When I think of pride events I think of London, Manchester and Brighton, to be honest, Chesterfield wouldn’t even appear in my top ten list of pride events. Chesterfield isn’t somewhere I’d normally visit apart from passing through on my way to the Peak District and I’d certainly never considered attending a pride event there, I’ve never imagined Chesterfield to have a very big gay community but some friends invited me along and not having any plans for the day I thought why not its something to do, with my expectations set really low.
How wrong was I? Turns out I was very wrong. Located in Stand Road Park in Chesterfield on the 24th July 2022. The event itself was very well organised and felt “safe” with an enclosed area the event was held within.
Tickets on the day were £10 but we’d bought advanced VIP tickets for about £20 each which gave us a private bar area, private toilets, and access to the front of the stage, well worth the extra cost.
With headline acts featuring Nadine Coyle from Girls Aloud, Joe Black, Denise Pearson from 5 Star fame, and we all know Jo O’Meara from S CLUB 7. The event had two stages the main stage sponsored by Chesterfield Borough Council, a Cabaret Stage, and a Market area with plenty of food stalls.
Arriving around half past 12 we headed for a walk around the Market area, with stalls from an organisation like The National Trust, Midlands Coop, Chesterfield Council, and Sheffield Vulcans RUFC.
Our next stop was the bar area, where we spent a few hours getting merry and enjoying ourselves, with events like this you expect the bar to be charging vastly inflated prices but this one wasn’t too bad, with 3 drinks for £10 or double spirits for £5.
There were several drag acts and artists on the main stage before we got there. Mama Bear, Kelly Wilde, KY Kelly, Dene Michael, and 80’s pop pin-up Nathan Moore of Brother Beyond and 80’s stars Black Lace. We were having so much fun in the cabaret tent that we missed most of these unfortunately and made it to the main stage in time to see Joe O’Meara get the crowd going with some pop classics, we all know the hits from S Club 7, followed by Kelly Llorenna who again upped the energy with her well know club hits. Up next was one of the standout stars of Rupauls Drag Race Fame Joe Black, we’d seen him on the cabaret stage earlier and he was that good we had to see him again! Deniece Pearson was the penultimate performer, she came out in an outfit that wouldn’t have looked out of place at a carnival, belting out 80’s classics such as System Addict, Stay Out Of My Life and Rain or Shine. This was my favourite part of the show having been a huge fan of Five Star back in the day and still listening to their Greatest Hits compilations to this day. Deniece’s voice was flawless and she hasn’t aged a bit. Girls Aloud Star Nadine Coyle was the finale. Out she strutted in a pink mac, weather appropriate, to close the event. She sang her solo hit Go To Work and several Girls Alouds Hits including Sound of the Underground, Biology, Sexy (No No No), Something Kinda Ooh and my favourite Untouchable. Again another flawless performance. Here’s hoping for a GA reunion tour soon!
As stated at the start of the review I had set the bar low with what I expected and I’m glad I was proved wrong, Chesterfield Pride was one of the most enjoyable times I’ve had at a pride event and I’m looking forward to next year where it will be firmly on my list of events to attend.
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