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Backstage at Brighton Pride on day two

Yahoo goes backstage to meet the stars on the second day of Brighton Pride.

Video transcript

- We are here day two of Brighton Hope Pride, I am having the best time. Taking the stage today, we've got Paloma Faith, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Jake Shears, Cat Burns, and so many more artists I can't even name them all. So let's just go and meet them. Jake Shears, you are an icon. It is an honor to meet you, babe.

- It's nice to meet you too.

- You look incredible today.

- Thank you. Thank you. It's my backstage, like--

- Chill gear.

- Yeah. When I was leaving my house today, the one thing that I wanted to wear today had just gone.

- Disappeared.

- Yeah.

- That always happens.

- I was looking everywhere and I just threw on this tissue paper.

- I'm not going to lie, it's very gay rights, this shirt.

- Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Definitely, it's giving you all the colors.

- It's giving me Pride energy.

- Sophie Ellis-Bextor, queer icon. We're here at Brighton Pride.

- Yay.

- Obviously, it's the 30th anniversary. What does it mean to you to be performing here at the 30th anniversary after three years off?

- Well, I haven't actually ever performed at Brighton Pride.

- This is your first Pride?

- Yeah. I'm super excited. I've done lots of Prides, but Brighton is the biggest.

- Yeah.

- And I adore Brighton with all my heart, so I think today's going to be really special.

- The gays love you, Sophie.

- Aw, I hope so. There's a lot of them to boo me if not.

[LAUGHTER]

- How does it feel to you to perform at Pride events? Like being an out, queer person it must mean a lot to you.

- Oh, it means the world. Like this is where I feel the most safe and I'm only ever really in queer spaces, so to be able to perform at the biggest of queer spaces is the best thing ever.

- I'm so amazed and shocked that I'm headlining.

- Why?

- I just feel really honored and I've been here before and just sort of did a DJ set and it was amazing. And then they were like they want you to headline, I was like what? Christine is on Saturday, me on Sunday. I'm pretty stunned.

- What does pride mean to you?

- I mean, it changes over the years, right? There's all kinds. There's new problems now than there weren't years ago, there were problems then that we figured out now. To me, it means just not to take the freedoms that we have, the freedoms that we had back for granted. You just can't take what we've gained for granted because everyone just needs to keep a hold of what we've got.

- We're now at a beautiful place where we can have Pride as just a celebration, but we're all standing on the shoulders of people who've done some pretty incredible, very serious things to make this a reality.

- 100%. And it's still a journey, but we're here and we're queer and we're partying to celebrate all those people that have stood before us, which is amazing.

- Exactly.

- Are you going to get out in the crowd, do you think?

- Yeah, I always do that. I'm going to go out and enjoy Pride.

- I've been out.

- Have you?

- Yeah. I took my two gaybies out there. Dressed in rainbow.

- They're just going to grow up with their mom being a super iconic--

- Yeah. My five-year-old, it's like the first time that she's asked me questions, she keeps going why do you keep saying it's a gay festival? And I'm like where men love men and women love women and people who-- it doesn't matter what they are, just love it. It's a festival of love and it's all about just loving everyone for what they are. And that's OK. And she was like from now on, don't ever say he or she, I'm a person. And I was like damn right.

- Why are kids more clever than us? Right, you ready to play a game?

- OK.

- OK. So this game is called "Who's Behind You."

- OK.

- It's a little bit like the Pantomime, but with queer icons. OK? My first clue is horses.

- What?

- If I was to tell you to city that walk.

- Oh, come on, it's Rupaul behind me right now.

- Yeah.

- Hey, Mama Ray.

- I would say probably one of the biggest British gay icons alive now.

- I have no idea. Sunglasses?

- Performer, singer, sunglasses, big star sunglasses.

- Oh my God. Elton.

[LAUGHTER]

- Oh, is it Lil Naz X?

- Boom.

- 10 out of 10, babes.

- Thank you so much.

- Nailed it.

- Thank you. I did my best. I did my best.

- Thank you so much for chatting to us and happy Pride.

- Happy Pride.

- Happy Pride. Happy Pride, everybody.

- Happy Pride.

- Happy Pride. You've got to go on stage, babe. I can't take any more of your time. Thank you so much for chatting to me. Good luck tonight, smash it. And, honestly, you look mindboggling, I can't look at you anymore.

- Two babies came out of here.

- I need to go and take 10 minutes. What incredible weekend. I've had the best time of my life at Brighton Pride. I've seen some of the most iconic LGBTQ+ artists and allies hit that stage and we've chatted with some amazing people. I'm going to go home now and sleep for 10 hours, but not before I have one more quick dance.

[MUSIC PLAYING]