Manchester Pride Festival celebrates 100th birthday of Alan Turing

By Dean Wilkins

Manchester Pride Festival are celebrating the 100^th anniversary of Second World War codebreaker Alan Turing with their summer parade.

The event’s theme for this year is ‘Queer’d Science’ and will honour mathematician Turing’s pioneering work in computers and a life which ended after he was prosecuted for being gay.

The Pride Parade is expecting over 3,000 people and will run on the city’s streets on August 25; it is one of the UK’s biggest LGBT festivals, which helps to raise money for Manchester-based charities.

John Stewart, Manchester Pride’s chief executive, told MM: “This year is too good of an opportunity to miss to not celebrate the centenary year of Alan Turing.

“It’s important that we continue to challenge ourselves and build upon the fantastic success we have had for the festival.

“Turing is very well associated with Manchester and we hope the festival will continue the campaign to get an official pardon from the Government to clear the name of one of the city’s most respected people.”

Turing was convicted in 1952 of ‘gross indecency’ with another man, and accepted chemical castration over being sent to prison.

His security clearance was then withdrawn, ceasing his ability to work for the GCHQ. He committed suicide in 1954 at the age of 41, just two years after his ground-breaking paper The Chemical Basis of Morphogenesis was published.

An exhibition space available for the course of the Pride festival, will also take place between August 17 and 27.

Tickets for the festival will go on sale next month. To apply for a spot in the parade or a space in the exhibition area, see www.manchesterpride.com.