Bristol Pride Online is nearly here…
As you know Bristol Pride is moving online this year due to the impact of Covid19 but we are still bringing you an exciting series of Pride favourites and much-loved events from the festival from 1-12 September with all our events moving online, streamed via our YouTube channel and Facebook Page
Bristol Pride is a unique and important event that celebrates the LGBT+ community and offers the chance to connect and bring people together. At a time when we are all feeling disconnected from each other, our wider communities and our support networks, we want to create a place where everyone is welcome, visible and celebrated with joy, laughter and friendship. As well as showcasing the wonderfully diverse community, Pride is about overcoming prejudice and hatred, reducing isolation, and showing members of the LGBT+ community that they are not alone.
We will soon be releasing our full programme of events taking place over the 2 weeks but highlights to look out for include:
Our Virtual Dog (+Others) Show will see exciting videos and photos that include waggiest tail, best trick, proudest pup and most like owner. Submission remain open until midnight on the 11 August and this year even include the chance to enter cats and other animals too.
Our Theatre Night will return with a special commissioned online performance of SPLINTERED, based upon interviews with queer women in Trinidad & Tobago exploring the joy and celebration of Carnival but also what that means when you are queer in a culture that can be homophobic.
We are still bringing you our fabulous Comedy Night with online performances from stars Jayde Adams, Tom Allen, Hannah Brackenbury and Celya AB along with a special video from Mawaan Rizwan who performed at the festival last year.
Other special events moving online include a showcase or areas of the festival that have grown in importance over the years. A special Family Day will feature Drag Queen story readings, adventure and play activities with the bath based SuperPirates and even a Disney sign along.
Following on from this summers Black Lives Matter protests we’ve teamed up with KIKI Bristol to host a special conference to bring together several QTIPOC (Queer, Trans, Intersex People of Colour) organisations to discuss recent events, intersectionality, visibility and spaces within the LGBT+ community, as well as celebrating Pride together.
There will also be a special Pride performance night hosted by House of Mannington a Bristol based drag collective who endeavour to offer an eclectic and diverse drag experience.
A Wellbeing Day will focus on mindfulness (with a sprinkle of party) with online yoga classes from Shine Yoga and a special Disco Yoga class and our LGBT+ film festival Queer Vision will move online in September by partnering with Encounters Film Festival and will showcase the Best of LGBT+ short films including winners from Iris Prize, and films in partnership with the BFI. All of the shortlisted submission for the Bristol Pride entries for Iris Prize Best of British award will be available to view with the chance for YOU to vote for your winner.
Our online festival will culminate with an exciting Virtual Pride Day celebration on Saturday 12 September with a Virtual Parade in the morning followed by an afternoon of performances from across all the stages you would have found on The Downs, along with some special shout outs including special messages from a few stars of The Great British Bake Off who join local participant Briony Williams for a rainbow bake tutorial.
Over 30 acts will be performing and are busy recording performances in lockdown including local dance troupes from the Pride Performance Stage, from the Cabaret Stage expect favourites such as Mary Mac, Drag With No Name and Son of a Tutu as well as some Ru Paul Drag Race Stars updating us on Pride 2021. As well as new performances there will also be special archive footage from previous years including Spice Girl Mel C with Sink The Pink, Boney M, Bristol-based, and Glastonbury favourites, Dr Meaker and Alexandra Burke.
There will also be a video gaming day, panel talks, afterparty DJ sets and much more across 12 days of events which will all be free to view and access with the support from Arts Council England and this year’s festival sponsors and partners including Unite Students, who continue as the headline sponsor for the fourth consecutive year.
John Blanshard, Chief Customer Officer at Unite Students said:
We know the celebrations take on a different format this year but our commitment to the Bristol Pride festival remains the same. Moving the events online is a fantastic way for our vibrant city to highlight diversity and inclusion in the most positive way.
Fostering environments where people feel not just accepted, but valued for their difference, is central to making our employees and students feel safe and secure. Creating those communities has always been important to us and as a responsible business we’ll continue to listen and challenge ourselves to provide the most inclusive environments possible.
Bristol Pride is one of the largest Pride’s in the UK and was due to take place on Saturday 11 July, we know Pride provides a vital lifeline for many who attend from all over the UK to connect, have a sense of place, celebrate their identity proudly and realise that they are not alone. Whilst we cannot get together we hope that the online event will still bring people together.
We’ll be announcing more acts and events over the coming week. Sign up to our newsletter for breaking news.
Main photo by Bhagesh Sachania Photography
