The privilege of subversion: Reading experiences of LGBT-themed events during Hull UK City of Culture 2017 through liminality

In this paper, Grabher reads Turner’s liminality in the context of queer political aspirations of LGBT-themed events and the widely discussed transformative potential of event and festivals. Liminality suggests a suspension of hegemonic structures and explorations of alternative models of living. Grabher ethnographically studies the realities of these transformative powers in LGBT-themed events. The week-long event series entitled LGBT50 is used as a case study. A flagship project of Hull’s celebration of the title UK City of Culture (2017), LGBT50 contributes to the ‘365 days of transformative culture’ for the city. Considering cultural actors and visitors, Grabher argues for a nuanced understanding of the potential of liminality as regarded in the LGBT-labelled event. Her analysis suggests that subversive, liminal temporalities continue to be a privilege.