Pride in Ramsgate: 'There are so many wonderfully unique, creative people'

If launching a new venue wasn’t involved enough, the team behind new inclusive speakeasy Salon Du Miel took their new space as an opportunity to launch a community festival. 

Singer Hedi Moran, of community arts space Sugar Rush, and now Salon Du Meil which is housed in the old WH Smith on Ramsgate’s High Street, said the team wanted to have a huge launch party that tied into Pride Month and which brought the town's queer community and the wider Ramsgate community together, and so plans for the Sugar Rush Pride Party and Pride in Ramsgate got underway. 

Along with poet and comedian Genevieve Pepper and Becky Wing, and a handful of Ramsgate Pride volunteers, Hedi has pulled together, or is in the process of pulling together, performers, organisations, businesses and individuals to create a day celebrating its queer community, which will hopefully become the launch pad for future Ramsgate Prides. 

With multiple stages, a picnic, performance, a march, a maker’s market and family activities, putting the day together in “literally just a few weeks” is no small feat. Strange Tourist caught up with Hedi to chat about creating an LGBTQI+ festival the whole town can be proud about. 

What's it like building a grassroots event almost from the ground up? 

This has been amazing and the feedback and input from the local community has been outstanding. When we launched our Pride party, pretty much all of the shops in the town are doing displays and some are hosting our community stages. 

Has seeing Margate Pride grow from a small grassroots event into a major festival influenced you and the team in any way?

Sugar Rush have a very close connection to Deal, Canterbury, Folkestone, Margate, Dover and Herne Bay Prides. We support and perform at these events. In turn they are coming and supporting us with our event. This is a great connection moving forward when it becomes a full Ramsgate Pride Event. We love having this whole community across Kent and it's so amazing to see how they are all growing and building.

What does it mean for Ramsgate to have its own Pride event? 

Having this first foray into growing our community in Ramsgate is a huge thing for us all. There are so many LGBTQ+ people in the area and to bring us all together, alongside allies, shows we can build acceptance and something wonderful from this. 

Are there plans to extend Ramsgate Pride work outside the June 1 event and Pride Month?

Sugar Rush will be doing work all year round, plus going forward, Ramsgate Pride as a group will be hosting year round community events and fundraisers.

How would you sum up Ramsgate's LGBTQ+ community? 

There are so many wonderfully unique, creative people within Ramsgate who are currently within different social and professional pickets, we hope events like these will bring the community together.

Which organisations, artists and groups are involved and what can people expect on the day?

We have such a great support network in the town put together in literally just a few weeks, everybody is rallying together to help the event as much as they can. 

We have support from Kent police and fire brigade, Diabetes UK, Boots, Halifax, Poundland, Card Factory and more. Local businesses have also been amazing. Wooden Box Cafe, Macies pub, Penelope are hosting comedy, music and disco stages, while Sugar Rush will hold a makers market, family festival, family rave and the after party. 

Ramsgate Music Hall and Screaming Alley cabaret are also involved, as are comedians Jezebel Pye, Steve Foran, Evie Ro and Elz Ward, and drag acts Emma Panda, Poppy Love and The Diety. 

There’s a picnic, and poetry, comedy, music, family festival and discos will take place throughout the day, while in the evening there’s cabaret and an after party.

You've put the call out for artists for Pride's community stages. What kind of acts are you looking for? 

We are looking for queer artistes and allies to perform on our various stages, have stalls at our makers market and volunteers to marshall the march and community stages.

We have a comedy stage, poetry stage, music and drag. It's a great opportunity for emerging artists or those trying a new thing, or those wanting to reach out to the community.

Other than the creative ribbon workshop, are there any ways people can get involved before the march? 

We are looking for people to take part in the march or watch and support. We will also be announcing on our socials details on children's dance and singing workshops for half term to perform on the day.

What are other ways people can show support?

Come along, share our posts, make people aware it's happening.

Pride in Ramsgate takes place on June 1, for more information or to get involved, visit instagram.com/sugar_rush_ramsgate