Festival to mark 40 years of gay pride

In recognition of this, the festival will have the theme of "Pride over the Ages." The main stage will host music and acts from over the past 40 years, along with speeches and testimonials from people who have lived through the last four decades.

Sheffield Pride communications officer David Baker said: "We are very lucky in many ways to be as open as we are about our sexualities in today's society.

"It's a testament to all those individuals who worked hard at very difficult times throughout history to achieve their dream of equality.

"This year at Pride we would like to celebrate lesbian, gay bisexual and transgender life everywhere and particularly give our thanks those unsung heroes, without whom life would be very different for us today."

Various fundraising events are set to run throughout the spring in preparation for the 2010 Pride festival itself, which will be held on Saturday, June 26.

One of these will be a street karaoke session in Sheffield city centre between 11am and 4pm on Saturday, May 29. All those taking part will receive a free goodie bag.

Mr Baker added: "Karaoke is a fun and enjoyable way of highlighting Sheffield Pride and is important for letting everybody in Sheffield know about the event.

"Pride events have always been about visibility and so we want as many people from throughout Sheffield to notice us, come along, join in and Sing with Pride. We haven't got the budget to advertise everywhere but we do have the imagination to create interesting events and increase the visibility that was missing in previous years."