Bradford Pride 2009
Bradford Pride 2009 is shaping up to be a great celebration, centred around events in Centenary Square in the centre of the city on Saturday 30 May. Top broadcaster and writer Amy Lame will be starting things at 2pm. Let's hope for good weather.
Pride kicked off with a health event, a taster day of kick boxing at the Equity Centre on Saturday 23 May. Then there was an evening of Comedy and Culture in the Colour Museum on 28 May.
The 'big day' in the city centre is Saturday 30 May and Pride will close with Women's Pride, a women's evening at the Alhambra, again a lot of comedy but also a lot of music, on Friday 5 June.
Saturday 30 May will see the first major city centre celebration of the LGB communities of Bradford. This event will run all afternoon with the rainbow flag flying over City Hall. There will be a market, open from 1pm, with a variety of stalls, a family marquee with children's activities including face painting and balloon modelling with comedian Andy Train, and stage acts and DJs, introduced by Amy Lame at 2pm and running through to 6.30pm.
Spectacular on stage will be Alexandra Queen of the Deaf World, a deaf signing drag queen - very visual, big impact. This is a performance where disco meets deaf signing.
Here's the programme, as final as it can be:
- 2pm – Buffet music starts and Amy Lame opens Pride
- 2.05pm – Gay Abandon, fresh from the European Choirs Festival and BBC Last Choir Standing.
- 2.15pm – Buffet background music – Amy Lame on stage, interviewing about Pride
- 2.30pm - The Pride Sisters
- 2.40pm - Straight from the Bradford Playhouse, Buffet DJs go buffet-tastic
- 3.00pm – The Lorraine Bowen Experience
- 3.20pm – Amy says goodbye and introduces, from the Candy night club, Miss Marigold Addams (hostess from 3.30 – 6.30pm)
- 3.30pm - Marigold entertains
- 3.45pm – Buffet DJs go buffet-tastic 2
- 4.05pm – Kickboxing demo
- 4.25pm – Buffet DJs
- 4.35pm – Alexandra Queen of the Deaf World
- 4.55pm – Buffet DJs
- 5.05pm – QBoy
- 5.20pm – Buffet DJs
- 5.30pm – Timberlina
- 5.50pm - Buffet DJs buffet-tastic finale
- 6.15pm – Marigold entertains
- 6.30pm – Stage acts finish
As has become traditional, thick heads from Saturday can be blown away on the Pride Walk on Sunday 31 May morning. There will also be an accessible Pride walk on Sunday 7 June.
The Evening of Comedy and Culture on 28 May followed a similar event at Bradford Pride 2008, with authors V G Lee and Narvel Annable, poets Clare Shaw and James Nash and the fabulous cabaret Trudy and Judy Show.
Another great evening, Women's Pride, will be at the Alhambra Studio on Friday 5 June, this bringing Bradford Pride 2009 to a close. At this women only event there'll be stand up comedy with Isma Almas, music and song from Belinda O'Hooley, Secrets Out and disco, hosted by Mysti Valentine. The event is free but donations on the door are requested.
Deaf signers can be available at all events.
For regular updates watch this website. If you'd like to participate or help in some way contact Rachel on 01274 727759, or email her. If you want to do something on the 'big day', 30 May, she'll put you in touch with Jenny or you can email her directly.
For news on Pride events throughout Britain, go to the gay-pride website.
