Praise for Pride

Brighton & Hove Council and the managing director of Brighton & Hove Pride have praised this year’s Pride weekend as a powerful celebration of unity and diversity, despite acknowledging a number of logistical hiccups. The 2025 festivities began with Saturday’s Pride parade setting off from the seafront, then winding through the city towards Preston Park, cheered on by thousands lining the route (see Brighton’s biggest bash).

An estimated 115,000 visitors arrived through Brighton Station that day, with large crowds attending both the Party on the Park - headlined by Mariah Carey - and the expanded Pride Street Party, which continued into Sunday with a closing set from Sugababes. Brighton & Hove City Council described the weekend as ‘the city’s biggest and brashest event’ and said it might well have been the largest Pride in the city’s history.

Paul Kemp, managing director of Brighton & Hove Pride, told BBC Sussex that although some people had faced delays getting into ticketed areas on Saturday, the team had acted quickly. ‘We know some people were frustrated, and we’re sorry about the delays,’ he said. ‘But public safety always comes first, and we adjusted plans quickly to improve the experience on Sunday.’

Brighton & Hove City Council also acknowledged the problems, particularly queues and entrance issues on Saturday afternoon. ‘It’s fair to say not everything went entirely smoothly,’ the council said, adding that changes had been made for Sunday and that lessons would be reviewed with organisers and partners in the months ahead.

Councillor Birgit Miller, Cabinet Member for Culture, Heritage and Tourism, thanked organisers, volunteers, and emergency services, saying: ‘It truly was a celebration of resilience, spirit, passion and unity . . . It is a massive planning operation and the work from Pride and partners across the council, police, fire, health and many more made sure it was a safe and fun event for everyone.’

The city’s clean-up operation began even before the weekend ended. The Environmental Services team collected more than 37 tonnes of rubbish, and 300 Pride Tidy Up Team volunteers joined an early Sunday morning beach clean, filling 280 bags. Most of the city centre was reported tidy by Monday morning.