A date has been set for this year's St Marks Road Grand Iftar, which will back on the evening of April 6. The annual event, which started in 2017, has become a tradition in Bristol and an opportunity for the whole community to join Muslims for an evening meal to break fast during Ramadan.
While the outdoor community event, which involves giving out free food on a large scale, had grown in size each year, in recent years it was cancelled due to the pandemic. In 2022 people came together for the Grand Iftar on St Marks Road for the first time since the large gathering of 2019, when the road was filled with thousands of people, but the event was scaled back.
This year the organisers have said that they will not be able to accommodate for the kind of numbers that were catered to in the 2019 Iftar but it will be bigger than last year, which after much discussion, was an invite-only event for 150 people. This year they would like to cater to 500 people on St Marks Road but will also hold another Grand Iftar at College Green which will cater to around 1,000 people.
READ MORE: Ramadan 2023 - Everything you need to know and all the events in Bristol
Ramadan begins today (March 22) this year in Britain and will continue until April 21. Each year for the holy month of Ramadan Muslims fast during daylight hours and then eat their first meal at dusk. This meal eaten when breaking the fast is called an Iftar.
This year the St Marks Road Iftar is scheduled to take place from 6-9pm on April 6 and the College Green Iftar will take place on April 13 from 6-9pm. The organisers decided that by holding a large event at College Green, they would open it up to people across Bristol who might find it difficult to travel to Easton.
One of the Grand Iftar organisers, Mohammed Elsharif, said: “Last year we had 150 people and we really wanted to open it up to more people. We think using an Eventbrite is a fair way to do it.
“We are having a second Grand Iftar to really open it up to more people, which is supported by Bristol Cathedral, Bridges for communities and Bristol City Council. We are working together to have one city celebration on April 13 in addition to the St Marks Road Grand Iftar.
“We wanted to bring it to the heart of the city and have capacity for around 1,000 people. We are trying to connect people from all over the city; we are trying to reach out to people in South Bristol and Lawrence Weston.
“We agreed on sanctuary as a theme [for the College Green Iftar]. With Bristol being a city of sanctuary and with there being a sanctuary tree in College Green, as well as what’s going on in Ukraine at the moment, we just wanted to put out the message that Bristol is a city that welcomes people.”
A theme has not yet been agreed for the St Marks Road Grand Iftar this year. Tickets for both Iftar events were expected to be released on Eventbrite last night and are available on a first come, first served basis.
Both Iftar events are completely free of charge and the event itself is organised and put together by a team of volunteers in Bristol. The Grand Iftar has always been about uniting different communities and is a chance for Muslims in Bristol to gather in an outdoor event during Ramadan but also provides an opportunity to break down barriers between those of different faiths and cultures.
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