All information and images are courtesy of Manchester Pride, collected from their website, which you can find here.
Jump to day: Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Monday
Manchester Pride Festival is the city’s celebration of people. Taking place from 23 – 26 August this year, the festival is set to be bigger and better than ever. For the first time, Manchester Pride Festival will take its home in multiple destinations across the city – stretching from Mayfield to Deansgate with the heart of the festival in The Village.
This year’s festival will be made up of a number of different elements, including Manchester Pride Live, the Superbia Weekend, the Gay Village Party, Manchester Pride Parade, Youth Pride MCR and the Candlelit Vigil; so here's your handy guide to the spectacle, that is Manchester Pride Festival.
Friday 23rd August
Friday: the day everything kicks off! The excitement in the city can be felt all around, as people flock from all four corners of the globe to enjoy this monumental event.
Manchester Pride Live doesn’t start until tomorrow, so The Village is the heart of most of the action tonight. With community performances in Sackville Gardens, plus markets and parties across the Village’s venues, The Village will continue to be the hub of the festival’s celebrations.
Situated in Sackville Gardens will be the Thomas Cook Airlines Stage, with performances from Liberty X, Saara Aalto and Stephen Bailey, amongst others on Friday. This will also be the place to host the festival’s opening ceremony.
The Superbia Weekend also begins on Friday 23 August and will be the festival’s alcohol-free space offering a weekend of premieres, firsts, new work and LGBT+ celebrations. Friday’s launch event will be hosted in The Refuge Basement from 7–10pm. This will consist of a free-to-attend Screening of Beyond 'There's Always a Black Issue, Dear' with Director, Claire Lawrie. Then there will be the opportunity to meet some of the artists who will be presenting work across The Superbia Weekend.
From 7pm until midnight on the Friday; the Sackville Square Fair will take place, with amazing food, drinks and the ever-popular market stalls. DJs will be lined up throughout the evening, too.
Kicking off again from 7pm on Friday 23 August is the Indoor Arena. Friday will consist of a lively silent disco which will continue until midnight, giving you the chance to sing while no-one is listening. The Indoor Arena will act as a multi-use space within the Gay Village, so is accessible to all.
Make sure you don’t overdo Friday night, you need to be fresh and ready for what Saturday is set to bring…
Saturday 24th August
One of the festival’s most highly anticipated events has always been the Manchester Pride Parade, and this year is no different. Taking on the theme of “Deep Space Pride: A Future World of Equality”, thousands of people are expected to line the streets of Manchester for the parade’s midday-start. Beginning on Deansgate by the Beetham tower, the parade takes the route detailed in the image below, ending at Mayfield – home of Manchester Pride Live.
2019 is an important year for the LGBT+ community, marking the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots – an event which kick-started the modern LGBT+ movement, and there’s a chance this could be reflected in some of this year’s parade entries.
Saturday is chock-a-block with activity following on from the parade. The Gay Village Party will be playing host to much of the action. The Thomas Cook Airlines Stage in Sackville Gardens is very much in full swing, with performances from the Rhythm of the 90s, Lulu, Danny Beard and Proms in the Park, with more yet to be announced.
The Expo kicks off on Saturday 24 from 11am – 5pm. Situated in the Indoor Arena, this community space gives exhibitors the chance to showcase their organisation and spend face-to-face time with visitors.
Pride has no age limit, and The Family Zone is there to make sure that everyone can get involved. Taking place on Saturday 24 from 12 – 5pm, the Family Zone will be held in Sackville Gardens with crafts, aerial hoop and a live screening of the parade to name a few of the activities available.
For the first time ever, Manchester Pride have introduced their Youth Pride event. Although this is now at capacity, it’s definitely worth mentioning. Taking place at YES – 5 minutes from the Gay Village Party, Youth Pride MCR is a 14+ event, and activities are curated specifically for the youth of the community.
Attendees will join the special Youth Pride MCR parade entry so make sure you keep an eye out for them and show your support! There will then be an incredible programme of specially curated events aimed at creating a safe and nourishing space for attendees of this event.
The Superbia Weekend calendar for Saturday is nothing short of impressive – there is so much to see and do, you will be spoiled for choice. Including the Rainbow Noir Exhibition Launch, BiPhoria Birthday and Superbia presents Deep in Vogue at The Refuge, see the full line-up of Saturday’s events for Superbia Weekend here.
Manchester Pride Live* at Mayfield begins on Saturday 24th with a stellar line-up. Headlining are Years & Years, with performances from Emeli Sande, Kim Petras, Basement Jaxx (DJ set), Lady Leshurr, Louisa, Nicky Siano’s Hallelujah Disco, Kings of Tomorrow, Freemasons & Katherine Ellis, Hedkandi 20th Anniversary Tour, K-Klass Live, Gok Wan, Jodie Harsh, Youngr and Sink the Pink. Phew!
*please note: you will only have access to Manchester Pride Live with a Rainbow Pass. This is an 18+ event only.
Don’t forget: Sackville Square Fair will be on, Midday – Midnight.
Sunday 25th August
Another day absolutely jam-packed with things to see and do. The Thomas Cook Airlines stage in Sackville Gardens will be host to the Queer Music Stage, though we’re still waiting to find out more information about this.
If you’d prefer to ease your way into Sunday at Manchester Pride Festival, the Superbia Weekend are hosting Good Morning Yoga from 11am – 12pm at No. 70 Oxford Street, followed by another full day of events to include Rebel Dyke Live, a Bi/Pan Film Programme and An Audience with Luke Turner, the full Sunday line-up is available to view here.
The Expo continues in the Indoor Arena from 11am – 5pm, with the chance for you to go and visit the likes of Boohoo, BiPhoria, Stonewall, Diversity Role Models and Thomas Cook Airlines to name a few.
Excitement will be building by this point for those heading to Manchester Pride Live, as Queen of pop and honorary Mancunian, Ariana Grande will be headlining at Mayfield for a special return performance to the city. She’ll be in fabulous company, as you can expect to see Cheryl, Bananarama, Ministry of Sound – The Annual Classical, Faithless (DJ set), Becky Hill, Pixie Lott, Tulisa, Hercules and Love Affair, Four of Diamonds, Chelcee Grimes, Bongos Bingo, Maze & Masters and We Love Pop; all on Sunday! Personally, we think Manchester Pride have smashed it out of the park with this one.
From 7pm, the Indoor Arena will be playing host to another incredible silent disco until midnight, so those wishing to sing their hearts out once more will have the opportunity here.
Monday 26th August
We’ve come to the final day of Manchester Pride Festival, and what a weekend it will have been. It’s not over yet, though…
The Sackville Square Fair is keeping us all going with live DJs, market stalls, and food from the likes of Vegan Bacon, Nibble and Seriously Food to name a few. The Thomas Cook Airlines Stage will be hosting live performances, though we’re sitting tight to find out what these will be.
From 11am – 6pm, The Indoor Arena will be home to a sing-along cinema. With Bohemian Rhapsody, Chicago and Dreamgirls playing back-to-back, grab the popcorn and warm up those vocal chords!
Most importantly from 9pm on Monday, Manchester Pride Festival closes with a Candlelit Vigil in Sackville Gardens. Taking a minute to remember those we have lost to the HIV virus as LGBT+ people join to fight the stigma still associated with HIV. A perfectly calming and heart-warming way to end one of the biggest parties and celebrations that Manchester sees each year.
For a full list of the wonderful venues and bars in The Gay Village, Manchester Pride have put together this handy graphic.
For full information about Manchester Pride Festival, please see the Manchester Pride website. Keep up-to-date with all of the latest news and announcements on their Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages.