Wristband, 'Liverpool Pride 2014'

In 2014 the decision was taken that the fifth Liverpool Pride would incorporate a charged element. Access to the main stages, headlined by Katy B, Sonia, Heather Small, Kylie-A-Like, Abba Gold and Sam Fox, as well as others would be open only to those who had purchased tickets on the day or exchanged their pre-paid tickets in designated booths around the city centre. The decision to charge entry was taken to guarantee the safety and sustainability of the event as well as guaranteeing higher profile acts to the stages. Early bird tickets cost £5, advanced tickets cost £8 and tickets on the day cost £11. The introduction of a charged element to Liverpool Pride was met with mixed reactions. Some understood that many other Pride festivals have a charged element that is essential to their survival, whilst others saw it as a step towards becoming too commercial. One Facebook user commented the day after Pride 2014, “I have no problem with paying for a ticket but I think the organizers [sic] have killed the essence of community and taken what was the one day a year that EVERYBODY celebrated together and made it into host of barriers and a way to squeeze money out of people”. Kindly donated to the Museum of Liverpool by Liverpool Pride