Who We Are

How It All Began

Silloth pride was the brainchild of Owen Martin & friends.

After coming out to his family and friends, they suggested organizing a Pride in Silloth. It didn’t take much persuasion for him to go for it. Having organized events for over 10 years, he had the contacts and knowledge on where to start. But this was his first Pride event.

He set off by contacting Pride for advice and direction. Soon after he set up a Facebook page and asked for people to get involved. Owen and his partner Joe asked Silloth Rotary Club, for whom he was President of the club. There was great support from fellow Rotarians. They set up a working group with Rotarians and friends of Rotary.

It was soon apparent that there was a lot of support and enthusiasm about this event. They involved the local emergency services, our MP Sue Hayman and local borough council. Organizations and businesses from across Cumbria and beyond contacted us to get involved. It was fabulous!

The First Silloth Pride

On Saturday 29th June, Silloth Rotary Club held the first ever Silloth Pride event on Silloth Green. Thousand’s of people flocked to Silloth Green to help celebrate the LGBT+ community. The day was started off by Malcolm Grainger deputy mayor of Allerdale welcoming everyone and wishing everyone a successful day.

The Green was awash with colour as the crowds headed to the stage to enjoy a full day of entertainment, which started with the amazing Willow Jarvis. There were seven hours of entertainment including Mama Sang and the Robot, Jewels of the Dessert belly dancers and much more. The fun didn’t stop there, with circus skills workshops, graffiti and dance workshops, local crafts, support from the local emergency services including the police and crime commissioner who said “It was a brilliant event” and fun fair. Sue Hayman MP also joined in the “carnival atmosphere” as she described and took to the stage to say a few words about the event.