A clash of dates between gay icon Kylie Minogue’s performance at this year’s Electric Picnic Festival and the annual Galway Pride Festival has left the city’s LGBTQ+ community Spinning Around.

But the Galway Community Pride Committee has hit back at claims that it changed its dates, causing the clash.

Electric Picnic is to take place in Stradbally, Co Laois, earlier than usual, from Friday, August 16 — it has been held on the first weekend of September since its inception. One of Galway’s most prominents drag queens, Kiki Saint Clair, took to social media to decry the clash, claiming Galway Pride changed its dates.

“This is devastating for queer Galway performers and artists who are going to lose out on a significant amount of gigs and opportunities as a result of the clashing dates,” she wrote.

“Galway deserves to have a Pride where we actually have a choice to celebrate our queer nightlife culture on a night where people will actually be in Galway.”

She urged supporters to contact Galway Pride to demand an emergency meeting.

But the Galway Pride Committee said its week-long event, culminating in a parade on the Saturday, has taken place on the second week of August for at least six years.

“Deciding Galway Pride dates is not done arbitrarily — the last several committees have maintained our typical spot on the second week of August in order not to clash with other Prides in Ireland,” they state.

“We are well aware that many performers and artists depend on attending multiple Prides for their income, the community travels between counties to support neighbouring Prides and the community in the county travels into the city for events.

“We are constrained by other events happening in and around Galway. Organising Pride requires a lot of cooperation from the city, businesses and other organisations to ensure we have the street closures and permissions necessary to put on our own events, something that can be especially challenging when trying to plan the best Pride possible during the same period as the Galway Races, Streets of Galway, and the Galway Arts Festival.”