The prestigious evening honoured the likes of Becky Hill, Lady Phyll, and Layton Williams
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGES BY CARL SUKONIK
The highly anticipated Gaydio Pride Awards were held at Manchester’s Hilton Hotel last Friday (16 Feb), honouring the important work being done to better the lives of the LGBTQIA community. The evening saw 14 awards handed out to the amazing individuals and organisations who are helping to amplify, support, and celebrate our voices.
Accompanying this exciting ceremony were performances from BRIT Award nominee Jazzy, Caity Baser, Talia Mar, Tia Kofi and Ginger Johnson. The purple carpet also saw the likes of Rhian Sugden, Layton Williams, Andy Burnham, Paul Burrell, Dr Ranj Singh and Ella Morgan who came to enjoy this exciting celebration.
Hosted by Gaydio’s breakfast show presenters Paris & Dave, the evening was a beautiful display of LGBTQIA joy. Our very own editor-in-chief Roxy Bourdillon and Char Bailey were among the judges who had the hard task of deciding who would be taking home the awards.
Gaydio presented Music Artist of the Year to BRIT Award winner and queer icon Becky Hill. Known for hits like Gecko and Never Be Alone, the dance music star said in her acceptance speech: “Thank you so much to Gaydio for this beautiful award of Music Artist of the Year and for all the support over the years.”
“Ever since coming out as queer, I have tried to put queerness at the core of everything I do; touring with some incredible drag acts whilst putting the trans and drag community at the forefront of my live shows. Support like this really means the world – thank you so, so much for Artist of the Year!”
Trans Pride Hastings won the Grassroots Pride of the Year and Bristol Pride was named Pride Organisation of the Year.
The LGBTQ+ Young Business Person of the Year went to Emily Waldron, a trans teen advocate who founded @Emz_Crafts_. Emily donates all profits towards Pride events in Liverpool or Truk United games where she plays football. Alice-Louise Wallace won Volunteer of the Year for her work with Crawley LGBT+.
Award-winning activist, campaigner and Drag Queen, Lucky Roy Singh took home the highly converted LGBTQ+ Influencer of the Year. Actor and Strictly star Layton Williams was awarded with the Outstanding Entertainment Contribution. Lady Phyll, co-founder of UK Black Pride, was also honoured at the ceremony with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Venue or Event of the Year went to Manchester’s iconic lesbian bar Vanilla. Opening Doors, the largest UK charity for LGBTQ+ people over 50, took home the Charity of the Year award. Pop’n’Olly, the UK’s leading LGBT+ educational resource, was awarded the LGBTQ+ Enterprise Award while the LGBT+ Network NHS Blood and Transplant won Pride Network of the Year.
The Transmanian Devils took home LGBTQ+ Club or Sports Team of the Year for their work in advancing inclusivity in sport for LGBTQIA athletes in Manchester and beyond, and the award for Hilton LGBTQ+ Champion went to Richard Finn, General Manager of Hilton Cambridge City Centre.
Gaydio Director, Ian Wallace said, “Last night marked the Gaydio Pride Awards 2024 with Hilton, an evening dedicated to recognising and showcasing the incredible achievements of the LGBTQIA community across the country. We were thrilled to celebrate all of the amazing nominees and winners who have made a huge impact on LGBTQIA lives throughout this year and beyond! We can’t wait to do it all over again next year.”
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