This year's Pride celebrations in Folkestone will be a town wide festival, kicking off with a parade along The Leas.

The annual, worldwide event celebrates the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, and everyone is invited to join the party.

Pride will come back to Folkestone for a third time on Saturday, July 20 and will feature live music, drag artists and theatre shows.

The day will commence with a parade along The Leas, with attendees invited to meet under the memorial archway at the start of the Leas at midday.

This will be followed by a rooftop party on top of the Leas Cliff Hall from 12.30pm-5pm, with DJs, sing-a-longs and live entertainment planned for the day, as well as family events - including two drag story time sessions.

The revelries will move on to Folkestone’s Creative Quarter for the second part of the day, with free live music at Kipps Alehouse from 3.30-6pm and Tom Marshman’s show 'A Haunted Existence' at The Quarterhouse at 7pm. Tickets are pay what you can.

The Blue Martini Bar and Skuba Bar, both situated on The Leas, will be flying the rainbow flag for the festival, with further DJs and special Pride cocktails.

And Bacchus will be serving Camp Cocktails as the official warm up bar, ahead of the official after party at Eleto Chocolate Cafe from 8pm.

A host of official food and drinks venues across the town will be running food and drinks promotions to show their support, including The Chambers, Planet Earth Kitchen, Carte D’or and Yo Yo Street Food, with many more still to be announced.

Attendees are encouraged to dress up in the best Pride Party wear to receive discounts on the day.

This year the party is under new management.

A spokesman for the Pride Team said: "In light of recent events involving the LGBTQI community, it's become even more pertinent to celebrate Pride and what it stands for.

"One could be forgiven for thinking we have jumped back a few decades, following what seems to be a rise in persecutory behaviour.

"Folkestone Pride is still in its infancy but we are growing and rely heavily on the support of the local community and beyond."

Around 1,000 people attended the first Pride in Folkestone in 2017.

Fundraising for this year's festival has already started, with recent events such as Fight for Pride, Backyard Auction and Pride’s Got Talent, plus donations and support have been received from businesses, Folkestone and Hythe District Council, Creative Folkestone and Southeastern Trains.

Other events such as Dance with Pride and Pride in Football will take place over the coming weeks, ahead of the festival, plus there will be Pride bunting down The Old High Street to raise awareness.

The full programme for Folkestone Pride can be found here.

Follow @FolkestonePride on Facebook for more information.

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