The Skipton Pride celebrations that took place from Thursday 6th to Sunday 9th of July have been deemed a great success with hundreds of people attending inspiring, celebratory and empowering events.
Theatre, music, comedy, dance and various engaging activities and creative workshops for families and young people were organised by North Yorkshire Council Cultural Services Team at Skipton Town Hall with support from North Yorkshire Libraries, North Yorkshire Youth Voice, and Skipton BID.
The Pride Street Party on Sunday 9th of July was a highlight of the festivities. Visitors enjoyed free entertainment in the Skipton Town Hall concert hall and Museum Yard Amphitheatre which included performances from Choriza May, star of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Amanda Lovett from BBC1 hit show, The Traitors and The Big Gay Disco Bike, alongside fabulous performances from our Skipton and Craven community including Skipton Ukelele Club, Craven College, Neon Town, Connor Fisher, Ferne Ando and Fifth Apollo.
Photo Credit: Stephen Garnett
There was a diverse array of over a dozen community stalls showcased around the Town Hall complex, with representation from The Samaritans, Skipton Step Into Action, North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue and Skipton Methodist Church to name a but a few. Community stalls offered activities, advice, information and lots of cake to visitors on the day, really adding to the festival spirit of the event. More stalls down Jerry Croft featured various food and drink options, clothing, flags and other Pride-themed retail and souvenirs.
North Yorkshire Youth Voice were very busy at their drop-in workshops for families and young people, held at Skipton Library and Museum Yard – with a host craft activities to try and a protest wall made by participants through the day.
Special guests from Yarndale festival held a day-long drop-in woolly workshop in the Town Hall Education Room, and the Town Hall was festooned with the fabulous colourful knitted bunting made by members.
The events have received fantastic feedback from the public who have praised the organiser, Skipton Town Hall, for delivering a “friendly and accessible Pride” and described the location for this year as “a lovely chilled and welcoming place”. Staff were praised for being ‘friendly, funny and reassuring” and “working tirelessly to try create a welcoming event for everyone.”
The entertainment for the day was supported by sponsors Glentrool, owners of the Albion Place retail hub