About Glitterbomb
Made by people who love LGBTQIA+ events
Glitterbomb started because too many nights out weren't built for us. Not hostile exactly. Just not ours. So in 2012 we made one that was.
We named it after glitterbombing: the act of throwing glitter at someone as a protest and refusing to be quiet about who you are. Which, as it turns out, is a fair description of a night out with us.
It was meant to be a club night but it got bigger than that fairly quickly. A room where everyone is welcome turns out to be a better room for everyone in it, and that isn't a slogan, it's just what happens when the right crowd come together.
From Canterbury we went onto campus. Then we started flying performers over from RuPaul's Drag Race in the US to play our events in towns they had never heard of. Then the Pride afterparties. Then brunches. Then quizzes and bingo. We feel so lucky people want us at 2pm as much as 2am.
What hasn't changed is the point of it. Everyone gets to enjoy it. All of it. Every time.
We take hate and violence seriously wherever it turns up in the night-time economy. It's why Ask for Angela runs at every night we do. It's why we built The Glitter Standard to recognise other venues who share our vision to help create more safe spaces in the world. And it's why you can turn up on your own and still have a good night.
You don't have to be LGBTQIA+ to come. You just have to be up for it. Bring your friends, bring your mum, bring whoever you like. The only thing we don't make room for is anyone who spoils it for somebody else.
EVERYONE'S WELCOME. EVERYONE'S LOOKED AFTER.
Where we play
Towns and cities we've taken Glitterbomb to
Club nights, day parties, drag brunches, students' union takeovers and Pride afterparties. If your town isn't here yet, tell us where you are. Nearest town is the first thing we look at when we plan a tour.
- Canterbury
- Reading
- Norwich
- Egham
- Cambridge
- Chelmsford
- Nottingham
- Hertfordshire
- Surrey
- London
- Manchester
- Birmingham
- Leeds
- Newcastle
- Glasgow
- Cardiff
- Brighton
And, on tour, beyond the UK:
- Amsterdam
- Paris
- Do not press
The community we stand with
Building a community of people who want fun, safe and inclusive spaces for everyone
Glitterbomb supports these organisations and campaigns. They work tirelessly for our communities every day and we want to highlight them for you here. The big campaigns already exist and they're brilliant, so rather than start our own we amplify theirs.
Campaigns we're behind
Same Side
Using sport and real stories to give boys and young men a better idea of what being a man can be, and to counter the manosphere's grip. We're on the same side. #SameSide
campaign.unwomenuk.org →Rainbow Laces
Stonewall's campaign for LGBTQ+ inclusion in sport. Rainbow Laces Day is 8 October and we'll be wearing ours on stage, behind the decks and on the door.
stonewall.org.uk →Ask for Angela
Ask any member of staff for Angela and they'll get you out of a bad situation discreetly. Live at every Glitterbomb night and part of our welfare briefing before doors.
askforangela.co.uk →Safe Spaces Now
UN Women UK's work to make public spaces safe for women and girls, including bystander training that gives people the confidence to step in. Our crew take it.
unwomenuk.org →Organisations we support
We support these organisations and campaigns because we believe in what they do. Listing them here is our choice, not their endorsement, and none of them has endorsed Glitterbomb.
Dates that matter
The year, for the communities we stand with
Prides, awareness days and the moments that matter to LGBTQIA+, disabled and neurodivergent communities.
What we stand for
Three things you can count on from us
The party is why we are here
Big rooms, pop anthems and more confetti than is strictly sensible. Everything else on this list exists so the party can be brilliant, not the other way round.
Somebody's watching the room
Trained welfare at every event, and a team you can spot from across the floor. If somebody is spoiling your night, tell us. Find any of us, any time. You don't need a reason.
Everyone in the room
LGBTQIA+ first, everyone welcome. Ask us for whatever you need and we'll sort it. No proof, no explaining yourself, and nobody made to feel like the problem.
The party proves the badge. The badge protects the party.
Our sister brand, The Glitter Standard, accredits venues that are genuinely safe and welcoming: staff trained, tested once a year without warning, badge removed if it slips. Glitterbomb is Glitter Standard approved, and venues that host us are invited in on pilot terms.
