptoms with a trip down Brick Lane on Sunday: the area will be wearing its diversity on its sleeve in a one-day event celebrating its proud 2,000-year-old tradition of welcoming new Londoners.

As well as a craft market, pavement caf?'s, Asian drumming bands, Caribbean DJs, South American dancers, rickshaw rides, clowns and jugglers, there'll be a live performance by Bangladesh's most popular band, ARK, who'll be executing fusionist Bangla Rock numbers on the main stage alongside East End ragtime bands and Bengali dancers, while the popular Vibe Bar hosts DJs and live percussion sets.

As if that's not enough, the festival coincides with the launch of the Bangla Town International Curry Festival, with more than 100 restaurants taking part in a month-long celebration of Britain's favourite cuisine. Who needs Notting Hill?

Highlights include:

Bangladesh's most popular band 'ARK' flying in to the UK to headline the main stage and performing a completely new globalised mix of 'Bangla Rock' influenced from the likes of Eric Clapton and Jon Bon Jovi. Completing the programme on the main stage is a mixture of Asian fusion, Funky jazz, East End rag time and Bengali dance all pulled together by 'Skorpio' an Asian compere, rap artist and poet'.

Carnival at Brick Lane's trendy Vibe Bar with live music percussion and DJ's concentrating on the sounds of Latin America, Trinidad, New Orleans and the West Indies.

Ballymore Bangla night @ Old Spitalfields Market from 7pm-10pm. The market owners fund a special Brick Lane Festival extension with a classical line up of music and dance from some of the UK's top Bengali performers.

More than just a good curry - this year's BLF launches the international Banglatown curry festival with speciality chefs from India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh preparing authentic regional dishes in the curry house kitchens for the whole month of September.

Plus history tours, international dance on stage and street, park games, fortune telling and much more.

Sun, Brick Lane, Old Spitalfields Market E1, noon to 10pm, free. www.bricklanefestival.org
Tube: Aldgate East

Tim Marsh writes: Not sure if the Vibe Bar's architecture can be described as quite as grand as the V&A's - but if you still haven't got enough of those Carnival vibes, head here because they are hosting a stage for the brilliant Brick Lane Festival with live music, percussion and DJs playing all weekend both inside the bar and outside on the Budweiser-sponsored stage.

The big day is Sunday - expect 30,000 visitors in the area - but you can warm up for that with a Friday night of disco, dub, reggae and funk from DJ Skutta, 100% Dynamite, Crash & Burn and Jules Butterfield. Then comes the Vibe Bar's usual Saturday-nighter, Cafe Zunzun, featuring Brazilian-flavoured jazz, Sixties bossa, Latin funk and house from Aki and Koh. The Sunday session features the London School Of Samba, plus capoeira displays, with resident Plum Jam slipping into a jazz tip from early evening.