Get ready for Isle of Wight Pride
Following its fantastic debut last year, Isle of Wight Pride is back and three times bigger this Saturday (21 Jul), when it takes over Ryde Harbour Beach for 11 hours of non-stop fun. Acts taking to the Unison Main Stage include Eurovision 2014 winner Conchita Wurst, TV present and DJ Gok Wan, house group Livin’ Joy and Drag Idol 2015 winner Danny Beard, plus many others such as RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 9 star Charlie Hides, Brighton drag queen Miss Jason and tribute acts Donna Marie as Lady Gaga and Jodie Topp as Paloma Faith. There’ll also be DJs including Adam Turner and performers such as Boogaloo Stu on the Wave 105 Dance Stage, more drag stars like Miss Jason, Mary Mac and Son of a Tutu on the London Hotel Cabaret Tent, Samantha Leon on the Red Bull Community Stage, and Donna Jones in the Women’s Institute Tea Tent. The Parade gathers outside Ryde School on Queens Road and sets off at midday following the route on the map below. The Isle of Wight is really easy travel to as well – for more details and to book tickets, visit iwpride.org
Prebear for XXL Birmingham at The Core
The third Friday of the month has swung round again, which means the bears and blokes of Birmingham and further afield are gearing up for another monthly Midlands edition of XXL at The Core this Friday (20 Jul). Resident DJ Paul Morrell, who also compiled and mixed the current XXL Album, will be behind the decks for a six-hour marathon of non-stop house anthems, while the packed dancefloor throbs to the beat with a crowd of chubs, chunks and hunks. Entry’s just £6 – visit xxl-london.com/xxl-birmingham for details.
Hold on to your haggis at Sundowners
That wee Scottish tartlet Mary Mac is your entertainment on stage at Margate party house Sundowners this Saturday night (21 Jul). Expect crowd surfing, her stunning rendition of Proud Mary and much more. Plus, buy her a few drinks and she’d yours, she’s not fussy. She’s on stage from 11pm but doors are open way before then for you to get settled and order a round or five. Entry is free before 9pm or just £3 after. And don’t forget the bar hosts Karaoke Sundays every Sunday from 9pm.
Feel the Burn
Drag Idol finalist Fanny Burns takes to the stage at The Yard in Coventry this Friday (20 Jul) with another totes hilarious show. Get ready for a gag-a-minute night of jokes, tales and song from the fantastic Ms Burns as she entertains the crowd at this award-winning bar. Entry’s free too – hurrah!
Something for the Boys at Two Queens
Fab new film Something for the Boys, by filmmakers Hannah Quinlan and Rosie Hastings, continues its exhibition at Two Queens bar in Leicester throughout the summer right up until 1 September. The film presents a series of vignettes filmed at two locations in Blackpool’s gay district, the art deco-style Funny Girls cabaret theatre and Growlr sex club. Using these locations as the backdrop to performances by veteran drag queen Betty Legs Diamond and professional go-go dancer Ted Rogers, the film is interspersed with material from Blackpool’s local history archive. This exhibition is the first in a series of four projects at Two Queens across 2018-19 aimed at providing the opportunity for emerging artists to develop ambitious new projects through a supportive curatorial dialogue. For more details, visit 2queens.com
Date for your diary: Leeds Pride
Yorkshire’s celebration of LGBT+ life takes over Leeds city centre on Sunday 5 August. The Leeds Pride Parade will leave Millennium Square at approx 2pm and arrive at the Lower Briggate approximately an hour later. Further details are yet to be released but it’s worth regularly checking leedspride.com for further updates.
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