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Margate Pride is this weekend, with Melanie C, Sink the Pink and Rainbow Week at Dreamland

An explosion of exuberance is set to envelope the Thanet coast as Margate Pride parades in for a fourth year.

Thousands will be standing proud when Pride struts its stuff this weekend.

But Margate Pride isn't just for the day - organisers see it as an expression of a whole community and want people to make it their own.

Margate Pride Picture: Tony Flashman
Margate Pride Picture: Tony Flashman

Think homemade bunting, upcycled outfits and plenty of homegrown sass to wear them in.

Related events lead up to the main event, with LGBT campaigners taking part and Swangsong, a mixed-media show exploring attitudes to masculinity, showing at the Tom Thumb Theatre on Thursday, August 8.

The Pride Parade last year Picture: Tony Flashman
The Pride Parade last year Picture: Tony Flashman

The main celebrations start at 2pm on Saturday, August 10, with a parade from Cliftonville near Walpole Bay Hotel to the main sand beach.

An afternoon street party will run from noon to 6pm, with main stage entertainment from 3pm which will see Spice Girl Melanie C headline the Saturday evening show at Dreamland and drag dance troupe, Sink the Pink will be putting on a show.

Margate Pride arrives this weekend
Margate Pride arrives this weekend

Tickets for the event, which will run from 7pm to 10.30pm, start at £11 including rides and can be bought online.

This year's theme is 'beside the seaside', so expect sailors and mermaids in the crowd, while Cockles and Muscles: Celebs in Swimwear will be the official Pride after party. Held at Lido Cliff Bar, there will be music from 9pm to 3am, and tickets start at £7. To find out more click here.

Pride parades in last year Picture: Tony Flashman
Pride parades in last year Picture: Tony Flashman

FOR FAMILIES

As part of Dreamland's Roller Coast summer festival, this week will be Rainbow Week, celebrating all things colourful, cute and camp in the build-up to Margate Pride, including a dress-up screening of Spice World The Movie on Thursday, August 8.

Running until Sunday, August 11, there will be Pride workshops, as well as rainbow slime workshops; a Little Fluffy Clouds family rave and the unveiling of a new 7m tall and 7m wide Tina Turner head inflatable artwork on Saturday, August 10. The head will also mark the launch of Dreamland’s answer to the Turner Prize at nearby Turner Contemporary - The Tina Turner Prize, an open competition to find a new Tina Turner-themed artwork for the Mural by The Sea billboard.

The Tina Turner head sculpture will go on show at Dreamland in Margate
The Tina Turner head sculpture will go on show at Dreamland in Margate

A MARGATE OUTING

The Jolly Boys are back in Margate this summer as Dreamland hosts a major Only Fools and Horses exhibition, marking the 30th anniversary of one of its most popular episodes, the Christmas special, The Jolly Boys’ Outing.

Opening at the Ballroom on Friday, August 9, it has been compiled by the Only Fools Appreciation Society, and will include a collection of original costumes, props, and sets with contributions and assistance from series creator John Sullivan.

An Only Fools and Horses exhibition is to open at Dreamland Picture: Gold/BBC
An Only Fools and Horses exhibition is to open at Dreamland Picture: Gold/BBC

Filmed on location at Dreamland in August 1989, the episode saw the whole Only Fools and Horses gang journey from their South London home to Margate Sands. The exhibition will be open every day from 10am to 5pm, with entry from £7.50. Find out more at dreamland.co.uk.

To find out what’s going on in the county and for all the latest entertainment news click here.

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