Edinburgh pride to mark 50th anniversary of stonewall riots

The 50th anniversary of a pivotal moment in gay history will be marked at this year's Edinburgh Pride.

The festival is taking place five decades on from the Stonewall riots of 1969 in New York, an uprising by young LGBT people that changed the face of the gay rights movement in the US and beyond.

Thousands of people are expected to attend the event in the Scottish capital, which this year has the theme of ''This Is Me''.

The annual march will begin outside the Scottish Parliament after the crowd hears speeches from campaigners and MSPs.

It will follow a route up the Royal Mile, before turning on to George IV Bridge and finishing at the Edinburgh University Students' Association campus at Potterrow and Teviot.

Entertainment at the campus includes family events, ceilidh dancing and a main stage headlined by singer Tulisa.

Pride celebrations in the capital officially got under way on Friday evening with a 5k run organised by the Edinburgh Frontrunners group.

Pride Edinburgh spokesman Jamie Love said: We're so excited for Pride Edinburgh 2019. This year marks the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, which really reinstates the history and meaning of Pride.

''We're the oldest Pride event in Scotland and one of the largest free Prides in the UK - for this reason, like every other year, we are looking forward to welcome Pride-goers from all walks of life.

Our goal is to truly and authentically celebrate and accommodate diversity. We'll have a trans-space, a youth area, a family area and more to really make Pride a home for everyone.''