Lorraine Kelly has revealed how her attendance at PRIDE London didn't quite go to plan, but that didn't stop the ITV presenter from having a ball of a time. Find out what happened in her exclusive HELLO! diary below...
It was such a joy and an honour to be one of the million people taking part in PRIDE London at the weekend although it didn't quite go according to plan for us.
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We covered ourselves in rainbow glitter and our brightest outfits and happily boarded our special open top bus which decided to completely break down.
WATCH: Lorraine Kelly reveals mishap at PRIDE London parade
Obviously, a little thing like that wasn't going to stop us taking part; so along with the fantastic ITV Pride team and ITV on-screen pals including my lovely friend Mark Heyes, Phillip Schofield, Alison Hammond, Gok Wan, Charlene White, Linda Robson and Judi Love, we decided to unfurl our banners, and get out and walk.
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Lorraine and her friend Mark Heyes aboard the ITV Pride parade bus
We were joined by Emmerdale stars including Ash Palmiscaro, and Dame Kelly Holmes, who recently came out. The fantastically warm reaction she received almost had her in tears. It was a very special day for Kelly and good to see her looking so happy.
The group were forced off their bus after it broke down
What made it all even better was fabulous drag queen Courtney Act decided to change into some (relatively) sensible boots and walk alongside of us. Courtney was on my show this week talking about her autobiography Caught In The Act which is a searingly honest account of her life and is hilarious as well as heartbreaking.
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Lorraine was also joined by drag queen Courtney Act at the parade
While we all agreed that it's lovely waving and smiling at everyone from the top of a bus, it was so much better to actually feel properly part of the parade. Everyone was so elated and happy and it was all about joy and celebration. Love really was in the air all the way along the route.
I think it was what many of us needed after the pandemic, the ongoing war in Ukraine and the latest political scandals. It was good to remind ourselves that there is actually a lot of kindness, respect and tolerance in the world.
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