Bristol Pride and Funderworld to make return to The Downs in Bristol as venue events for 2022 are announced

Around a dozen events are expected to take place on The Downs this year, and organisers will be hoping that Covid doesn’t ruin their plans.

Many events have been cancelled or postponed over the past couple of years due to the pandemic, including annual favourites such as Bristol Pride and Funderworld.

Bristol Pride, a celebration of the LGBT+ community, is returning to the Downs this summer after being cancelled for the last two years’ running.

Funderworld is also making a return after its postponement meant it was held in Hengrove Park in South Bristol last year.

Both are included in a list of ‘upcoming events’ being presented to the statutory committee that manages the Downs this afternoon (January 24).

The eleven events listed “have expressed their intention to return to the Downs in 2022”, according to a short report to the Downs Committee.

All are familiar names except one, which could be a celebration to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee year.

No details about the “Jubilee Beacon” event planned for July 2 are provided in the report, but another paper to the committee refers to the jubilee and contains a proposal for a tree to be planted on Clifton Down “hopefully” by a member of the Royal Family.

Love Saves The Day, which was held on the Downs instead of Eastville Park last year because of a postponement, is moving to Ashton Court for its 10th anniversary this year.

Another music festival is planned on the Downs in September, but a name for it has not been decided yet.

The events report notes that March for Men, a fundraiser organised by Prostate Cancer UK, will not take place this year but hopes to return from next year onwards.

The list of events planned for the Downs this year appears below.

‘Upcoming’ events for 2022

Funderworld – April 1 to May 2

Foodies Fest – May 20 to 22

Jubilee Beacon – June 2

Comedy Garden – June 15 to 19

Race for Life – June 25 to 26

Cycle Sunday – July 3

Bristol Pride – July 9

Adventure Cinema – August 5 to 7

Downs Concerts (new name to be confirmed) – September 2-4

Student Union event – September 23 to 24

Downs Circus – September 27 to October 16

Good news for committee coffers

If all the events go ahead, it will be good news not only for Bristolians and the event organisers, but for the Downs Committee.

The committee relies on income from events to pay for the management of the Downs and is ending this year with a projected debt of more than £164,000.

The deficit would have been more than £262,000 had it not used its entire savings of £98,000 to partly plug the gap, and is mainly due to legal defence costs and some Covid-19 related expenditure, according to the committee’s latest finance report.