Hundreds of thousands of people attended Brighton over the weekend for the city’s annual Pride celebrations.
Visitors from across the country descended on Brighton seafront on Saturday for the parade, which began at Hove Lawns and ended in the city’s Preston Park, where Pride on the Park took place.
Mariah Carey headlined the first night of the event, while the Sugababes closed out the show on Sunday evening.
Paul Kemp, managing director of Brighton Pride, told BBC Radio Sussex: “We were really, really excited – Pride really put our city on the map.”
He added: “Brighton is an events city and, although sometimes there was some disruption, the value of these events was part of our reputation.”
The community parade, with the theme “ravishing rage”, saw local community groups and LGBTQ+ organisations marching through the city.
The march began at Hove Lawns before travelling through the city centre.
John McPherson, chairman of the Brighton Gay Men’s Chorus, who had a float in the parade, said: “Pride this year was very important to us, particularly for our trans members. The theme for our float this year was about trans pride.
“We had an amazing banner that our members worked on, which I think made a really dramatic statement in the parade.
“We’ve always seen queer joy as activism and as a celebration of our authentic selves.”
Community groups from across Brighton and Hove designed their floats for the event, waving and singing to people lining the streets.
Other events planned throughout the weekend included the Pride Street Party, which this year moved from St James’ Street to Marine Parade.
Finial Brophy, a member of the Rainbow Chorus singing group, said: “I think Pride is intergenerational, it cuts across all communities and it was wonderful being on a float and showing off.”
Aneesa Chaudhry, musical director of the chorus, added: “Seeing people holding hands and being able to kiss and be who they are in public in a city that supports us was wonderful.”
Hundreds of people took part in the Brighton Pride community parade.
Groups walking in the parade lined Brighton seafront ahead of the parade in a sea of colour and sequins.
Organisations walking in the parade included the Brighton School of Samba and the Terrence Higgins Trust.
Paul Callander, LGBT network lead for Brighton and Hove Albion football club, said: “I think it was amazing and we have been groundbreaking for all football clubs across the country.
“It’s the love and seeing the joy in everyone’s faces. It brought people together.
“We needed to be unified in this and in this city we were.”
The parade was also led by Ted Brown, the pioneering LGBT activist who helped to organise the UK’s first Pride march in 1972.
Ticket sales from the street party raised funds for LGBTQ+ charities and causes across the country, which were distributed through the Pride Community Foundation.
Large sections of the city including London Road, Preston Road, and the A259 Kings Road were closed throughout Saturday.
Train services were also busier than usual, with more trains and extra carriages running to try and match demand.
Preston Park and London Road train stations were closed all weekend.
About 300,000 people attended Brighton Pride across the weekend, similar to the crowds the city saw in 2024.
