Leeds Pride

Annual LGBT event in Leeds, England

Leeds Pride
Freedom Bridge over Lower Briggate during the 2018 event
Date(s)Sunday 21 July 2024
Begins10.30 am
Ends10 pm
FrequencyAnnually
Location(s)Leeds, England
Inaugurated2006
Participants65,000 (2019)[citation needed]

Leeds Pride is an annual LGBT Pride celebration held in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Leeds Pride is one of the biggest free pride events in the UK.

History

Leeds Pride first took place in August 2006 (then called Leeds Gay Pride) - there had been previous Pride events in Leeds such as Hyde Out in 2000 and in the few years before the first Leeds Pride, an informal picnic on Woodhouse Moor. Leeds Pride was supported by the city council and local business with 6,500 attending.[1] In 2009 the numbers attending the event had almost doubled, to 12000, with over 1,000 participating in the parade.[2] In its tenth year (2016) the name had changed to Leeds Pride[3] and it had over 40,000 people in attendance, with the figure expected to grow in year on year.[4]

The 2018 Leeds Pride took place on Sunday 5 August with over 100 floats.[4][5]

Parade

The parade starts at Millennium Square at around 2.00 pm finishing on Lower Briggate by The Calls with a huge party.[2][3][4] The economic impact to the city centre of Leeds is approximately £3.8 million.[6]

Buildings on the parade route often have temporary decorations in the colours of the Rainbow flag. In 2017, the railway viaduct over Lower Briggate was painted in these colours and named 'Freedom Bridge" by Leeds City Council and Network Rail.[7] Steps going up to the station are also painted in the same colours as is a telephone box (an aql wi-fi hub, close to their headquarters) on Bridge End.

  • Temporary decoration for the 2018 parade
    Temporary decoration for the 2018 parade
  • Steps up towards the station
    Steps up towards the station
  • Telephone kiosk on Bridge End
    Telephone kiosk on Bridge End

Rainbow plaques

In association with the 2018 event, Leeds Civic Trust announced that it would be expanding its blue plaque scheme to create a trail of Rainbow Plaques to commemorate those who have contributed to the LGBT+ story of Leeds.[8] A map has been published showing the location of 15 plaques.[9]

  • Plaque 1 on the Grove Inn, Back Row
    Plaque 1 on the Grove Inn, Back Row
  • Plaque 2 on Queen's Court, Briggate
    Plaque 2 on Queen's Court, Briggate
  • Plaque 4 on Mill Hill Unitarian Chapel
  • Plaque 5 on Hotel Chocolat, Albion Place
    Plaque 5 on Hotel Chocolat, Albion Place
  • Plaque 6 on the wall of Yorkshire Dance, St Peter's Square
    Plaque 6 on the wall of Yorkshire Dance, St Peter's Square
  • Plaque 7 on the BBC building, St Peter's Square
    Plaque 7 on the BBC building, St Peter's Square
  • Plaque 9 in the entrance to Leeds City Art Gallery
    Plaque 9 in the entrance to Leeds City Art Gallery
  • Plaque 10 on the Swarthmore Centre, Woodhouse Square
    Plaque 10 on the Swarthmore Centre, Woodhouse Square
  • Plaque 11 on Leeds Beckett University Student Union building
    Plaque 11 on Leeds Beckett University Student Union building
  • Plaque 12 on First Direct Arena
    Plaque 12 on First Direct Arena
  • A circular commemorative plaque with a thick rainbow border. The logos of the Leeds Civic Trust and the Leeds LGBT+ Hub are visible near the top. "'Transvestism and Transsexualism in Modern Society'" is written below. Below that is the following text in smaller print: "The seminal conference 'Transvestism and Transsexualism in Modern Society' took place in Leeds University in 1974. Organized by The Beaumont Society, this was the first dedicated conference for trans people. Providing talks, screenings and discussions, it was attended by over 100 academics." The two lines below, in smaller print, read "#RainbowPlaques" and "Supported by @StudioTDH".
    Plaque 13 on the Parkinson Building, University of Leeds
  • Plaque 14 on Leeds Central Library
  • Plaque 15 on Leeds City Varieties theatre
    Plaque 15 on Leeds City Varieties theatre

See also

  • LGBT portal
  • iconYorkshire portal
  • flagUnited Kingdom portal

References

  1. ^ Glypta, Anna (10 August 2006). "Share in our Pride". Yorkshire Evening Post.
  2. ^ a b "VIDEO: Gay Pride parade in Leeds". Yorkshire Evening Post. 3 August 2009. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Let's have a party! Leeds Pride celebrates its 10th birthday in style". Yorkshire Evening Post. 6 August 2016. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  4. ^ a b c Evans, Alex (5 August 2018). "Leeds Pride 2018: Thousands gather in Leeds city centre for colourful event". Yorkshire Evening Post. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  5. ^ "Thousands turn out for Leeds Pride parade". www.bbc.co.uk. BBC. 5 August 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  6. ^ "Leeds Pride - Impact Survey 2017" (PDF). Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  7. ^ Newton, Grace (19 February 2017). "Leeds Freedom Bridge project completed". Yorkshire Evening Post. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  8. ^ "Rainbow plaque trail set for Leeds". Yorkshire Evening Post. 12 February 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  9. ^ "The Rainbow Plaque Trail" (PDF). leedscivictrust.org.uk. Leeds Civic Trust. Retrieved 12 October 2018.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Leeds Pride.
  • Official website Edit this at Wikidata
  • v
  • t
  • e
LGBT topics in the United Kingdom
Rights by location
United Kingdom
Crown Dependencies
British Overseas Territories
Law
Rights
Legislation
Human rights precedents
Past laws and
superseded precedents
Standing key precedents
Organisations
Current
Past
Culture
Topics
Events
Gay villages
EconomyOther
  • v
  • t
  • e
Topics
Events
Culture
Music
Other
Politics
Local government
Parliamentary
Transport
Roads
Buses
Railway
Open stations
Lines and
infrastructure
Other
Sport
Football
Rugby
Cricket
Other
Parks, gardens & squares
Areas
  • Category
  • v
  • t
  • e
Africa
South Africa
Asia
India
Israel
Japan
Nepal
South Korea
Turkey
Europe
Croatia
Denmark
France
Germany
Ireland
Italy
Poland
Romania
Serbia
Sweden
United Kingdom
North America
Canada
Mexico
United States
Oceania
Australia
South America