A celebration of voice and representation, Oxford Street’s PROUD West End launched on 11 June. Returning for a second year – this year in collaboration with Grosvenor – the extraordinary outdoor audio-visual exhibition champions the stories of the LGBTQIA+ community within London’s West End, amplifying their experiences of overcoming adversity, cultural barriers, self-discovery, resilience and pride.Free to visit, PROUD West End is a gallery of large-scale ‘living portraits’ located in Grosvenor Square in Mayfair, curated in partnership with Heard Storytelling. It showcases the real, authentic lived experiences of 11 individuals, sharing their true, candid, and personal stories of being part of the West End’s LGTBQIA+ community and delving into what ‘proud’ means to them.Visitors can hear an eclectic array of inspiring, moving and vulnerable stories from a range of storytellers from different walks of life.
“We are delighted to be bringing back PROUD West End for the second year running, following the incredible reception of last year’s exhibition, created to celebrate our local LGBTQIA+ community during Pride month. What makes the West End so special is the diverse community of people who visit, work and live in its vicinity, and it has been a privilege to work with Heard Storytelling and Grosvenor to bring some of these stories to life with this free-to-access, immersive art exhibition.”
Dee Corsi (She/Her), Chief Executive of New West End Company
The exhibition is comprised of beautiful, large-scale portraits of PROUD West End’s storytellers and visitors can journey through the al fresco gallery by scanning a dedicated QR code located next to each portrait.
“The return of PROUD WEST END for a second year provides a vital platform for voices often unheard. True spoken storytelling uniquely deepens understanding and creates connections. By sharing diverse, lived experiences in this creative and impactful way, we aim to foster solidarity, hope, and pride. Heard Storytelling remains committed to driving positive change through spoken storytelling and we’re grateful to New West End Company and Grosvenor for working with us to that end.”
Colette Burroughs-Rose (She/Her), Director at Heard Storytelling
An array of Oxford Street’s shops, restaurants and brands will be supporting the celebrations by running offers and experiences as part of PROUD West End:
- On Saturday 29 June, visitors to John Lewis can enjoy a special appearance from DeDeLicious, one of the contestants from the fifth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK (12-3pm), live music from resident DJ – DJ Lyndsey (11-5pm) on the first floor atrium and glitter face painting in store (11-4pm)
- On Saturday 29 June, Boom Battle Bar is hosting an all-day event featuring a limited edition rainbow-inspired pride cocktails with Drag DJs spinning epic tunes throughout the night
- This year Adidas has launched its ‘Love Unites’ Pride Collection which celebrates individuality, our bodies as they are and encourages ally-ship
- Drop into Primark to browse its Pride collection which honours the legacy of activists like Stormé DeLarverie, Marsha P. Johnson, and Sylvia Rivera. It echoes their message: Be authentic. Be proud. Be you.
- Browse Flying Tiger’s Pride Collection, but drop in on Saturday 29 June when staff will be handing out free items from the collection
- Grab a luscious sweet treat in LAVO Restaurant at the Bo Tree Hotel, where its famous 20-layer chocolate cake will be turned into a Pride-themed rainbow cake
Stay up to date on Oxford Street’s PROUD West End exhibition, launched in partnership with Grosvenor and curated by Heard Storytelling at @oxfordstreetw1 or visit www.oxfordstreet.co.uk.
