This Saturday, tens of thousands of participants will march up Sydney’s Oxford Stret and down Flinders Street all the way from Hyde Park to Moore Park to celebrate the 47th year – FREE TO BE, the 2025 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade.
Whilst it is impossible to list everyone and highlight all the incredible work done by our community, here are a few floats from the 180 on the night to keep an eye out for, whether you are on the street watching, watching Live on the ABC or streaming and watching catchup on ABC iView.
Once again, beloved traditions will lead the charge, with Dykes on Bikes, First Nations marchers, and the original 78ers paving the way for a night of pride and protest.
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras CEO, Gil Beckwith, said: ‘The 2025 Mardi Gras Parade will be a powerful reminder that our community has always been, and will always be, FREE TO BE. Every step taken and every float that rolls down Oxford Street is a testament to our strength, our history, and our hopes for the future. This year’s Parade will be a celebration of resilience, expression, and love in all its forms.’
Minister for the Arts, Minister for Music and the Night-time Economy, and Minister for Jobs and Tourism, John Graham said, ‘As you’ll see from these highlights, this year’s Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras will be another fantastic celebration of colour, creativity and humour.’
‘The Mardi Gras Parade makes an enormous contribution to Sydney’s vibrancy, culture and economy, which is why the NSW Government continues to support it.’
From tributes to queer icons and LGBTQIA+ history to celebrations of self-expression and community strength, here are some of our highlights of the 2025 Parade:
- Queer Icons: Standing On The Shoulder Pads of Giants – A spectacular tribute to legendary queer trailblazers like Grace Jones, Freddie Mercury, and Marsha P. Johnson, this electrifying float transforms Oxford Street into the ultimate queer celebration, honouring those who paved the way for today’s progress.
- Bay Pride: Pink Beach Party – Hailing from Brisbane’s Bayside, this float promises a fun-filled, seagull-themed spectacle featuring Logie Award winner Ranger Stacey, Freya Amarni, and Tom Oliver, all celebrating Bay Pride’s mission to create inclusive spaces.
- Building Pride – Tradies get your high viz on and keep an eye out for a giant mirrorball hammer. Yep you heard us, a mirrorball hammer! how camp.
- Colours of Our Community: Freak To Be Me!!! – A bold circus-themed float celebrating individuality and mental health, featuring LED-lit costumes, a stilt walker, drummers, and a vibrant rainbow showgirl ensemble.
- Deaf Rainbow NSW: Deaf Drag Divas – Honouring Deaf LGBTQIA+ history, this float features dazzling outfits and empowering messages like “Reclaiming Our Spotlight” and “Free To Be.”
- Diabetes Australia – This one is personal to our team. Keep an eye out for the DA float, which will contain those affected by all types of Diabetes, associated health care providers and allies. Diabetes does not discriminate, neither should we.
- DIY Rainbow: Go Australia! – Inspired by the Paris Olympics, this float features a Green & Gold breakdancing troupe performing iconic Aussie moves, including appearances by members of the Australian Men’s Netball Team.
- Free Gay and Happy: Rocky Horror Picture Show – A theatrical tribute to the cult classic, this float transforms Oxford Street into Frank-N-Furter’s laboratory, with dancers leading the crowd in the Time Warp.
- Fruits from Brazil Inc: We Can Be Heroes – Inspired by queer superheroes, this float celebrates LGBTQIA+ resilience, featuring larger-than-life pop-art tributes to icons like Marsha P. Johnson and Peter Tully.
- LaPa Legends – Representing Bidjigal land’s First Nations Rainbow community, this debut float features angelic imagery symbolising resilience, incarceration, and the fight for justice.
- Tamworth Pride – Tamworth is Australia’s Country Music capital, a regional city, with a vibrant and accepting community.
- Trans and Gender Diverse Blue Mountains: Free to Belong – With costumes inspired by native flora and fauna, including black cockatoos and dragonflies, this float embraces transformation, inclusion, and connection to Country.
- The Fabulous Wonder Mamma: says stay fabulous! – Drag icon, entrepreneur, entertainer and tourism darling, Wonder Mamma brings her ever glamorous, over the top kitch and camp entry to the parade for her 10th year! Every time is a spectacle for this walking group – Each year is a spectacle, so don’t miss this superhero delight.
For those unable to attend in person, the Parade will be broadcast live on ABC, bringing the energy and spectacle of Mardi Gras to audiences across Australia.
Photo: Joseph Mayers / SGLMG
Rob is the founder of GTG. Launching the GTG-Sydney brand in 1995, it has gone from a VHS tourist guide for Sydney to a global phenomenon, partnering with Pride events and special events and charities all over the world, raising millions of dollars for the LGBTQIA+ communities and showcasing our big gay world to anyone who wants to join in the fun.
Rob is a trained marketer and journalist. An Emmy award winner, a NIDA-trained TV Presenter who has been on digital channels, cable and terrestrial broadcast television globally as a presenter, producer and creative.
He is currently editor-in-chief and producer of GTG and the co-host of The Unfashionably Late Podcast.