Sweaty, raucous photos from inside Manchester’s Homobloc

Having spent four years living in Manchester before moving to London, photographer Gracie Brackstone has documented much of the city’s queer life from inside basement venues and across packed-out dancefloors. Now returning for Homobloc, the annual queer rave that takes over Depot Mayfield, the photographer set out to capture much of what she loves about the city, all contained under one sweaty roof.

“Manchester always provides a space for experimentation for the queer community, for people to find who they are and come into their own,” says Brackstone. “I have known so many people who have questioned their sexuality, their gender and how they present themselves, while being in the bubble of the city.” Events like Homobloc, she says, give people the space to “think up new worlds, new means of self-expression and then reflect that idea, cut it up, DIY and safety pin it together.”

Since launching in 2019, Homobloc has become one of the biggest dates in Manchester’s queer calendar, bringing together the city’s DJs, drag performers and collectives alongside international names for one raucous night. This year, Kim Petras, COBRAH, MCR-T, Girls Don’t Sync and Manchester legend DJ Paulette were among those on the bill.

That kind of space is becoming harder to come by in Manchester and the wider UK. In 2026, a report found that 77 per cent of LGBTQ+ people surveyed said the number of queer nightlife spaces in their area had declined in recent years, while 82 per cent said closures had affected their sense of community.

Despite those challenges, there’s an energy to the city that has endured, and for Brackstone, two years after leaving Manchester, the closeness of its queer community has only become more apparent whenever she comes back. “Friends are easy to make and keep, and people become like family members to you, just because of the closeness of the city,” she says.

Elsewhere, she photographed drag performer Banksie’s runway, including Meme Gold walking in the show. “I love taking pictures of Meme Gold,” she says. “The images that I took of her walking Banksie’s runway are beautiful, I think; she is a walking piece of art. All the divas in Banksie’s show looked incredible, with Cheddar Gorgeous ending the show.”

One of her other favourite shots is less staged: her friend Reece carrying her best friend Willow on her shoulders so she could see Kim Petras, after both had spent the night performing. “Lifting her up in drag herself, wearing heels and a bright blue wig is everything,” says Brackstone.

For Brackstone, these smaller moments are as much a part of Homobloc as the higher-billed artists playing its stages. “Nothing is individual; it actually is a representation of community, where trans people and drag queens really orchestrate it all and bring everyone together,” she says. “The crowd is permanently living for the performers; all night long there is something or someone to look at.” In the gallery above, Brackstone takes us inside it all.