Pink in the Park was a celebration of the wonderful and too-often-hidden histories of Bradford’s LGBTQ+ community. People of all ages and backgrounds were welcome – and it was all absolutely free.

This big day out in Peel Park was inspired by the short-lived but much-loved ’80s gay festival Bradford in the Pink, the Bradford Lesbian & Gay Picnics of the ’90s and a host of other groups, collectives, events and grassroots gatherings created by the district’s LGBTQ+ community down the years. It was all part of Back in the Pink, a celebration of the city’s LGBTQ+ heritage.

The heart of Pink in the Park was a picnic. People brought their own – or for those who arrived early, they collected one of the special picnic goodie bags that celebrated the food and drink heritage of the LGBTQ+ community, and the collective meals and recipes from community publications.

We put on our dancing shoes and stepped back in time with DJs transporting us through 50 years of gay clubbing culture, from the 1970s to 2025, with classic anthems from every era, drag interpretations of classic tunes and a very special dancealong hosted by Fatt Projects.

There was also…

• Screenprinting your own specially designed poster – created by Alan Richardson, member of Bradford Gay Switchboard and the original designer/printer of the poster for Bradford in the Pink back in 1985.
• Playing a range of games inspired by past events at our free family fete.
• Making your own button badge in one of several new designs, all inspired by Castles in the Sky Projects’ archive of pride and protest badges.
• Contributing to the collective zine, inspired by magazines, newsletters and zines created by Bradford’s LGBTQ+ groups and collectives from the 70’s to the present day.
• Having a kickabout with the Bradford Baddies, Bradford’s grassroots football team for women, trans and non-binary people.

Pink in the Park was part of Back in the Pink, a series of events and a new archive celebrating the rich and radical history of LGBTQ+ life in Bradford.