Liverpool Pride 2012 attracted thousands of visitors

LIVERPOOL PRIDE saw a record crowd of more than 50,000 people bring the city to life in a rainbow of colour. The huge crowds – including Liverpool FC captain Steven Gerrard and wife Alex Curran – converged on the Pier Head and the city’s Gay Quarter. Despite teeming rain more than 6,000 people took to the streets for the annual Pride March, which snaked from St George’s Plateau to Mann Island in a tide of colour, music and celebration Led by Wallasey MP Angela Eagle, the Pride patron, the march also featured representatives from both Liverpool and Everton clubs. Revellers were treated to a day of live music, with stand-out performances from Crosby X Factor star Marcus Collins and ex-Atomic Kitten Liz McClarnon. Festival spokesman John Bridge said the day was “a resounding success”. He told the ECHO: “We increased our visitor numbers by something like 15,000 on last year and every single one of those people will have had an amazing time. Everyone was really thrilled by it. “For a young festival, and a LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) festival, to grow so much in three years is incredible. “We are quite overwhelmed with the response we have had from across Liverpool – not just the LGBT community, but from families and the straight community who turned out in their droves to support us. “It shows Liverpool as the forward-thinking, tolerant and vibrant city it is.” The festival, now the UK’s biggest free pride event outside of London, themed the celebrations ‘Nautical but Nice’ – commemorating 100 years since the sinking of the Titanic. Article: 5th August 2012 www.liverpoolecho.co.uk