Adam Lambert had been due to headline Manchester Pride 2020. (Getty/Noam Galai)
Manchester Pride 2020 organisers said they are “heartbroken and devastated” to cancel this year’s event.
Manchester has become the last major Pride parade in the UK to be cancelled due to coronavirus.
“The decision is not one that has been taken lightly,” a statement released Monday (May 11) read.
“Our small team has been working tirelessly o ensure we would be prepared for every eventuality, and we have consulted with everyone that we needed to in order to reach this decision.
“To put it simply, the ongoing situation is incredibly uncertain and it would be too much of a risk to go ahead with plans to deliver the festival this year.”
As Manchester Pride takes place in August, after other major Prides, it was hoped that social distancing measures would have lifted in time for it to take place.
But after Boris Johnson’s speech to the nation on Sunday (May 10), it is now clear that lockdown will remain in place — in some form or other — throughout the summer.
What happens to Manchester Pride tickets?
All tickets purchased for Manchester Pride 2020 will be rolled over to next year’s event, however refunds will be made available.
Manchester Pride asked that people seeking a refund consider donating part of the monies owed to the Pride charity.
“We understand many of you have found yourselves in financially insecure situations, and that you may need to request a refund, in which case we would ask that you await communication from Ticketmaster which will be sent in due course,” its statement said.
“There are options within here to donate part of your ticket refund to Manchester Pride which will help us safeguard the future of the charity. This is applicable to all tickets.”
Adam Lambert had been due to headline Manchester Pride 2020.
Adam Lambert had been due to headline the pride. At this stage, organisers said, they cannot confirm if he will be able to perform at the rescheduled 2021 event.
“We are hugely grateful to all the artists that we had booked to perform at the festival this year and many of them have agreed to return to perform for us in 2021 to help us deliver the biggest and best Manchester Pride Festival in 2021,” they said.
Organisers added that they hope to hold some form of celebration later in the year.
“We are committed to ensuring we celebrate our wonderful LGBTQ+ communities in some way this year, and that everyone feels represented and included. We can’t quite say what that will look like just yet.”
Manchester Pride’s announcement comes immediately after Brighton Pride announced an “Over the Rainbow” theme for its 2021 event.