It’s not just a celebration and a protest: Pride in London 2022 is a full schedule of sightseeing now it’s returned to its original route to celebrate 50 years of being loud and proud.
That means it all kicks off at Marble Arch on Saturday. Then winding down Park Lane to Hyde Park Corner, and down Piccadilly way – ‘Ooh, Fortnums!’ – to Haymarket and Trafalgar Square and beyond.
From then on it’s party, party, party – and it’s not all glitter and body paint. Enter a fabulous comp to win Wimbledon tickets care of Pimm’s.
Get your glow on. It’s time to be the proudest version of you…
Party in the park
It’s like a RuPaul’s Drag Race UK reunion this Sunday – so you can do the Pride March as well – when Wembley Park is throwing a huge after-party with Kitty Scott-Claus, Vinegar Strokes, Scarlett Harlett, Jonas Hedqvist and Pussy ‘Kat’ Bangkok on hostess and performing duties on the newly-created Sound Shell stage.
The fully refurbed Olympic Way is bedecked with Pride flags and you can even take part in a dance class if you’re feeling up to it. We reckon we’ll just watch the shows and have a couple of drinks but you go right ahead. You could use the workout.
Sunday, from 11am, Wembley Park, HA9
Win tickets to Wimbledon Centre Court:
Those lovely people over at Pimm’s have only gone and offered us a pair of tickets to the Men’s and Ladies’ Quarter Finals on Wednesday 6 July at Wimbledon this year… And you could win them if you play your cards right!
They’re even throwing in a Pimm’s to enjoy courtside.
All you have to do is enter the free prize draw here by 11.59pm on Friday July 1, and keep your fingers firmly crossed.
Or you could create your own Pimm’s O’Clock at home with a highball glass filled with ice, 50ml of Pimm’s No.1, 150ml of lemonade, strawberries, orange and cucumber, and garnished with a sprig of mint (1.2 Units per serve)!
Now where did we put our tennis whites….
Prize sponsored by Pimm’s.
Free for all
If you’re looking for somewhere penny-pricewise to spend the evening of Pride, then we may have a solution: Tanner Warehouse in Bermondsey where entrance tickets are free.
That’s not to say you can’t lash out £10 and get an introductory drink and access to drinks deals up to and including ‘free flowing’.
It’s all to celebrate 50 years of Pride and diversity and fun (though apparently there was fun before 1972) and it’s a cute little spot and they’re laying on DJs. How many more reasons do you need?
From 5pm, 50 Bermondsey Street, SE1
Spread your wings
They call it a pub quiz at The Spread Eagle but that really is not doing it any justice at all. East London’s best (only?) fully plant-based boozer has once again roped in Ms. Penny Tration to host another of her filthy evenings of questions, tasks, tests and general humiliations.
It’s only £2 a head so our advice is to pitch up early, line your stomach with something delicious like their artichoke and samphire paella (and you don’t get that in many pubs), and order up some smoked pineapple Cosmos. But don’t forget to book!
Tomorrow (Thursday), 224 Homerton High Street, E9
Is it a flag, is it a bagel?
There’s no excuse not to wave a rainbow flag this Pride, even if you have your hands full.
At B Bagel they have come up with the rainbow bagel, a multi-coloured feast still made using traditional methods and only the finest ingredients but which doubles up as a rainbow flag for you to ‘wave’ as you press your face into its cream cheese filling complete with rainbow sprinkles.
And not only is it a sign of solidarity with the LGBTQI+ community, it’s also helping raise cash money (£1 per bagel) for The Albert Kennedy Trust.
Up your calorie intake, get something nourishing inside you and do your bit for the cause.
Until July 31, various locations
Thank you for the music
Thinking of starting the fun early on Pride Saturday? Of course you are.
Head over to Louche Soho and you can pick up an early-bird frozen Green Carnation cocktail – in honour both of Oscar Wilde, who always wore one and, if we’re not mistaken, the previous name of this bar. And seeing as they’re opening up for take-aways from 2pm, it could be the perfect Pride parade accessory as you’re just up the road from the action.
Come back later when the party gets properly started with DJs and House of Burlesque entertainers. Oh and did we mention £1 from your drink goes to the Pride In London Unity Fund. Never have we done so much charitable work.
Saturday, 5 Greek Street, W1
Reach for the skies
They don’t do things by halves over at The Standard with four days of what we can only call ‘goings-on’ across their huge and beautiful (if a little brutal from the outside but that’s the point – oh you know nothing about architecture) hotel.
On Friday they have The Rimmers, that’s Buttmitzvah’s drag spin-off, in the gorgeous 10th floor Sweeties; on Saturday it’s UOKHUN (you OK, hun? Get it?), the notorious south London wxmen collective in the 70s-inspired Double Standard; Sunday they have Sunday High with Jungle Kitty on the Roof and on Monday it’s an evening with writer and singer Tom Rasmussen in the Library.
May 6-8, 47 Broadway Market, E8
Something’s brewing
Their mission at Signature Brew is to unite people through beer. And we can think of no higher purpose than that. And to celebrate Pride they have collaborated with new drag crew, Gaggle, to host Out Out, which is basically a way to spread your Pride celebrations all the way through to the end of July.
And wouldn’t you know, it all starts this very Friday on the eve of Pride itself at their east London headquarters with, and we quote, a night of riotous drag, DJs, dancing and optional debauchery.
We might just opt in, seeing as it’s a special occasion.
10 Argyle Street, WC1 From 7:30pm, Signature Brew, Uplands Business Park, Blackhorse Lane, E17
Dancing queens
It’s the brand new hotel that took over from the Ace in the heart of London’s glittering Shoreditch and there was no way they were going to let Pride slip by without a bit of sparkle.
And to avoid taking you away from the celebrations themselves, the clever schedulers at 100 Shoreditch have diarised drag tonight and over brunch on Sunday.
Tonight in the gorgeous Lobby Bar it’s Grace Shush and Just May with their Drag Game Show while on Sunday there’s a brunch in Goddard & Gibbs and drag throughout with Just May and Grace Shush back and Prinx Silver on the decks. And no, these are not dress-down events.
Tonight and Sunday, 100 Shoreditch High Street, E1
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Metro.co.uk celebrates 50 years of Pride
This year marks 50 years of Pride, so it seems only fitting that Metro.co.uk goes above and beyond in our ongoing LGBTQ+ support, through a wealth of content that not only celebrates all things Pride, but also share stories, take time to reflect and raises awareness for the community this Pride Month.
And we’ve got some great names on board to help us, too. From a list of famous guest editors taking over the site for a week that includes Rob Rinder, Nicola Adams, Peter Tatchell, Kimberly Hart-Simpson, John Whaite, Anna Richardson and Dr Ranj, as well as the likes of Sir Ian McKellen and Drag Race stars The Vivienne, Lawrence Chaney and Tia Kofi offering their insights.
During Pride Month, which runs from 1 – 30 June, Metro.co.uk will also be supporting Kyiv Pride, a Ukrainian charity forced to work harder than ever to protect the rights of the LGBTQ+ community during times of conflict, and youth homelessness charity AKT. To find out more about their work, and what you can do to support them, click here.
For Metro.co.uk‘s latest Pride coverage, click here.
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