Brighton may bid to host a pan-European Pride festival in 2030.
The city council is in the process of making a bid to host EuroPride at the start of the next decade, which would involve opening and closing ceremonies and an associated human rights conference.
The event, which launched in 1992, traditionally lasts a week to ten days and features a Mardi Gras-style parade, live music, club nights and an Aids memorial vigil.
As many as one million people attended festivities at a previous EuroPride event in Rome. Amsterdam attracted more than half a million people. Brighton Pride attracts around half a million people each year.
A document being presented to councillors on Brighton and Hove City Council reads: “The council, working closely with Brighton and Hove Pride, are looking to start the process of creating community working groups to make an application to host EuroPride potentially in 2030.
“The process of preparing a bid would present an excellent opportunity for the city and Brighton and Hove Pride to engage across the city and review the opportunities and impacts of the Pride celebrations in a wider context, and understand wider opportunities for recognising and celebrating LGBTQ+ communities.”
The UK has hosted EuroPride four times - with London hosting in 1992, 2006 and 2012 and Manchester hosting in 2003.
Next year’s EuroPride will be held in Thessaloniki, Greece from June 21 to 29.
It comes as councillors are set to discuss the future of Brighton Pride for the next four years, up until 2028.
Under proposals being put forward to councillors, Preston Park could host another festival the weekend before Pride to help reduce the costs of setting up the annual event.
Next year’s Pride festival could have the possible addition of a smaller Friday night launch event in Preston Park, while the extra weekend would not start until 2025.
The report said: “From 2025, Brighton and Hove Pride are proposing a new vision working with Brighton and Hove City Council to develop events over two weekends starting at the end of July and concluding the first full weekend in August.
“The additional weekend, while managed by Brighton and Hove Pride as a mechanism to reduce financial risk, will not be part of the city Pride celebrations and will be independently branded and promoted.”
Councillors will discuss the proposals in a meeting of the culture, heritage, sport, tourism and economic development committee on Friday, December 8.
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