Everything you need to know ahead of Brighton Pride

The country's most popular LGBTQ+ event returns to Brighton this summer with a '˜Colour my World' theme and Britney Spears headlining its festival.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Last year Brighton Pride drew in 400,000 people, and this year promises to be bigger and better than ever.

With so many great events across the Pride Weekend, kicking off on Friday, August 3 and closing on Sunday, August 5, we’ve put together a short and sweet guide of all you need to know about this year’s event.

WHAT’S ON

Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)
Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)

Pride Festival

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

What: The Pride festival will see performances from Pixie Lott, Ella Eyre, MINEK and Louise, with Britney Spears headlining the event with her full Vegas show. As well as this colourful line up there will be the Pride Dance Tent, hosted by Little Gay Brother, Diva Girls Dance Tent, BRÜT Men’s Dance Tent, and the sequinned sensation that is the Legends Cabaret Big Top. New this year is QueerTown, a boutique area of the festival curated by Paul Diello showcasing an array of live cabaret, comedy, burlesque and drag acts. A map and set times have been released, here.

Where: Preston Park, Brighton

When: Saturday, August 4. Gates open at 12pm, last entry is at 8pm.

Britney Spears is headlining Brighton PrideBritney Spears is headlining Brighton Pride
Britney Spears is headlining Brighton Pride

How much: Between £12.50 and £37.50, but now sold out.

Community Parade

What: The parade is made up of floats, marching bands and community groups and attracts a crowd of more than 300,000 spectators throughout the city.

Where: Starts at Hove Lawns and travels down Kings Road, before turning into West Street towards the clock tower and then descending down North Street. It then makes it way past the Royal Pavilion on Old Steine and to York Place and London Road to eventually reach its destination at Preston Park.

Pride Festival in Preston Park (Photograph: Sam Mellish) SUS-170103-094545001Pride Festival in Preston Park (Photograph: Sam Mellish) SUS-170103-094545001
Pride Festival in Preston Park (Photograph: Sam Mellish) SUS-170103-094545001

When: Saturday, August 4, starting at 11am.

How much: Free!

The Pride Village Street Party

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

What: The street party takes over Kemptown with two days of festivities and parties. There’ll be DJs and entertainment zones, as well as services from surrounding businesses.

Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)
Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)

Where: St James’s Street and Marine Parade, Brighton.

When: Saturday, August 4 and Sunday, August 5.

How much: Tickets are still available at £15 for the weekend and £12.50 for the Sunday on Pride’s website.

LoveBN1 Fest

What: A new event: LoveBN1Fest, takes place on Sunday helping raise extra funds for the Pride Social Impact Fund. The festival will be headlined by Nile Rodgers & Chic, with supporting acts Jess Glynne, Raye, Gabrielle, House Gospel Choir, Rowetta and Arianna and the Rose.

Where: Preston Park, Brighton

Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)
Brighton Pride parade (Photograph: Eddie Mitchell)

When: Sunday, August 5. Gates open at 1.30pm and close at 9.30pm

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

How much: Tickets are still available at £37.50 on the website, and children under 14 can go for free.

Pride Pleasure Gardens

What: Pride Pleasure Gardens will transform Old Steine into a mini hub of entertainment, with bars, live performances, DJs, clubbing and a Queer TakeOver.

Where: Old Steine, Brighton

When: Friday, August 3 to Sunday, August 5.

How much: Free, but some events inside tents are ticketed.

Pride Dog Show

What: Bring your four-legged friends to this special event the weekend before Pride, with awards for waggiest tail and dog most like owner. There will also be a glamorous catwalk doggy fashion show, a bar and refreshments. The online entry form for the dog show is now closed but you can register your dog in person from 11.30am on the day.

Where: Preston Park

When: Sunday, July 29, 12pm until 5pm.

How much: Free to watch.

And the rest...

There’s also plenty of official Pride parties and fringe events going on throughout the weekend. To see them all, click here.

TICKETS

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Pride Box Office will be at Victoria Gardens, Brighton. Here you can exchange your e-tickets for wristbands and find out more about all things Pride. It is recommended that if you live in Brighton or arrive before the weekend that you exchange tickets in advance.

The office opens in advance of the festival and operating times are:

Tuesday, July 31: 12pm to 6pm

Wednesday, Aug 1: 11am to 8pm

Thursday, Aug 2: 10pm to 8pm

Friday, Aug 3: 10am to 10pm

Saturday, Aug, 4: 9am to 10pm

Sunday, Aug 5: Old Steine 1pm to 8pm / Preston Park (LoveBN1 Fest) 1pm to 8pm

HOW TO GET THERE

Train

Southern Rail said its services are set to be ‘extremely busy’ over the Brighton Pride weekend, and urged people to plan their journeys in advance.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It said queueing systems would be in place and there may be long queues to purchase tickets.

Preston Park station, the closest station to the Pride Festival, will close on Saturday and Sunday.

Nearby London Road station will also close from midday on Saturday for the weekend.

The last late-night trains from Brighton Station will be:

23:13 – Brighton to London Victoria

23:32 – Brighton to Eastbourne

00:04 – Brighton to London St Pancras

00:04 – Brighton to Worthing

Bus

National Express runs services into the city from many destinations throughout the UK, including an hourly service from London Victoria bus station.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Brighton & Hove Buses expects disruption due to road closures, but there are many services still routinely running.

Car

There will be multiple road closures throughout the weekend. This is to give space to the parade on Saturday, August 4, and the Pride Village Party in Kemptown on Saturday 4 and Sunday 5, August. During the parade, key roads to take into consideration is the closure of North Street and London Road. All roads affected due to the parade will be closed from 9am to 4pm.

Most of Kemptown will be affected by the street party between 7pm on Friday, August 3, and 4am on Monday, August 6.

There will be no parking at Preston Park or its surrounding on the day of the main Pride Festival. For a detailed listing of all road closures during the weekend and parking suspensions, visit: www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/parking-and-travel/parking/pride-2018-road-closures-and-travel-advice

Camping

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

If you’ve opted for the full festival experience and managed to get a ticket for the Brighton Pride Camp before it sold out, then here is a little information for you. The camping site is situated at Waterhall, north of the city. There will be on-site catering, including breakfast. Children under 12 are welcome as long as they are under constant supervision of a responsible adult over the age of 21. There will be a special Pride bus service between the campsite and the city throughout the weekend, and there is plenty of parking on-site.

For more information about Brighton Pride, visit: www.brighton-pride.org