Manchester – A City to be Proud in!

This bank holiday Manchester will be filled with colour and love as Manchester pride returns for the four day LGBTQ+ celebrations. The festival takes place from Friday 23rd to Monday 26th August, with headliners such as Ariana Grande and Years & Years leading Manchester Pride Live.

The Parade

The Gay Village is still the heart of the celebrations but the main stages are being moved and will be given the new home at Mayfield Depot. The new home will be hosting Pride Live with artists such as Ariana Grande, Years & Years, Emeli Sande, Kim Petras, Cheryl and many more.

However one of my personal favourites and the loudest, proudest, most colour popping part of the festival is the procession/parade. Over 10,000 participants riding floats and marching through the city whilst the streets are lined with thousands of people to watch and cheer them on.

The parade follows the same route as last years, starting at Deansgate and leading onto Peter Street and then Oxford Street and Portland Street. It then runs alongside the Gay village, turns onto Princess Street, then on to Whitworth Street, finally finshing at Fairfield Street. This gives the opportunity for numerous great viewing platforms from around the city, but we recommend getting there early to secure the best spots!

The best places to view the parade are located on the orange circles on the parade route map, below. So mark Saturday on your calendars, if you haven’t already done so, as this is not one to miss. Manchester is showing their colours proudly, and this is set to be an incredibly emotional weekend for many, as Ariana Grande returns to Manchester and the city gathers to celebrate but also to remember.