With Pride in London set to take over the capital on Saturday, 4 July, Queer Britain has announced an expanded summer programme celebrating LGBTQ+ history, creativity and community, with new exhibitions, events and late openings at the UK’s national LGBTQ+ museum.
Based in King’s Cross, Queer Britain has announced a series of additions to its 2026 schedule, including evening openings, outdoor cinema, author talks and collaborations across London. The museum is open Wednesday to Sunday from noon to 6pm, with late-night openings planned for Thursday, 18 June, Thursday, 16 July and Thursday, 20 August.
Visitors arriving at the museum this June will also be greeted by a 90-metre-long rainbow-lit tunnel connecting King’s Cross Underground station to King’s Boulevard. The light installation, which runs daily from 7am to 8pm, marks Pride Month and leads directly towards Queer Britain’s entrance.
Among the summer highlights is a free outdoor screening of the cult 2005 film Kinky Boots, curated by Queer Britain as part of the Everyman on the Canal cinema season. The screening will take place at 7.30pm on Saturday, 4 July, offering audiences a chance to unwind after the Pride parade.
Earlier this year, Queer Britain reopened its galleries with new displays for 2026 featuring more than 200 objects, including a panel from the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt, costumes from Club Kali, football shirts worn by Justin Fashanu, and protest music linked to the Women’s Liberation movement.
A special pop-up exhibition, Fighting With Pride, runs until 20 December and explores the experiences of LGBTQ+ veterans affected by the historic ban on gay people serving in the Armed Forces. Developed in partnership with the charity Fighting With Pride, the exhibition tells the stories of service members who were dismissed and stripped of medals because of their sexuality.
The museum’s summer programme also includes a series of “meet the author” events, featuring Max Hovey discussing No Fats, No Fems on 24 June, Emily Garside exploring Rainbow Wales on 27 June, and Mollie E. Barnes and Gemma Rolls-Bentley presenting Queer Art on 22 July.
Beyond King’s Cross, Queer Britain has partnered with the National Theatre on a major photography exhibition, We Are Queer Britain, running in the Lyttelton Lounge alongside Pride the Musical. The exhibition documents more than 150 years of British LGBTQ+ history and is free to visit until 1 October.
On Pride day itself, Queer Britain is also collaborating with the FUJIFILM House of Photography on a “Queer Love” photo booth in Trafalgar Square. Selected images will later be exhibited in Covent Garden and added to Queer Britain’s permanent archive.
Andrew Given, Chief Executive of Queer Britain, said the programme reflected the museum’s commitment to celebrating LGBTQ+ stories year-round. “As we mark 54 years since the first London Pride, there’s no better time to visit Queer Britain to explore stories of community, creativity and resilience, and to celebrate our shared queer history - past and present,” Given said.
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