Cork gets ready to celebrate Pride Fest... here are the highlights

CORK has proven itself to be a solid ally when it comes to the variety of LGBTQ events happening in the city.

With a vibrant array of events happening year round, we are in for an extra treat as Cork’s LGBT+ Pride Festival returns from July 30 to August 6.

Excitement is building among the queer community as I speak to LGBTQ+ icons in Cork and some of the people behind the scenes making it all happen. They’re giving us all the info you’ll need to make sure you don’t miss out on events happening across the week. And they will shed some light on why Pride events are so important in 2023.

Damien O’Halloran, who has been involved in the running of the festival for four years now, is one of five board member volunteers for Cork Pride. He sheds some light on the event’s theme this year and the importance of this year’s event.

“Our theme this year is ‘30 Years On…’ which commemorates the 30-year anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Ireland (in 1993). We say commemorate rather than celebrate, as whilst the removal of the repressive Victorian-era law which criminalised our community was no doubt a cause for celebration, the fact that it remained unchallenged in law for over 140 years is shameful, and difficult to comprehend in 2023,” said Damien.

Some of us might take the equality in the Ireland we live in today for granted, but we owe an enormous collective debt of gratitude to the trailblazers who tirelessly campaigned for our community in very different times, who became the architects of LGBT+ life in Ireland.

“It was their bravery, commitment, and single-minded sense of purpose that paved the way for the equal rights we all enjoy today – but whilst huge gains have been made over the past 30 years, there is still much work left to do,” he said.

This year, Cork Pride falls on the heels of the city’s first Trans Pride march, which had an impressive turn-out that surprised even the organisers themselves.

While Trans Pride was held last year, this year was the first time they marched in protest on the streets of Cork city.

“Our Trans family is constantly being attacked for simply living their lives - to use a quote from a poster used to describe ‘Homosexuals and Lesbians’ at a demonstration on Patrick Street in Cork in 1981, ‘They are our brothers, sisters, neighbours and friends.’

"We must stand shoulder to shoulder with the Trans community, an attack on one of us is an attack on all of us, and none of us are equal until all of us are equal. We were delighted to see Trans+ Pride Cork establish themselves last year and are proud to support their work and events. At the end of the day, it’s about human rights,” said Damien.

The origins of Pride are a protest, and while that’s still true, we also celebrate the journey and progress to date. 

"Thanks to our sponsors, supporters, community groups and hard-working team of volunteers, we are thrilled to be able to bring over 35 events to Cork city and county over the week from July 30 to August 6,” said Damien.

The line-up for this year’s Cork Pride is eclectic and diverse, with a large variety of events running. The newest and most anticipated events include Making a Scene, running in Fred Zepplin’s with their official Cork Pride event ‘Pride is a Riot’. Organiser and performer Boo Boo Oopsie is one of Cork’s leading drag queens, especially when it comes to her passion for activism.

‘Pride is a Protest’ has become an increasingly used slogan in the LGBTQ community and no-one shows this quite like Boo Boo Oopsie, the latest addition to Cork’s drag scene.

“The inspiration for Pride is a Riot is very much from the radical queer movements that brought us queer liberation, especially those who continue to fight for queer rights.

“The Stonewall Riots and Marsha P. Johnson throwing that first brick is an image that comes to mind. It’s the Irish queer volunteers fighting for decriminalisation 30 years ago, the folks today fighting for Trans rights and healthcare.

“They prove that pride is always a protest and radical volunteers amplifying the needs of the community is a core value for us,” Boo Boo said when talking about the motivation behind this year’s event.

“Making A Scene will continue to be a fixture in the Cork drag scene. We’re planning plenty of shows, all with ‘scenes’, I mean themes, and plenty of drag queens, kings and things, burlesque performers celebrating all things rock, punk, alternative, metal and emo,” said Boo Boo.

Boo Boo’s event, Pride Is A Riot, will take place in Fred Zepplin’s on August 5 at 9pm.

Things are kicking off this year on July 30. Pride On Tour will be taking place from 12pm to 4pm. Cork Pride will take to the roads of County Cork to lead a drive through parade through Mallow, New Twopothouse, Doneraile, Buttevant, Charleville, Mitchelstown, Fermoy, and finishing in Glanmire.

This year’s Cork Pride has some promising family friendly events happening across the weekend, and one that’s not to be missed, by the LGBTQ+ community and dog-lovers alike, is the Family Fun Day & Dog Show at Fitzgerald’s Park on Saturday August 5, from 12pm to 6pm. which promises to be “day filled with laughter, bouncy castles, face painters, balloon artists, zumba and carousel,” event co-ordinator Damien said.

“On stage we’ll have DJs, live bands and the very special Pride’s Got Talent, where the winner will get the chance to perform on stage, live at the After Party in Kennedy Quay on Sunday the 6th,” said Damien.

The main events are on Sunday, August 6.

Cork’s Pride Parade will take place in Cork City from 1-3pm that Sunday, which, as always, will be one of the highlights of the week for many.

Cork Pride Party at the Port runs from 3pm-8pm - at the Port of Cork, Kennedy Quay, featuring live performances from Wild Youth - Ireland’s Eurovision Song Contest entry- and many more.

This year, we are spoiled for choice as two of the biggest LGBTQ event organisers in Cork have teamed up to bring us Gaymers Production.

OUT at the Pavilion and Instinct Cork have come together to bring us a family-friendly event happening at the Pavillion from 5-7pm on August 6, with eight drag artists in cosplay as they battle for the title of Kween of the Nerds.

This is followed by Cork Pride’s Official After-party featuring a live performance from Wild Youth, starting at 8.30pm until late at The Pavilion, Carey’s Lane.

Some amazing work and dedication has been pulled off to bring together Cork’s LGBT+ Pride Festival this year with an impressive selection of events running across the week.

This work is done by hosts and organisers who have been creating queer spaces in Cork year-round, so be sure to see what they’re up to throughout the year too and support your local LGBTQ+ community!

For more see https://corkpride.com/events-listing/ Or follow Cork Pride on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter