Fresh details revealed as return of Pride to Liverpool moves closer

New details have been revealed as the return of Pride to Liverpool moves closer.

Thousands of people are expected to descend on the city for a weekend of celebration and protest in what is expected to be the biggest march with Pride since LCR Pride Foundation’s inception in 2019. The annual event will be spread throughout July with the main march taking place on Saturday July 27.

Now fresh plans have been revealed for the centre stage at the Pier Head in two months time.

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A record-breaking 20,000 people joined the march last year - up 5,000 compared to the year before. The march was held jointly with KyivPride in solidarity with Ukraine and the theme, ‘Shout It Loud’, encouraged local LGBTQ+ people to be proud of their identities.

This year, the planned route will get underway at St George’s Hall Plateau at 12pm. The procession will then move through the city centre and the Pride Quarter before making its way to the Waterfront.

An application for the main event stage and surrounding traders has been submitted to Liverpool Council giving the new details on this year’s set up. LCR Pride Foundation - which runs the celebrations - is seeking to obtain a premises licence that would allow the sale of alcohol from 9am to 22.59pm for the duration of the event.

Similar terms would be sought for the performance of films, plays, live music, recorded music and dance. The hours of operation for the public would be from 7am to 11.59pm.

It was confirmed in April an ensemble of star LGBT+ artists and an orchestra will take to the stage to perform the best Pride anthems of the last 50 years as part of Pride Classical. RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Season 4 Winner and Halewood-born drag artist Danny Beard is set to host and will be supported by Jerry Springer The Musical’s Alison Jiear.

Last week, Eurovision winner Katrina, formerly of Katrina and the Waves, was announced as the headline act for the mainstage on July 27. The American singer, known for her vocals on Walking on Sunshine and Going Down to Liverpool, will be performing on the city's waterfront on the main stage - with the annual march and festival remaining free for all to attend.

Andi Herring, CEO of LCR Pride Foundation, said: “We are thrilled to be bringing the main stage back for what is going to be the biggest Pride in Liverpool programme yet. We’re not quite yet over the buzz of last year’s Eurovision and following the weekend’s fantastic contest in Malmo we can’t wait to continue that magic further with Katrina.

“Pride in Liverpool is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate diversity and acceptance in the Liverpool City Region and show our solidarity with LGBT+ communities across the world. We are delighted that the festival remains free to attend for everyone and we will continue to prioritise accessibility further than ever before so that everyone can enjoy the day.”

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