TRUE PRIDE festival to launch in Manchester with fully queer‑curated line-up

A new Pride festival centring LGBTQ+ artists, voices and audiences is set to launch in Manchester this summer.

TRUE PRIDE, an exclusively queer-curated event spanning music, performance, film and community, will take place at Hidden on Saturday, 1 August, with tickets now on sale.

The inaugural festival will bring together a diverse programme running from late afternoon through to the early hours, featuring live music, DJs, comedy, talks, film screenings, wellness activities and performance across multiple spaces.

Organisers say TRUE PRIDE has been created in response to what they describe as the underrepresentation of queer artists in mainstream Pride programming.

Founded by a team of LGBTQ+ curators - including musician Jamie Irrepressible alongside Manchester-based DJs Bollibubbles & Sandra D, Liam Walsh & Sally McFerran - the festival aims to place queer creativity firmly at the forefront.

The team behind the event said Pride should prioritise LGBTQ+ voices and experiences, adding that the festival seeks to reclaim space for artists to “speak for ourselves, create for ourselves, and refuse to be sidelined”.

The event will take place across several themed areas within the venue, including an Indie Room, a seated acoustic space, an electronica basement and an outdoor area titled Groove is in the Joy.

“TRUE PRIDE is about creating a space where queer artists, audiences and stories are not on the sidelines but at the centre.”

Further programming includes an art-house queer film room and an Arts Lounge hosting interviews, talks, avant-garde pop performances, a live string quartet and dedicated wellness sessions.

From midnight until 2am, the festival will transform into a late-night celebration, with queer DJs playing exclusively queer music across all three floors.

Artists confirmed so far include Planningtorock, Jasmine.4.t, The Irrepressibles, The Hidden Cameras, DJ Bollibubbles, Leo Chadburn, DJ Sandra D, Kerry Leigh, Ollie Becker, Run Remedy, Alabaster Queen and Jamie Irrepressible performing a PA/DJ set.

Organisers say the line-up reflects a commitment to showcasing both established names and emerging talent from across the LGBTQI+ community, with further acts still to be announced.

Jamie Irrepressible said the festival is about building a space where queer culture is fully represented. “TRUE PRIDE is about creating a space where queer artists, audiences and stories are not on the sidelines but at the centre,” he said.

“It’s about building something celebratory, representative and genuinely exciting - a platform for both emerging voices and established artists across the community.”

Alongside the festival, organisers have launched the OND Fund, a new bursary supporting queer songwriters from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Run by Of Naked Design, the fund will award two UK musicians £2,000 each annually to support projects such as recording an EP or single, funding a mini-tour or staging a launch event. Successful applicants will also perform at TRUE PRIDE.

Jamie Irrepressible said the initiative aims to address a lack of support for queer artists in the industry. “It has always been an aspiration of mine to help musicians like myself who have struggled as queer musicians, especially those from a working-class background,” he said. “It’s getting easier for queer musicians, but there is still little support in popular music.”

TRUE PRIDE will take place at Hidden, 16–18 Mary Street, Manchester, and is open to those aged 18 and over.

Organisers say the festival is designed to be a bold, inclusive and community-driven alternative within the Pride calendar - one that is “unmistakably representative of the whole community”.

TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE