LONDON GAY PRIDE 2023

THE BIKERS LEAD THE 51st LONDON GAY PRIDE PARADE

So after a four year gap I was finally able to go to London Gay Pride. I think we almost forget

that Pride was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic. And I did give last year's

Pride a miss. So my last visit was in 2019 when Ronan Parke appeared on the Pride Stage.

This year I steered well clear of that bottleneck Trafalgar Square, home of the Pride Stage, just

passing it briefly to confirm that it gets more overcrowded year on year. And yet I wonder why

Pride can't seem to attract big name performers like they do at Brighton Gay Pride, now deemed as

the biggest and best Pride event in the U.K.

But still it's good to see all our annual events returning in 2023.

Above and below is the amazing looking Bruno who caught my eye while his group

The Gosling Gay Badmington Group became stationary in front of us until the procession

moved on.

Above: The Hongkongers marching in the Parade on Saturday.

   

Above:  Just in front of us, the Gay Pride Parade came to a lengthy halt. And yet we had

no idea of what was actually going on at the front of the Coca Cola bus float.

Taking up a position at the Hyde Park end of Piccadilly to watch the Parade, things came

to a sudden halt with no Pride floats moving. We just assumed that the big red Coca

Cola float had broken down for what seemed like 25 long minutes with nothing happening.

It meant that the first half of the Parade had torn away leaving spectators ahead of us

wondering where the rest of the Pride floats had got to. And it wasn't until I got home and switched

on Sky News only to learn that the delay was caused by protest group 'Just Stop Oil' who lay

in the road blocking the rest of the floats. It seems that they were protesting against the events 

sponsorship deals. The anti-fossil group apparently warned Pride organizers last week that they may

or may not disrupt the event if their demands were not met. And so in the end the Police finally

arrived and seven protestors were arrested with five later charged.

More on this story with a video at YAHOO NEWS.