Brighton Pride Explained
| Brighton & Hove Pride |
| Frequency: | Annually |
| Location: | Brighton, England |
| Years Active: | 1972–present |
| Founders: | Sussex Gay Liberation Front |
| Attendance: | 500,000 |
| Last: | – |
| Next: | – |
| Website: | http://www.brighton-pride.org/ |
Brighton and Hove Pride is an annual LGBT pride event held in the city of Brighton and Hove, England, organised by Brighton Pride, a community interest company (CIC) which promotes equality and diversity, and advances education to eliminate discrimination against the lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) community.
The major event is an annual summer festival held in the first week of August,[1] which usually consists of a parade through the city centre, a festival event in Preston Park, the Gay Village party and other club parties. Since 2013, it has also included an arts and film festival and a Pride dog show.
Pride attracts an estimated 500,000 people to the city over the Pride weekend across the Pride parade, Pride in the Park festival, and related events.[2] [3] Pride brings 2% of the city's annual visitors in one day[3] and an estimated £30.5 million to the city's economy,[4] credited as one of the main ways Brighton has boosted its economy from tourism.[5]
History
Brighton and Hove Pride began with a gay demonstration in Brighton in October 1972 by The Sussex Gay Liberation Front (SGLF) and a full pride march in July 1973.[6] [7]
Pride returned to the city in 1991 when Brighton Area Action Against Section 28 organised the first contemporary Pride - a weekend of events which brought hundreds to the streets.[8] After a shaky start with a large event in 1992, followed by bankruptcy of the organising committee and a much more low-key series of events in 1993, the festival began to increase significantly in size in future years, eventually attracting the support of sponsors, pubs, clubs and drag artists. Since 1996, the park festival has been based at Preston Park.
Pride events have traditionally been an environment for celebrating the diversity of the lesbian and gay community. In 2002 Pride in Brighton & Hove agreed to explicitly include and reference the trans community making that year's Pride for the first time an LGBT event.[9]
In 2004, Brighton Pride became a charity, to develop the event, to advance public education – by raising awareness of issues affecting LGBT people, and to make grants and donations to other charitable and voluntary organisations in the area. In 2011, organisers controversially introduced an entry fee to the park festival, as the company was in financial ruin and ran up over £200,000 in debt.[10] Since 2012, Pride has been under new management[11] and has raised over £922,000 for local LGBT community groups over the past six years.[12] The theme of the event in 2019 was Generations of Love, which commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in the US, seen as a watershed moment for gay rights and the starting point for the Pride movement.
In 2020, the 30th anniversary Pride was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic,[13] however a programme of online streamed events took place during the weekend.[14] On 5 May 2021, it was announced that Pride 2021 that had been anticipated to go ahead in a reduced form had been cancelled due to uncertainty over pandemic restrictions.[15]
In 2022 Pride returned to celebrate 30 years of Pride with the parade, street party and the festival in Preston Park headlined by Christina Aguilera and Paloma Faith.
Pride festival
The weekend includes:
- The traditional community parade with floats, starting from the seafront via London Road to the park
- Fabuloso festival in Preston Park with headlining acts
- The Pride Village party (PVP) in Kemp Town and the seafront
- Several club parties around the city including Pleasure Gardens in Old Steine
- An arts and film festival
- A dog show
Headliners
Below is a list of artists who have headlined, or are planned to headline, on the main stage at Brighton Pride.[16]
| Year | Date | Headliner(s) | Other Main Stage Artists | Notes |
|---|
| 2012 | Saturday 1 September | Alexandra Burke | Freemasons, Fatboy Slim | |
|---|
| 2013 | Saturday 3 August | Paloma Faith | Alison Moyet, MKS, Stooshe, Ms Dynamite | |
|---|
| 2014 | Saturday 2 August | Blue | Collabro, Heather Peace, Neon Jungle, Kimberly Wyatt, Katy B, Sam Bailey | |
|---|
| 2015 | Saturday 1 August | The Human League | Bright Light Bright Light, Ella Henderson, Fatboy Slim, Foxes, Kelli-Leigh, Ms Dynamite, Tulisa | |
|---|
| 2016 | Saturday 6 August | Sister Sledge | Carly Rae Jepsen, Anne-Marie, Alesha Dixon, DJ Fresh, Dua Lipa, Fleur East, Imani Williams, Seann Miley Moore | |
|---|
| 2017 | Saturday 5 August | Pet Shop Boys | Years & Years, Becky Hill, Fickle Friends, KStewart, Louisa Johnson, M.O | |
|---|
| 2018 | Saturday 4 August | Britney Spears | Ella Eyre, Pixie Lott, Louise Redknapp, MNEK, Mabel | |
|---|
| Sunday 5 August | Jess Glynne | Nile Rodgers & Chic, RAYE, Gabrielle, House Gospel Choir | |
| 2019 | Saturday 3 August | Kylie Minogue | Clean Bandit (with Marina), Fleur East, Björn Again, Zak Abel, Rina Sawayama, Alice Chater, Emeli Sandé | |
|---|
| Sunday 4 August | Jessie J
Grace Jones | Rak-Su, Nina Nesbitt, House Gospel Choir, Grace Carter | |
| 2020 | Saturday 1 August | Mariah Carey | | Cancelled due to COVID-19 |
|---|
| Sunday 2 August | The Pussycat Dolls | | Cancelled due to COVID-19 |
| 2021 | Saturday 7 August | N/A | N/A | Cancelled due to COVID-19 |
|---|
| Sunday 8 August | N/A | N/A | Cancelled due to COVID-19 |
| 2022 | Saturday 6 August | Christina Aguilera | Tia Kofi, Call Me Loop, L Devine, Bimini Bon-Boulash, RAYE, Todrick Hall & Ella Henderson | |
|---|
| Sunday 7 August | Paloma Faith | Lyra, Cat Burns, Björn Again, Sophie Ellis-Bextor & Jake Shears | |
| 2023 | Saturday 5 August | Black Eyed Peas | Zara Larsson, Jax Jones, DYLAN, Mae Muller & Bellah Mae | |
|---|
| Sunday 6 August | Steps | Melanie C, Louise Redknapp, B*Witched, The Vivienne & Harley Moon Kemp | |
| 2024 | Saturday 3 August | Girls Aloud | Billy Porter, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, House Gospel Choir & Beth McCarthy | |
|---|
| Sunday 4 August | Mika | S Club, Gabrielle, Björn Again & Danny Beard | | |
See also
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: All About Pride. https://web.archive.org/web/20050804235520/http://www.brightonpride.org/all-about-pride/. dead. 2005-08-04.
- Web site: Brighton Pride 2018 was biggest one yet. 6 August 2018. The Argus.
- Web site: Police say 500,000 people flocked to the city during Pride weekend – Brighton & Hove Independent. Brightonandhoveindependent.co.uk. 6 August 2018.
- Web site: How Pride brings the money pouring in. The Argus. 24 August 2019.
- Web site: How Brighton has boosted tourism with Pride, marathons, rugby and Turner. Geoffrey. Bowden. 10 September 2013. The Guardian. 14 February 2018.
- Web site: Brighton Ourstory :: A History of Lesbian & Gay Brighton Chapter 3: Out of the Closet, 1967–87. Simon Chilton. Brightonourstory.co.uk. 14 February 2018. 31 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200731220651/http://www.brightonourstory.co.uk/brighton-s-history/a-history-of-lesbian-and-gay-brighton-chapter-3-out-of-the-closet-1967-87/. dead.
- News: 2021-08-21. Brighton Pride: Unseen images of 1973 gay march discovered. BBC News. 4 August 2021.
- Web site: Brighton Ourstory :: A History of Lesbian & Gay Brighton Chapter 4: A Community Comes of Age, 1988–2001. Simon Chilton. Brightonourstory.co.uk. 14 February 2018.
- Web site: Putting the 'T' in LGBT Brighton Pride 2002. Gscene.com. 25 June 2016.
- Web site: Will Brighton Pride come before a fall?. The Argus. 14 February 2018.
- Web site: Brighton Pride 2012 confirmed. 7 March 2012. Pink News.
- Web site: Brighton Pride 2019 raises £217,432.50 for local good causes. James Ledward. 26 September 2019. Gscene.com.
- Web site: Brighton Pride COVID-19 announcement. Twitter. 3 April 2020.
- Web site: We Are FABULOSO! . Brighton Pride. 3 August 2020.
- Web site: Covid: Brighton Pride 2021 cancelled for second year over virus 'uncertainty'. BBC News. 5 May 2021.
- Web site: Brighton & Hove Pride – Pride In The Park. Brighton Pride. 8 October 2019. "Described by The Guardian as "the country's most popular LGBT+ event," hundreds of thousands of partygoers have come out in years gone by to see a host of performances from international superstars Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Grace Jones, Nile Rodgers & Chic, Jessie J, Clean Bandit, Jess Glynne, Emeli Sandé, Dua Lipa, Ella Eyre, Paloma Faith, Sister Sledge, Anne Marie, Carly Rae Jepsen, Pet Shop Boys, Years & Years, Fatboy Slim, The Human League, Boy George, MNEK, House Gospel Choir, Gabrielle and loads more...".
