This Sunday, the Angel Canal Street Festival returns to City Road Basin, bringing together thousands of local people for what organiser Sasha Keir describes as “the last hurrah of the summer”. 

Sasha has been involved with the festival for three decades. What started as a small garden party has grown into one of Islington’s most loved community events, attracting around 4,000 to 5,000 visitors every year. 

“When it started, there were concerns about City Road Basin being lost to development,” Sasha explains. “We wanted to give the basin a purpose.” Early festivals featured a jazz band and a handful of stalls, but the money raised helped establish organisations including the Islington Boat Club and the Angel Community Canal Boat Trust, which continues to provide opportunities and holidays for disadvantaged children. 

Today, the festival remains proudly community focused. Sasha compares it to a traditional village fete, but in the heart of London. 

“It’s completely inclusive and as free as possible. There’s something for every age group, from a play area for toddlers to a climbing tower for teenagers, Punch and Judy shows, local charities and community stalls.” 

One of the festival’s most distinctive features is its atmosphere. With acoustic performances rather than amplified music, it offers a relaxed, family-friendly alternative to many large-scale events. It’s also a significant day for local businesses, with nearby pubs and traders enjoying some of their busiest trading of the year. 

For Sasha, the festival is a celebration of London’s waterways and the community that surrounds them. 

“A lot of people first came when they were children and are now bringing their own grandchildren,” she says. “The Regent’s Canal is a green corridor running through central London, and the festival helps people discover activities they didn’t know existed, like aquatic sports and boating.” 

The event also embraces traditional English culture in an inclusive and welcoming way. Visitors can expect everything from Pearly Kings and Queens to maypole dancing, reflecting working-class traditions that Sasha believes deserve celebrating. 

As a costume designer and business owner, Sasha brings a creative, collaborative approach to organising the festival. This year she designed two special costumed characters, Ruby Garnet and Scarlet Garnet, to mark the festival’s ruby anniversary. Inspired by the traditional boatwomen who worked London’s canals until the 1960s, the characters will be handing out free badges to local children throughout the day. 

“We want young people to feel that this is their party,” says Sasha. “After the isolation many experienced during COVID, it’s important to create opportunities for people to come together, socialise and enjoy themselves.” 

Behind the scenes, organising a volunteer-led festival takes determination. Alongside the creativity comes extensive planning, bureaucracy and risk management. But for Sasha, seeing the community come together makes it all worthwhile. 

“I love bringing people together to make big ideas happen!” 

Join the celebration this Sunday

The Angel Canal Street Festival takes place Sunday 6 September, 11am – 4pm, entry entirely free. 

Head to: City Road Basin, Graham St, the towpath by City Road Lock and Graham St Gardens, N1 8GJ