Prides 2025

       

Nationally and locally there have never been as many LGBT+ Pride events as this year, 2025

Penkhull Pride

I don’t know if it counts as the smallest Pride in the country…but the ancient village of Penkhull held its first ever Pride event hosted by the Owen Project and the Marquess of Granby pub. It was a cozy affair with bingo called by Miss Myrtle aka Adey Bell…and billed as a day of fun, fabulousness and fierce community spirit.

Stoke Pride

Stoke Pride in Hanley Park was bigger and better than ever…especially so for the OLGBT+ group as we had our brand-new printed gazebo. It also saw the launch of our most momentous project to date, in our 15-year history with GRAIN Photography – LGBT+ Histories & Memories. The weather was relatively kind…it wouldn’t be Stoke Pride without a bit of rain. This year, the light showers were welcome as they cooled down high temperatures on the hottest day of the year.

OLGBT+ had three pitches with enough space for the new, larger gazebo. The work put in earlier in the month to waterproof one of our old gazebos paid off. No one who took shelter under its freshly coated canvas got wet, nor did a drop of water land on any of the books or leaflets.

Andrew Colclough is to be congratulated for getting the Rainbow Threads book ready and printed in time for Pride. Likewise, the Zine produced by GRAIN which served not only as a memento of the History Fair at Stoke and Hanley libraries, but also as an excellent introduction to the groundbreaking LGBT+ Histories & Memories project.

Our staunch member David Evans, who, over the years, has brought a selection of his models to Stoke Pride had his own gazebo with some of his latest spectacular exhibits. Both he, as well as Myng, Nicola and Stephen from GRAIN projects, reported having had a successful day.

OLGBT+ had a record ten people in the parade. We proudly marched with our newly restored banner as well as a new one that recorded our highly successful Rainbow Threads project.

Pride in the Moorlands

Next up was Pride in the Moorlands…another first. This three-day event started in Cheadle on Friday, moved to Biddulph on Saturday and culminated In Leek. The final event on Sunday was the biggest of the three with live professional entertainment, community stalls in the Market Square and a parade. The highlight for me was the talk given by Dr Christopher Owen who spoke about the origins of the Pride movement sparked by the New York Stonewall riots of 1969. His oral presentation emphasized the continuing importance of Pride. Some of the questions from a packed Leek Trestle Market allowed Christopher to respond from his profound knowledge of LGBT+ history with explanations that were clear to understand and extremely enlightening.

Pride in Castle held its second event at the Brampton Museum in Newcastle. With lottery funding, this year’s event had some excellent professional entertainment to supplement the not inconsiderate amount of local talent. The Baker Street Belles concluded the programme at the Brampton Museum. This trio of female vocalists tailored their act to fit the occasion with a timeline of LGBT+ history into which they slotted their original arrangements of songs from the early 20th century to the present day. Anyone who attended the VE Day celebration or last year’s Stoke Pride in Hanley Park will have an understanding at how versatile the group is. They even dress in costumes appropriate for each occasion.

Stafford Pride

Although there were many other Pride events in surrounding towns, there is a limit to my ability to get to them all. Thankfully, other members of the OLGBT+ group were able to attend the ones closest to them. The final event which the OLGBT+ group supported with a presence in its parade was the second Stafford Pride held on Saturday 9 August. With the Reform party now in control of the council it was encouraging to see such a good turnout. Even better, like Stoke Pride, it was given ample coverage by regional BBC and local press.   Pride Post