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Liverpool will become a celebration of queer creativity this autumn as Homotopia Festival returns for its 22nd year, bringing theatre, dance, film, visual art, music and nightlife to venues across the city.
Running from 17 October to 1 December 2026, this year’s festival takes the theme We Come Together, inviting audiences to gather, celebrate LGBTQIA+ culture, explore queer histories and discover artists from Liverpool and beyond.
And there’s another big anniversary to celebrate. Homotopia will kick off its 2026 programme alongside House of Suarez, which marks an incredible 20 years at the heart of the North’s vogue scene.
The festival launch will feature a spectacular runway event celebrating two decades of House of Suarez, before Homotopia continues across Liverpool with a packed programme of performances, exhibitions, screenings, parties and special events.
Three productions lead this year’s queer theatre offering. Award-winning dance theatre company Thick & Tight brings Natural Behaviour, a collection of performed portraits inspired by human and non-human life.
Following repeat sell-out performances at Edinburgh Fringe, Fag Packet arrives with DYKE Systems Ltd, an anarchic physical comedy taking on everything from pyramid schemes to corporate feminism and heteronormativity.
Fatt Butcher will also bring Congregational to the festival. Part concert, part communion and part resurrection, the performance invites audiences onto the dance floor, with Liverpool Rainbow Chorus joining as special guests.
Alongside the celebrations, Homotopia continues its tradition of exploring LGBTQIA+ history, activism and identity. At Open Eye Gallery, photographer Helen Constantinou presents The Gathering – Stop The Clause, documenting the mass protests against Section 28 in 1988 and the community response to legislation that prohibited local authorities from “promoting homosexuality”.
Another important piece of queer history will be revisited through a special screening of Project Triangle at 17: Young Queer and Still Here.
The event looks back at Young Homotopia’s 2009 journey to Auschwitz and Warsaw, which explored the persecution of LGBTQIA+ people during the Holocaust and its lasting impact on queer history.
Sonic Yootha. Credit: Anthony Wilde
The festival will also commemorate World AIDS Day alongside Sahir House, while April Ashley in Enigma will be screened to mark Transgender Day of Remembrance.
It wouldn’t be Homotopia without a packed nightlife programme, and 2026 brings plenty of opportunities to get on the dance floor.
Events include EAT Me Collective with HORRIBLE HERSTORIES, Noiregayze, Protect Scouse Dolls and a special Homotopia edition of Sonic Yootha.
There’s even a queer country night, with PINK SUITS presenting Queer Cxntry Burnin’ Daylight, an LGBTQIA+ club night with a country music twist.
Cinema is represented too, with a special Reel Queer screening celebrating 40 years of Liverpool production company First Take.
Meanwhile, over in Port Sunlight, Cookery Book Club at the Movies combines cinema and food at Cobble and Hay, where guests can enjoy a menu inspired by Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe.
Young and emerging LGBTQIA+ creatives will also get their moment in the spotlight through Young Homotopia and the QueerCore Showcase.
The festival’s opening celebration marks two decades since House of Suarez began creating a space for vogue culture and queer performance in the North.
Founder and Artistic Director Darren Suarez said: “Reaching two decades of House of Suarez alongside Homotopia feels like coming full circle. Back in 2008, when we launched Liverpool is Burning, we were planting the seeds for a movement.”
He added that the Vogue Ball continues to evolve with the community, providing artists with a space to express themselves and develop their creative careers.
The festival also marks Jayne Compton’s first year as Director of Homotopia.
Speaking about the 2026 programme, she said: “Liverpool is a city of extraordinary spirit, creativity, and diversity. The festival brings together LGBTQIA+ artists and audiences for experiences that surprise, move, and inspire.”
Compton describes We Come Together as an invitation to experience transformative art, remember queer histories and imagine new futures.
Homotopia Co-chairs John Shortell and Laura Hall have similarly described this year’s festival as both a gathering and an “act of hope and resistance”, while emphasising the joy and connection at the heart of the programme.
Events will take place across Liverpool at venues including Museum of Liverpool, Unity Theatre, District, Everyman Cinema, Playhouse Studio, The Music Room, Bluecoat and Arts Bar, with Cobble and Hay in Port Sunlight also joining this year’s programme.
With established artists, emerging talent, important queer histories and plenty of opportunities to celebrate, dance and come together, Homotopia 2026 looks set to fill Liverpool with LGBTQIA+ creativity throughout the autumn.
Homotopia Festival 2026: We Come Together runs from 17 October to 1 December 2026.
For more information visit homotopia.net.