The town is visible in its commitment to the safety of everyone, no matter what differences we may have. As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community in Hebden, you don’t have to look far for an ally, and that feels truly wonderful. But nonetheless, here we are, seemingly setting an example to the rest of the UK as a blueprint for equality and diversity. Not a likely scenario for an area equidistant from both Leeds and Manchester, with far more towns closer to those big, bustling multicultural maelstroms.
Hebden Bridge, Mytholmroyd & Todmorden: nestled into the sweeping hills of the Calder Valley, a melting pot of art, activism, and queerness, with an aura of the zeitgeist of the 60s. I was meeting LGBTQIA+ people left, right and centre, and forming the blueprint for a new Pride with some new friends. Actually, it wasn’t quite that immediate but after visiting this queer utopia, within a year I’d left Manchester – which I loved - and was living in Hebden Bridge. To use a quote heard so many times around Hebden Bridge – “I came for the day and never left”.
