Birmingham Pride: Thousands of people join street celebrations across the city
Thousands of people have taken to the streets of Birmingham for the city's annual Pride parade.
The city was a riot of colour as the two-day event began with a parade through the city centre to the Gay Village in Hurst Street.
Huge crowds watched colourful floats in the procession, with large cheers greeting staff from West Midlands Police, West Midlands Ambulance Service and West Midlands Fire Service.
West Midlands Police's chief constable Dave Thompson was among those enjoying the celebrations.
He tweeted: "I attend pride in my own time as do the staff in the parade.
"[It is] Important to show police are from all parts of society and as a force we are inclusive.
"The event and our presence builds trust in policing. That's a big part of my job. The uniform shows it's from the top."
Headline artists at the festival included Rudimental, Jake Shears from the Scissor Sisters and Beth Ditto.
At the start of Saturday there were overcast skies and drizzle turning to heavy rain but the weather soon brightened up for revellers to enjoy the day
Instead it was Raining Men as the anthem belted out from the lead bus at the start of the parade.
The festivities continued on Sunday despite the thunderstorms as bars and restaurants were packed with people around the Southside area.
Funfair rides and music performances also brought out the crowds. The UK's Eurovision star Surie was also performing on the main stage.
Birmingham Pride organisers wrote on Facebook: "Tens of thousands of you lined the streets of Birmingham city centre, showing your support for this year’s theme of 'Be You' and an amazing celebration of the LGBT community."
