Painting the town! Notting Hill Carnival gets off to messy start as revellers hurl oil and paint at each other - as police use new face-spotting computer system to try and keep thugs away

The annual Notting Hill Carnival has got off to a colourful start with revellers dancing in the streets of the central London neighbourhood at sunrise in honour of Caribbean tradition (centre). Known as the J'ouvert celebration, early morning partygoers threw a dawn street party - and then threw paint, mud, chocolate, powder and even oil (top left) at each other while dancing to music. Many attendees dressed in masks (inset) or risked having their faces splattered with paint (bottom left). Later in the day, the carnival saw exotic masks (top right) and dancer outfits (bottom right) as the Children's Parade got underway. More than one million people are expected to attend the carnival today and tomorrow. Police officers with special skills for recognising the faces of offenders will be monitoring the carnival in a crackdown on crime. The 'super-recognisers' will be inside a CCTV control room.