Fiona Ledgard

I’ve never been to Women’s Space at Pride before. I was eagerly anticipating it and was pleasantly surprised by the good atmosphere and the willingness of most women to stay in the car park all day!
 
The diversity of acts during the day was substantial. Different artists bantered with the audience, flirted with and complimented the BSL signers (a permanent component of the stage), and included topics from bisexuality, queer identity and S&M, to politics and original meanings of gay liberation. From young cheerleaders, obtaining controversial responses, to refreshing bands such as GeEK giRL and poignant performance poetry, the variety of ages and identities treated the audience to a stimulating show.
 
The comedy hour from Laughing Cows enticed droves of women into the space; standing at the back, sitting on the floor and sharing seats provided. An unforgettable piece satirically recalled the misogynistic song lyrics from Tom Jones’ hit She’s a Lady. The comedian verbalized lyrics from a sheet of A4 paper with hints of sarcasm and amusing facial expressions. (‘Well she always knows her place’ / ‘Well she's never in the way’). These dazzling examples, and the audience happily heckling the ‘Woah, Woah, Woah’ part of the chorus, welcomed roaring laughter from the crowd, who obviously felt uplifted and empowered, laughing out loud at the conservative undertones from the 1971 hit.
 
Vampire poet Rosie Lugosi adapted her quirky S&M revision of Favourite Things to include words about the Pride parade. With expressions sung such as the iconic ‘We’re here and we’re queer’, the audience lapped it up, appreciating the irony over Julie Andrews’ original sing-song.
  
But by the time DJ PJ was behind the decks, and the alcohol and jacket potatoes had had time to settle in some of our stomachs, the party atmosphere was well established. DJ PJ’s pumping tunes with dynamic disco lights in the marquee ensured a positive atmosphere, getting people on the dance floor and even generating queues at the gates. The pleasing sounds of Blondie’s, The Tide is High along with floor fillers such as Pump Up The Jam offered a mix of music that appealed to many of us ready to embrace the party spirit.
 
The cordoned-off car park had little room for pretension, leading to many women making new friends on the day.
 
Attending Women’s Space was a highlight of my weekend. It was great to look around and see such a diverse group of women including all ages and abilities; couples, families, friends and a wonderful range of sexual identities. My friends and I have loads of happy memories, and it certainly added to our Pride experience. We felt at ease and up for a good time.
 
A quote from one of Jackie Hagan’s poems fittingly sums up some of the optimistic and empowering feelings inside Women’s Space 2008, stating about being queer; that ‘it’s not just rainbows and arseholes, it’s what you make of it’.

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