A WAVE of colours inundated the town centre as part of Furness Pride celebrations this weekend.
Crowds of people were out flying the rainbow flag in the Barrow town centre to mark the return of Furness Pride after two years.
The event was launched with a vibrant parade at 12pm, with scores of people dressed in an array of colours walking from Duke Street along Dalton Road and through Barrow Market.
The sun was shining on event-goers who turned up in their drones to show their support for the LGBTQ+ community.
Organised by Drop Zone Youth, the event has been held online for the past two years due to the Covid pandemic and returned to the Barrow streets earlier this afternoon with the theme of community.
Stage performers included Cee-Jay Birchall, Emma Howarth, David Duffan, Swerve & JD, Becki Fishwick and others who performed at the Pride stage in the town centre.
Nova Drag Queen was among dozens of event-goers who showed up in rainbow-colours at the event.
She said: "It's so good to see everyone out in the sunshine and come together as a community."
Friends Mel, Jamie, Sophia and Emma also turned out to enjoy the celebrations.
They said: "It's really good - it's a great turn out.
"It's such a good atmosphere.
"And it's so nice that the sun is shining."
Lewis Benzie, the LGBTQ+ ambassador for Dropzone, described the Furness Pride event as 'absolutely fantastic'.
"It's just beautiful to see everyone come out to the event," he said.
"It's an amazing atmosphere.
"Everyone's just having a good time."
The event comes five years after a terrorist attack planned for a Furness Pride event in 2017 was foiled by police.
Ethan Stables was stopped by armed police as he prepared to attack the New Empire pub in Barrow's Dalton Road in June 2017.
He was foiled after he posted details of his plan on social media.
Stables – who was 20 at the time - planned to kill people attending a gay pride event at the New Empire pub in Barrow, Cumbria.
Armed police stopped him on the way to the pub following a tip-off from a member of a far-right Facebook group where he had posted a message saying he was "going to war".
Lorraine Neale, who ran the New Empire pub at the time alongside her husband Stephen, has looked back on the event, describing how those who attended the night following the threat stood in defiance.
Mrs Neale said she received a call from a barmaid telling her she needed to go to the pub urgently to speak to the police.
She was told there had been a 'threat' made against customers at the pub and armed police had been sent to keep watch.
Stables was arrested while walking to the pub. He later claimed he was visiting to 'recce' the venue.
Despite the threat, the event went ahead. Mrs Neale would come to learn of what Stables had been planning at the pub during the trial at Leeds Crown Court.
Five years on from those shocking events, Furness Pride returned bigger and better than ever, with crowds of people inundating Barrow town centre to show their support.
Organised by Drop Zone Youth, the event has been held online for the past two years due to the Covid pandemic and returned to the Barrow streets earlier this afternoon with the theme of community.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article