AK Soufflé: Britney baby

I’ve spent too much of the past week listening to people prattle on about Britney Spears. Britney, pop princess, champion of Las Vegas and chart topper – well if you like that kind of thing then hoorah!

I admire her success and dare I say it survival. She’s certainly been through the mill on her professional journey and seems to have come out the other side reasonably intact.

So why all the fuss? Well by now you will no doubt know that Britney will be headlining Brighton’s annual Pride festival this year. Hats off to Paul Kemp and Dulcie Weaver for pulling this off, and I mean this wholeheartedly. Pride is a monster machine that they have taken on and tamed. I suspect that for a lot of the year it dominates the Pride Organisation’s lives and I also suspect that it is, for much of that time, a pretty thankless task.

“ Pride knows how to put on a good show – but it also has the community at heart ”

Last year they delivered perhaps the most exciting Pride ever with the Pet Shop Boys headlining with their spectacular show – all good. But above all of this razzamatazz they have put back what I believe should be at the heart of Pride. Yes to celebrating, yes to having fun, yes to dressing up and going a bit wild – but not at the expense of remembering that Pride is the opportunity for us not only to look at our successes but to remember those other LGBTQI people around the world, and still here in the UK, who have not found equality and respect.

Pride knows how to put on a good show – but it also has the community at heart, and in the last few years they have generated close to half a million pounds of funding for local charities and organisations, LGBTQI ones and those from the broader field too.

Some of you seem to think that Britney Spears is wrong, that the organisation is wrong and that you can do better. Many have tried – and failed, failed dismally and at times disgracefully.

Could these detractors do better? I somehow doubt it but I would be happy to listen to people’s ideas and suggestions to improve the present model.