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Manchester Pride Festival 2024 – parade route, line-up, tickets and more

It's almost time for the party of the year.

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 14th August 2024

One of the biggest events in Greater Manchester’s cultural calendar is almost upon us, as the city gears up for Manchester Pride Festival 2024.

From the glittering parade that attracts thousands to the city centre, to the live music and performances on the stages in the Gay Village, and on to the nightlife scene that gets busier than ever for one glorious weekend, there’s something for everyone.

The Manchester Pride Festival 2024 will culminate in the touching and poignant candlelit vigil in Sackville Gardens, where people come together to remember those we have lost to HIV.

This year’s event will once again fall on the August bank holiday weekend, which means it falls between Friday 23 and Monday 26 August.

Manchester Pride Festival 2024 parade

The Manchester Pride Parade is back for 2024. Credit: Carl Sukonik
The Manchester Pride Parade is back for 2024. Credit: Carl Sukonik

It’s probably the most popular element of the Manchester Pride Festival every year, and 2024 is set to be no different.

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This year’s parade theme is ‘Buzzin’ to be Queer – A Hive of Progress’, a nod to the city’s worker bee emblem as well as a symbol that shows how much stronger communities can be when they work together.

The parade will start at midday on Saturday 24 August and weave its way through the city centre, ending up in the Gay Village.

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It starts at the junction of Liverpool Road and Deansgate and ends on Fairfield Street, but the exact route map hasn’t yet been released. We’ll update this as soon as it is.

Tickets and wristband exchange for Manchester Pride Festival 2024

Tickets are still on sale for Manchester Pride Festival 2024. Credit: Gemma Parker
Tickets are still on sale for Manchester Pride Festival 2024. Credit: Gemma Parker

Tickets for Manchester Pride Festival 2024 are still up for grabs, and weekend tickets are great value for money.

Day tickets are priced at £41 for either Friday, Saturday or Sunday – that’s just for the Gay Village Party (the candlelit vigil, parade, and many other Manchester Pride events are free to attend).

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Weekend tickets cost £49.25 each, so you may as well go all-out and have a full party weekend. Would be rude not to, really.

Before you go to Manchester Pride Festival, you need to swap your ticket for a ‘Pledge Band’ wristband at the exchange point.

This year, you’ll find it on Aytoun Street Car Park. The opening times are below:

  • Friday 25 August: 12:00 – 00:00
  • Saturday 26 August: 12:00 – 00:00
  • Sunday 27 August: 12:00 – 00:00
  • Monday 28 August: 12:00 – 18:00

A fixed donation of £2.50 from every ticket sold goes directly to the Manchester Pride Community Fund, ensuring that LGBTQ+ causes and projects in Greater Manchester receive vital support with grants that are distributed throughout the year. Pledge Band tickets must be purchased to facilitate the event.

Who’s on the line-up at Manchester Pride Festival 2024?

Sugababes will perform at Jockey Club Live
Sugababes. Credit: Publicity picture

It’s another cracking line-up for the LGBTQ+ festival this year, with headliners including girlband icons Sugababes, Brit Award-winner Jessie J, two-time Eurovision champ Loreen, and Rita Ora.

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Just added to the line-up is also Gok Wan, whose DJ sets have become a Pride favourite.

Also performing are The Greatest Showman actress and singer Keala Settle, Atomic Kitten’s Natasha Hamilton with Danny Beard & Friends; and Steps’ Claire Richards over on the Alan Turing Stage, alongside Pride Divas with Misty Chance. 

On Saturday, the Indoor Arena will pay homage to Manchester’s warehouse clubbing legacy and will host the Gaydio Dance Arena. Headlined by DJ Paulette, there’ll be a line-up of Gaydio DJs including Dave Cooper and Forbid.

There’ll be disco, house and funk galore at The Village Stage when Black Pride MCR takes over, while the Queer Asian Takeover returns to the Alan Turing stage.

Bimini has sadly pulled out of the festival, along with BollyWitch, Felix Mufti and Dan Chan – you can read more on that here.

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See more on the 2024 Manchester Pride Festival line-up here.

How to travel to Manchester Pride Festival 2024

By tram – The easiest way to get to and from Manchester Pride Festival is using Metrolink. The nearest stops are Piccadilly Gardens for the Gay Village Party), and Deansgate-Castlefield or St Peter’s Square (for the parade).

By train – The closest train stations to the event are Manchester Piccadilly or Oxford Road.

By bus – Take a bus to Manchester Piccadilly Gardens. From there, the Gay Village Party event site is a two minute walk and just across the road.

By plane – From Manchester Airport, you can take a train or the Metrolink tram to Manchester Piccadilly. Alternatively, you can take a bus to Piccadilly Gardens from the airport.

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By car – Manchester will be very busy with a number of road closures in place over Manchester Pride weekend, so if you really need to drive you might want to look at using a park and ride and completing your journey by tram.

Other events (Ginny Lemon’s Dog Show, Family Pride, Youth Pride, Superbia, Scene Screen thing)

It’s not just about the live music and the parade – Manchester Pride Festival is big and really does have something for everyone.

Superbia – this year-round arts and culture programme also puts on a cracking series of events each year as part of the festival, always showcasing Manchester’s queer talent. Many of these events are alcohol-free, accessible spaces and you’ll find everything from music to dance to workshops to parties. See more here.

Youth Pride MCR – this programme of events is specially designed for young people aged 14-18, and includes workshops, performances from young drag stars, a rooftop party, drag bingo, board games, and so much more. Find out more about Youth Pride MCR here.

Family Pride MCR – the best thing about family is that everyone’s looks a little different, and that’s celebrated to the max at Family Pride MCR, which has loads of events and advice for families. If you’re wanting to take your whole brood along to the festival, here’s a dedicated guide (and a few events just for you too).

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Ginny Lemon’s Dog Show – the most fabulous pups in Manchester will be strutting their stuff in this barking mad event, hosted by Ginny Lemon and Fatt Butcher. It’s billed as the ‘campest event of the Manchester Pride Festival’, which is saying something… It’s happening on Sunday in Sackville Gardens.

Candelit Vigil – of course, no Manchester Pride event could happen without taking some time to honour and reflect on those we have lost to HIV, and to stand united in the fight against the global epidemic and the persistent stigma that surrounds it. This poignant final event in the Manchester Pride Festival weekend is hosted in partnership with George House Trust, and will be live-streamed for anyone who can’t attend on Monday.

Featured image: Gemma Parker

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Electronic icons Kraftwerk announce first Manchester gig since 2017

Danny Jones Danny Jones Kraftwerk O2 Apollo Manchester tickets

Pioneering German band Kraftwerk have announced their first UK tour since 2017, with fans having to wait almost a decade for another Manchester gig.

Thankfully, they’ll be heading back down the Autobahn and across the channel for a return to our shores soon enough with a long-awaited list of British and Irish live dates.

Kraftwerk remains one of the most groundbreaking groups in the electronic scene to this day, having paved the way for generations of new artists to keep experimenting with the genre in the 50+ years since their formation.

Heading back to Manchester early next year, die-hards will no doubt snap these tickets faster than you can say ‘Das Model’.

For anyone unaware of these veritable legends of electronica and the world of alternative/Euro-synth pop, Kraftwerk formed all the way back in 1970 and went on to shape the modern music industry, bridging the gap between music and the digital age.

Best known for tracks like ‘Computer Love’, ‘The Robots’, ‘Pocket Calculator’ and the aforementioned on named after the national motorway network, they spearheaded futurism in the musical landscape from the outset.

It seems only fitting, therefore, that their upcoming highly anticipated return to the UK comes as part of their ‘Multimedia’ tour.

While they have played a number of live shows all over the globe this year, including an extensive run in the US, next spring will be our domestic visit from Kraftwerk in nine long years.

Credit: Press shot (supplied)

You can see the full list of UK and Ireland tour dates – including a handful of Northern gigs – down below:

Kraftwerk UK/IE tour dates 2026

May

  • 17 – Dublin, Bord Gais Energy Theatre
  • 18 – Belfast, Waterfront Hall
  • 21 – Wolverhampton, Civic Hall
  • 22 – Manchester, O2 Apollo
  • 25 – Glasgow, Royal Concert Hall
  • 27 – Stockton, Globe
  • 29 – Sheffield, City Hall
  • 30 – Brighton, Centre

June

  • 1 – Bristol, Beacon
  • 2 – Bournemouth, International Centre
  • 4 – London, Royal Albert Hall
  • 5 – London, Royal Albert Hall
  • 7 – Liverpool, Empire Theatre
  • 8 – Nottingham, Royal Concert Hall
  • 9 – Edinburgh, Playhouse

Spanning a total of 15 UK dates, as you can see, there will also be tickets to see Kraftwerk nearby in the likes of Liverpool and with our mates over in Sheffield.

Kraftwerk legend Ralf Hütter famously played a set inside our city’s velodrome at the National Cycling Centre for Manchester International Festival (MIF) back in 2009, and has collaborated with the event on multiple ocassions.

In fact, that very performance was seen as a turning point for MIF, so the Manc Kraftwerk connection speaks for itself; O2 members can obviously get pre-sale, but general admission tickets go live from 9am this Friday, 10 October.

Get ready to grab yours HERE.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra announce Manchester gig among just a handful of UK dates on European tour
This isn’t the only big alternative/electronic gig we’re looking forward to either…

Read more:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Press shots (supplied)

What's On

Dazzling Christmas light trail to return to Chester Zoo with new installations this winter

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Chester Zoo has announced that it’s dazzling Christmas light trail will be returning this winter with some new installations.

Still think it’s a bit too early to mention the ‘C’ word? Well you’ll have to start getting used to it soon, because Chester Zoo‘s massively-popular Christmas lights trail is set to return very soon and organisers are promising this year’s trail will be its ‘brightest ever’ – with a whole raft of new additions.

The zoo has, once again, teamed up with entertainment giants Sony Music to deliver this year’s Lanterns and Light spectacle.

Over the past couple of years, Lanterns and Light has proved to be such a success that it’s developed into one of the North West’s biggest and longest-running festive light trails, and all profits from the event support the zoo’s charitable mission to prevent wildlife extinction.

A dazzling Christmas light trail will be returning to Chester Zoo with new installations this winter / Credit: Chester Zoo

All profits from the event, which will run on selected nights from 14 November 2025 until 3 January 2026, will support the zoo’s charitable mission to prevent wildlife extinction.

This year’s trail will see the zoo transform into a spectacular winter wonderland with colour-changing forests, glowing animals, show-stopping puppets and, brand-new for this year, a host of new immersive installations.

Among the exciting new highlights for 2025 is The Airquarium, which is a dreamlike world filled with floating, glowing sea creatures, and the Bubble Walk which will bring a joyful explosion of light and colour.

All profits support the zoo’s charitable mission to prevent wildlife extinction / Credit: Chester Zoo

Also debuting this year is Submergence – an awe-inspiring walk-through tunnel of light that fully immerses guests in a dazzling, interactive display.

Dozens of life-sized animal puppets, animated by expert performers, will also line the trail.

Alongside all these new additions will be a bunch of returning favourite attractions like giant festive baubles, neon-lit walkways, marshmallow toasting stations, fairground rides, and an enchanting fire garden, as well as a chance to catch a glimpse of Father Christmas hard at work in his toy workshop with his busy team of elves.

“We’re bringing something new and spectacular to Lanterns and Light in 2025, and it’s planned to be our brightest Christmas trail ever,” commented Gemma Wright, who is the Head of Guest Experience at Chester Zoo.

“What makes Lanterns and Light so special is that it’s not only an unforgettable festive experience, but also one with real purpose behind it.

“Every ticket purchased helps to fund Chester Zoo’s vital conservation work right here at the zoo, where we care for and breed some of the world’s most threatened species, and in more than 20 countries globally where we’re working with partners to prevent extinction.

“By joining us for this magical evening, visitors are also helping to secure a brighter future for wildlife globally.”

Read more:

Lanterns and Light will return to Chester Zoo from Friday 14 November 2025 and will run on selected evenings right through to 3 January 2026 – with tickets now on sale, priced at £19 for adults, £12 for children, £2.50 for toddlers, and free for babies.

You can get your hands on tickets here.

Featured Image – Chester Zoo

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