Pride is a festival all about love and accepting your true self - with the rainbow flag flying high above Dane John Gardens, Canterbury truly embraced the festivities.

Although, if you're not part of the LGBTQ+ community, can you still support the event and have a good time?

Dane John Gardens was awash with colour as the celebrations got under way

Pride Canterbury is the city's first large-scale event for more than 18 months, so I had expected a large crowd but nothing like the sea of people I would soon become lost in.

Arriving in the city centre I was initially greeted with some road congestion from the sheer volume of people attending, alongside the planned weekend closure of the A2.

However, my vehicle troubles did not end there as the next dilemma faced was where to park. The car park directly next to Dane John Gardens was completely full and after some desperate circling I resorted to the expensive Whitefriars multi-story - £2.30 an hour!

Although this did mean a short walk through the mall, I soon realised that Pride was not confined to Dane John Gardens and was in fact spilling out rapidly and flooding the entire city with glitter and colour.

Initially, finding the entrance was a bit of a struggle as it wasn't clearly signposted, but after asking some friendly stewards in luminous orange vests I began my journey across the bridge to the other side of the park where the entrance was located.

The event was free so there were no queues to check tickets, but before getting into the venue my bag was checked by security. This immediately made me feel at ease that the organisers were ensuring this event was as safe as possible.

However, there was no requirement for proof of a negative coronavirus test or vaccination card. The Pride Canterbury social media page instead shared an informative graphic encouraging attendees to take their own precautionary measures.

I must admit that this made me slightly nervous to fully immerse myself in the crowd despite the open air venue.

For others feeling anxious to be in a crowd, there were areas of the park away from the bandstand that allowed for more social distancing.

My first reaction to the festival was just an overwhelming feeling of positivity - it felt that everyone was welcome to join in the celebrations, with all ages, genders, sexualities and ethnicities represented within the Canterbury gardens.

Alcohol was served from two bar areas for the grown-ups, and an area to the right of the bandstand was transformed into a food court with burger and ice cream vans as well as a Greek pop-up shop serving incredible halloumi fries.

With the alcoholic beverages being served and consumed at lightning speed, spirits remained high but children were just as welcome to enjoy the entertainment with a soft drink.

It may not be the most 'family friendly' event, with some provocative language from performers later in the afternoon, but every child I saw had a huge smile on their face.

The team at Pride even dedicated a tent towards the back of the crowd for children's face painting and glitter.

Deciding against finding glitter in every corner of my house for the next decade, I swiftly moved past this tent - although with reasonably cheap prices it was rather tempting!

To truly soak up every essence of pride, I made my way to the bandstand that had been kitted out with a DJ booth and big screens reminiscent of those at a large scale concert or sports match.

This was the beating heart of the event with boy band chart-toppers 5ive headlining the event.

The crowd were loud and vibrant for every performer regardless of status, with each artist receiving an equal roar of excitement.

However, after my first real-life drag queen experience at Glitterbomb in the Park last month, I was most excited to see the top drag entertainers take the stage in Kent once again.

From the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race UK, Baga Chipz and Cheryl Hole returned to the city with 15-minute set pieces.

Baga Chipz spoke to the crowd, encouraging love for everyone "whether you're gay, straight or anything in between".

As an LGBTQ+ ally this was reassuring to hear, as the worry attending these events can be that you feel as though you're crashing the party.

Sophia Stardust, a drag artist from Canterbury also took to the stage alongside River Medway, who is set to feature in the new series of RuPaul's Drag Race UK on Thursday.

She said: "I perform at Glitterbomb in Canterbury all the time, so I started drag here.

"I've never done a gig before that is this full and energetic. Everyone is so lovely - it's so nice to be around that.

"You don't see it everyday, but then when you're here you realise that Canterbury is just full of so much love."

The positivity Sophia radiated was infectious and I felt completely welcome in her company, regardless of whether I identified as LGBTQ+ or not.

The final hour of the six and a half hour gig in Dane John Gardens felt the most relaxed as the DJ took control of the entertainment, playing everything from Lady Gaga to Abba - the true LGBTQ+ classics.

The team from Glitterbomb also took to the stage leading dance parties and promoting their after party event at Tokyo Tea Rooms.

It is rare to feel such an intense rush of positivity, but the entire community felt so accepting to absolutely everyone.

Jodie and Abby travelled from outside of the city for the event and said: "It's just great, the sun is shining, the music is playing and the drinks are flowing.

"Everyone is just so lovely and friendly it's so amazing."

Meanwhile, Manish Kaushik from Rochester was attending with his son and said: "It has been very diverse and friendly - overall it has been inclusive.

"The only thing I would say is I would've liked more food options for vegans."

Leaving the festival, the sun continued to shine but the real warmth I felt came from those around me.

So in answer to my question - yes, even if you aren't part of the LGBTQ+ community you can still enjoy pride events in all of their colourful glory.

As long as you're an ally and accepting of the true reasoning behind the festivities, I think you would struggle to find a community as welcoming as the one I experienced today.

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