The countdown is on, the Pride Festival has started and the main Pride in London day is just over a week away. Saturday 8 July is the big one with the Parade, Trafalgar Square, Soho and much more. Here’s a preview of just some of the treats in store.
The Parade
1pm – 4.30pm
If you think of Pride, you usually visualise the Parade and with good reason. It’s the biggest LGBT march in the UK, a colourful celebration of who we are in all our diverse glory. The Parade forms up in Portland Place and runs from the BBC’s Broadcasting House to Oxford Circus, down Regent Street, through Piccadilly Circus, Lower Regent Street and Pall Mall, past Trafalgar Square and into Whitehall where the Parade disperses. If you’re planning to watch the parade, get there in time and we suggest avoiding Oxford Circus as it gets crazy busy.
Trafalgar Square
Midday – 8pm
The rally in Trafalgar Square is the soul of Pride in London. A brilliant mix of politics and popular entertainment, where cabaret and culture come together in glorious style. The exact running order is being confirmed as we speak but we do know that during the day you will see the cast of Dreamgirls including Amber Riley and the cast of He Shoots He Scores from Above The Stag. You won’t be surprised to learn that many of the stars of this year’s Pride’s Got Talent will be performing plus the winner of Drag Idol 2017. There will be stars of RuPaul’s Drag Race and plenty of homegrown cabaret talent including Mary Mac, Mzz Kimberly, Vanity Von Glow, Silver Summers, La Voix and more. There will be music from some big pop stars including Saara Aalto, Fleur East, Sinitta and even a tribute to Disney.
Soho stages and bars
Midday to late
If the Parade is the brains and Trafalgar Square the soul then Soho with its stages and many bars is the pumping heart of Pride in London. There’s the Cabaret Stage in Dean Street with a fantastic line-up of exciting talent at the Radio Diva Woman’s Stage in Leicester Square, the Family Stage and Illuminations Square in Golden Square and the Community Village in Soho Square. Along with these official areas all your favourite West End venues will be fit to bursting with happy smiling faces, cabaret stars and DJs.
Pride in London Parade and Trafalgar Square Stage and Soho events is on Saturday 8 July.
There’s much more information at prideinlondon.org and look out for our bumper Pride edition of Boyz next week.
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