Manchester Pride goes into voluntary liquidation as future of LGBTQ+ event hangs in the balance
‘We had hoped to be able to find a way to continue’
A statement on the future of Manchester Pride has been issued(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
The team behind Manchester Pride have begun the process of entering into voluntary liquidation, it has been announced this afternoon – with the future of the event now in the balance.
Last week, the charitable organisation’s Board of Trustees issued a statement admitting that they were ‘currently in the process of determining the best way forward with our legal and financial advisers’.
The statement came following a ‘period of silence’ from the team with regards to communication with the hundreds of artists who performed at this year’s festival, which ran across the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Many performers spoke to the Manchester Evening News claiming they had not yet been paid for their appearance. Many said they had agreed to 60-day terms, but some acts, like RuPaul’s Drag Race UK star Banksie, had agreed to 31-day terms with the cut-off dates since passing allegedly without payment. For many, today marked the end of the 60-day payment terms.
Stay connected with our City Life newsletter here
Olly Alexander was one of the big headline acts at Manchester Pride 2025(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
The 60-day payment terms were criticised by the Equity union, which represents a number of performers, with some performers saying they did not believe they will get paid for their involvement now. In addition, the Charity Commission said it had since launched an investigation into Manchester Pride’s finances.
Manchester Pride is one of the biggest LGBTQ+ events in the UK, outside of London and celebrated its 40th anniversary earlier this year with its foundations first set up back in 1985. The festival is attended by hundreds of thousands of people each year, and attracts big-scale performers, with Olly Alexander, Leigh-Anne and Nelly Furtado headlining proceedings just this year alone.
Manchester Pride became a registered charity organisation in 2007 and the event is managed by a trustees board, who also serve as directors for two subsidiaries – Manchester Pride Ltd and Manchester Pride Events Ltd. Mark Fletcher has served as CEO since 2013.
According to its annual report, Manchester Pride raised £105,854 for LGBTQ+ groups and organisations across Greater Manchester in 2023 alone, supporting the work and efforts of around 81 projects.
Manchester Pride is one of the biggest LGBTQ+ events in the country, outside of London(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
In a statement issued today, the Manchester Pride trustee board said a number of factors, including rising costs, declining ticket sales and an ‘ambitious refresh of the format’, had resulted in the organisation ‘no longer being financially viable’. It said the recent unsuccessful bid to host EuroPride in 2028, which instead went to the West of Ireland, was also a contributing factor.
The trustees also said it ‘regret[s] the delays in communicating the current situation’, but did not want to ‘jeopardise financial opportunities while our discussions were ongoing’. They added they had tried to ‘do everything we could to find a positive solution’, and are ‘sincerely sorry’ for those who will ‘lose out financially’ as a result.
It has also been announced that all staff members of Manchester Pride will now enter into redundancy. The details of artists and suppliers ‘who are owed money’ have been passed on the appointed liquidators, who will reach out.
The statement in full is below.
Sign up to the LGBTQ+ Bulletin newsletter here
Manchester Pride’s Board of Trustees statement:
It is with enormous sadness that we announce that Manchester Pride has started the legal process of voluntary liquidation.
A combination of rising costs, which are affecting the entire events and hospitality industries. declining ticket sales and an ambitious refresh of the format aimed to challenge these issues. along with an unsuccessful bid to host Euro Pride, has led to the organisation no longer being financially viable.
We regret the delays in communicating the current situation: however, we were keen not to jeopardise financial opportunities while our discussions were ongoing. We were proactive and determined to identify solutions to the financial issues. We’ve been actively working with several partners, including legal and financial advisors, to do everything we could to find a positive solution.
We had hoped to be able to find a way to continue, and, most importantly, to support our artists, contractors and partners. Despite our best efforts. sadly, this has not proved to be possible. We are sincerely sorry for those who will now lose out financially from the current situation.
The volunteer Board of Trustees are devastated at this situation and sad to share that our staff team will be made redundant. We, along with the team, have put our hearts and souls into the celebration and community activities over two decades and are very distressed at the position in which we find ourselves. We would like to sincerely offer our thanks to all of our staff. volunteers and supporters who have contributed so much to Manchester Pride over the years.
The organisation has achieved a great deal since its creation and, in particular, since the Covid pandemic. This includes 237,000 visitors to the city, £104.8m of economic impact, 148 grants being made to grass roots community groups, positive positioning of Manchester as an inclusive city.
We hope and believe that this leaves a positive and lasting legacy for the Pride movement in Greater Manchester, and that it will continue long into the future. We will do everything we can to support this moving forward.
The Manchester Pride team have now handed over the details of suppliers and artists who are owed money to the liquidators who will be handling the affairs of the Charity and contacting everyone.
Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE
