Supporting Pride London 'more important than ever'

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, About one million people were expected to attend, organisers saidByJosh ParryLGBT & Identity reporterPublished4 July 2026, 18:19 BSTUpdated 12 minutes agoAttendees at Pride in London have told the BBC that supporting the event is "more important than ever", with thousands turning out for the annual parade.The festival is the UK's largest Pride and one of the capital's biggest public events and this year the organisation running the event said it was expecting crowds of more than one million people.This year's festivities come after a difficult year for the organisation which became involved in a long-running legal dispute with its former chief executive.

Pride in London said it was "overwhelmed by the support, love and commitment our community, partners, volunteers and wider stakeholders have given Pride in London this year".Image caption, Magda Szewczak says Pride is "more important than ever"Magda Szewczak, visiting from Poland, said attending felt "more important than ever".The 25-year-old told the BBC: "I love to see people being free to be themselves and being whoever they want to be."

Many of those attending shared the same sentiment - that it was particularly important to show their support for Pride in London after a turbulent year for the organisation.It has been involved in a protracted legal dispute with its former chief executive, Christopher Joell-Deshields, who was sacked following an investigation into alleged misuse of vouchers donated by a sponsor. The 55-year-old is due to be sentenced later this month after admitting contempt of court for failing to follow a legal order to hand back company property, including access to bank accounts and internal systems.

Image caption, Nicole Edmondson says she attended to "be with the community"Nicole Edmondson, 46, who visited from Surrey with a group of friends, told BBC News: "We had concerns, but we felt it was important to come together and be with the community."It's a brilliant turn out and it makes you feel good."Image caption, Besa Nolan (centre) says the London Pride event makes him less worried about the wider movementBesa Nolan, 25, travelled from Liverpool and said the size of Pride in London made him less worried about the future of the Pride movement."

Other cities have downgraded their Prides," he said."Everything feels under threat, but today I haven't thought about that because look at the size of the turnout."Final attendance figures have not been released but organisers said ahead of the event that more than a million people were expected to head into London for the celebrations.

Image source, ReutersImage caption, Tens of thousands lined the parade route that made its way through central LondonA spokesperson for Pride in London added: "Our priority is to always ensure the safe delivery of Pride for our LGBTQIA+ community and allies."Today's attendance, proves the significance and importance of Pride in the capital and we hope that everyone has a safe and happy Pride in London."As well as the parade, Pride in London also attracts thousands of visitors to its stages around the city, including Trafalgar Square and Soho Square.

This year's main stage is headlined by singer MNEK, with performances from Beth Ditto and Meek.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, The London mayor was among 35,000 people taking part in the paradeThe event started shortly after midday on Saturday.Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan - joined by singer Beverley Knight - officially opened the 35,000-strong parade, which featured 600 groups.

The parade made its way from Hyde Park Corner via Piccadilly. It is due to finish at Whitehall Place at around 18:00 BST.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Performers, including Leo Kalyan, have performed at Trafalgar SquareA speech from Madonna has also been heavily rumoured, with organisers refusing to confirm or deny an appearance from the singer.

Andrew Depass, 60, who is visiting from Miami with his children, said he hoped the rumours were true. "Madonna is the only one that spoke up for us in the 90s when people were dying from Aids. She talked about them," he said.

"That's why she's the most important music icon in my mind."Other acts that appeared on stage at Trafalgar Square were Leo Kalyan and Bombaymami.Image source, ReutersImage caption, More than one million people were expected to attend the event on SaturdayPride in London is one of more than 200 Pride events expected to take place in the UK this year - from smaller local events with less than 100 visitors, to city-wide celebrations with big name performers in Manchester and Brighton.

Organisers for such events have told the BBC that rising costs, coupled with a fall in corporate sponsorships, have made it a challenging few years, with some Prides postponed, cancelled or scaled-back.Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, external, X, external and Instagram, external. Send your story