For Exeter students, the day’s events had an early start, as participants filled up Devonshire house to partake in a morning of guild-ran activities. These included an LGBT breakfast and art sessions, where eager students created placards and friendship bracelets.
One attendee, Nia, presented a cardboard sign reading, ‘Birder and Proud’. Curious, her explanation was that it was international birdwatching day, ‘I decided to incorporate this birdwatching hobby of mine with LGBTQ.’
It was to be a familiar theme as the day unfolded.
Exeter’s entourage began its march down to Sidwell Street just before 11am, where crowds already thronged the streets. It was not hard to find a smiling face among the thousands gathered, as the dressed-up participants intermingled in a carnival atmosphere.
One student spoke of her relief in being able to attend her first pride celebration – she had felt unable to express her orientation in her home country of China. Though each brought a different story, hers was far from alone – many others were also first-time marchers, and excitement was a word on everyone’s lips.
Another participant, Georgia, attended the march after the Supreme Court ruling on the legal definition of ‘woman’. Her identity as a trans woman has always been a topic she kept hidden as a child. The latest ruling inspired her to come to Pride to voice out that trans people like herself do exist.
The parade itself was diverse as it was colourful, with the slow-marching masses including drag artists, furries and a detachment from Spectrum – Exeter’s first LGBTQ choir.
Catching up with an organizer for one participating group, Exeter Palestine Solidarity, she spoke of her group’s motivation to highlight a rights campaign that she felt ran in parallel to her own, describing both LGBT and Palestinians as groups facing ‘oppression’.
Ultimately, the ‘bring your own cause’ mindset speaks to the ethos of pride events – almost by definition platforms for a spectrum of ideas and identities to coalesce without fear or scrutiny.
The inclusion of political messaging has been the cause of recent controversy, with some pride organizers moving to ban political participation, amid criticism for perceived commercialisation, so-called ‘rainbow capitalism’. Certainly, the march proved a fertile outlet for branding – Rainbow-striped Lidl umbrellas and GWR’s eye-catching bucket hats were unmissable over the course of the day.
Does it really matter if Lloyds Bank is decorated in rainbow colours for a month once a year? Our conversation with Russell Back, Chair of Exeter Pride, put an important point into perspective. The earliest Pride events in Exeter were often small in scale since there was little sponsorship. Back emphasised the significance of Exeter Pride receiving the generous grant by The National Lottery Community Fund combined with sponsorships from Tesco, the law firm Trowers & Hamlins, the Devon County Council, and many more. While some look at the rainbow logos and dismiss it as ‘rainbow capitalism’, these rainbow cheques enable Exeter Pride to be one of the biggest free Pride events in the South of England.
When asked about plans for Exeter Pride 2026, Russell Back boasted his plans for the pride events to be even bigger by covering more of the city. His exact words are: ‘Next year, we want to gay the whole of Exeter up!’
We look forward to holding the Exeter Pride committee accountable to their goal next year.
