A couple found themselves in 'agony and despair' after waiting 'two hours in the queue for the toilets' at Pride. The pair had paid £60 in total for wristbands and were excited to see Mel C at Sackville Gardens on Sunday.
But they said their evening turned into a disaster due to the wait for the toilet and went home at 9pm, having been 'faced with humiliation'. Other revellers were so desperate they were 'forced to urinate on the wall' and ground beside the designated toilets, according to the eyewitnesses.
The couple are now calling on Pride to refund them. Riccardo Gallo, from Ancoats, says they queued 30 minutes to get in at around 6pm on Sunday night, August 28.
After that, the pair began looking for a portaloo as Riccardo was 'desperate for the toilet'. They found a queue for the facilities near the stage.
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But when the couple were nearly done waiting, they claim they were asked if they held 'special passes' to use these portaloos, as they were for 'VIP guests'. "I did not see any signs stating these were specially designated, nor did anyone advise well before we reached the front that these toilets required VIP access," Riccardo told the Manchester Evening News .
"At this point I was in pain and in distress about whether I’d be able to make it to be able to urinate. We subsequently waited in the designated queues to be able to use the toilet, where I queued for over an hour to use a toilet.
"I cannot describe how painful the experience was and [there is] the fact that I stood crossing my legs, in sweats, to the point where I found people asking if I was ok. I saw other members of the public urinating to the side of the toilets on the wall, illegally, but did not want to break the law and had to wait in pain until I could access a free portaloo."
The couple said the ordeal ruined their night. "When I eventually reached a toilet I felt the whole celebration was ruined and could not go on with the night after the humiliation I faced", Riccardo said. "I have never, in the history of Manchester Pride, been in a situation where I have been in pain to the point where my night has been ruined and felt I needed leave the venue."
The couple left the venue just three hours later at around 9pm, trying to enjoy their night elsewhere in the village, but say access was blocked from the Sackville Street entrance because of 'overcrowding'.
Now, Riccardo is demanding an explanation from Pride as to 'why planning did not ensure that the general public could reach a toilet in a reasonable time, without creating large bottlenecks'.
"Were the portaloo companies consulted in regards to providing solutions, such as providing urinals for males...to ensure people are not suffering on the way that I did? What happened? I ask for the refund, given the basic necessities to enjoy an event were not met, and that we didn’t see Bimini and Mel C - the reasons for purchasing the £30 wrist bands."
"How many other people have felt like we did?" continued the 33-year-old. "Everyone was really angry in the queue. It's so infuriating. It was like being a kid again, jumping up and down needing the toilet. You start to think, what have we paid £30 each for?"
Riccardo's story comes as huge crowds of festival goers were turned away from a stage at Manchester Pride on Sunday evening ahead of the much anticipated performance by Mel C. Queues could be seen forming at the barriers next to Sackville Gardens at around 9pm.
Videos from the four-day festival, which has been held in Manchester's Gay Village since Friday (August 26) showed huge swathes of people attempting to get past the barriers to watch the performance on Sunday evening.
The Manchester Evening News understands that Sackville Gardens, where the Alan Turing stage has seen other stars including Nadine Coyle and Jsky perform over the weekend, had reached 'maximum capacity', with other disappointed wristband holders being turned away.
Manchester Pride has been contacted for comment.
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