Outdoor Single PortraitThe Portobello Road Market is the most distinguishable feature of modern day Notting Hill. Sellers such as 49-year-old and Afghan-born Zia come show their merchandise on the street every Saturday from morning until 5pm, sometimes travelling far across England and the UK as well.

Outdoor Group PortraitBeneath the A40 highway every weekend, 36-year-old Mark takes his Coptic Church youth group to play football on Sunday afternoons at the Westway Sports Centre on the borders of Notting Hill. The venue is a gathering spot for local youths to play all sorts of outdoor sports as well.

Indoor Single PortraitThe Khalsa Jatha, also known as the Central Gurduara, is a pivotal location for Sikhs in London, formed in 1908. Tarnjit Singh is one of the caretakers of the Sikh Temple, whose current structure dates to 1969. He regularly attends the two prayer meetings held weekly on Sundays and Wednesdays in which the entire community gathers.

Self PortraitShepherd’s Bush tube station first opened in 1900 and first served as the western terminus for what was later to become the Underground’s Central line. It is now a main public transport hub because of the prominence of the adjacent Westfield Shopping Mall and its connection with the Overground as well. Amir, a 27-year-old graduate student, almost always depends on this station for most of his travels to and from Notting Hill for two reasons: the imminent closure of Holland Park tube station and the almost regular weekend closures at Latimer Road tube station (which is the nearest to his home).

Environmental PortraitThe Electric Cinema was opened in Notting Hill in 1910 two months after its namesake in Birmingham, closed in the late 1990s and reopened again in 2001. Notting Hill-resident Maddie and her friend Joanne meet up weekly at a café a stone’s throw away from the landmark and view the occasional film screening as well.

Fictional PortraitGabriel Rios was released from prison three years ago, charged with a crime he did not commit but stuck due to his bad choice of company. He looks back on his younger days reminiscing about when he used to volunteer at the Salvation Army after church every Sunday, due to his English mother’s strong evangelical Christian upbringing. The church has had a strong presence in the area since the 1860s, taking over from where a Baptist chapel formerly stood.

Strange PortraitAnthony “Ant” Hatcher is one of the extraordinary faces you meet at the Notting Hill Carnival every summer. Don’t let his long dreadlocks beneath his large feathered bowler hat and his expertly-played wooden flutes fool you: though he has been a resident of London for over the past 14 years, he was originally a US Marine and served several tours of duty in the Middle East.

Close-up PortraitAllyson Williams’ face aptly summarises what Notting Hill is all about, or at least what it used to be before the recent gentrification. Originally a native of Trinidad, she came to Notting Hill in 1971 where she met her husband George, one of the original founders of the Notting Hill Carnival. Although she left the area in the early 1980s to find better schooling for her children, she remains an engaged member of the community, attending church services and working part-time as an integral costume designer for the carnival performers every summer.

Indoor Group PortraitRichard, Sister Monica, Margaret, Erma, Edris and Salli are among the many seniors that come every Monday for hot beverages and cake at the Tabernacle Community Centre in Notting Hill. All of Caribbean extraction, coming to the UK from the early 1960s and onwards, they have been meeting at the venue during the past four years after it was reopened. Originally built as an Evangelical Church in the mid-19th century, the Romanesque styled structure was converted in the 1970s to serve as a community centre catering to the Caribbean community and featuring bands to play in the weeks leading up to Carnival at the end of summer.