Variety Is The Spice Of LGBTQIA+ Life At The 2026 OUTintheOPEN Festival 

Greater Shepparton’s OUTintheOPEN festival returns next month with 15 days of gorgeous pride, catch-ups, drag, culture and community celebrations. 

This year marks the festival’s 15th iteration, in a region where dedicated local volunteers have spent years creating space for queer life.

Running from 6–20 November, the festival includes a free Carnival Day, Drag Singo Bingo, brunches and a trip to Castlemaine Pride. Plenty of opportunities to get out of the house, meet your people and perhaps accidentally become much too competitive at drag bingo.

Behind the fun is a purpose that has driven OUTintheOPEN since its first outing: LGBTQIA+ people deserve to be able to find community close to home, and we deserve variety in our Pride events.

The festival began in 2012, with a health and wellbeing forum and a Carnival Day in Queens Gardens. Uniting Kildonan Shepparton instigated the event after identifying too few opportunities to publicly celebrate the local LGBTQIA+ community. Goulburn Valley Pride – which was founded in 2005 – later became the lead organisation.

Its beginnings reflect something regional queers know all too well. Finding community can involve considerable effort when support services are limited, distances are long, and sometimes, there aren’t a great number of places where you can comfortably be yourself.

OUTintheOPEN’s founders identified this and other gaps in support, among the problems they wanted to address. Bringing people together, visibly and locally, was a major part of their response.

OUTintheOPEN: Homegrown and glowing

Fifteen years on, that work is still being done. This year’s theme, “Homegrown and Glowing”, celebrates fifteen years of the festival, as well Goulburn Valley Pride’s 21 years.

Festival convenor Damien Stevens-Todd said the occasion acknowledges the people who have kept the organisation and festival going.

“Homegrown and Glowing celebrates two important milestones for our community, 21 years of Goulburn Valley Pride and 15 years of OUTintheOPEN,” said Stevens-Todd. 

“It reflects the people, organisations and allies who have helped Pride grow in the Goulburn Valley from small beginnings to the vibrant festival and community we celebrate today. As we look back on how far we’ve come, we’re also excited about the bright future ahead.”

What’s on at OUTintheOPEN 2026?

The main gathering, Carnival Day, takes place at Queens Gardens on Saturday 7 November, with free entry and an invitation for families to join in.

There’s an opening-night event and a Carnival Day After Glow Party, while Drag Singo Bingo at Eve’s Bar offers another excuse to assemble the group chat in person. 

Two brunches at Elsewhere at SAM provide a gentler option for anyone whose preferred queer activity involves sitting down and being fed.

The program also includes workshops, arts activities and other social gatherings, plus a Day OUT to Castlemaine Pride that takes the celebrations beyond Shepparton.

That variety is what makes a truly great festival. The LGBTQIA+ community is beautifully broad and diverse, which means we all experience queer joy in different ways. A night out, a shared meal, some drag bingo, or an afternoon with family – or all of the above – give people different ways to participate. 

So whether you live for a huge party, or you prefer the more chill events, OUTintheOPEN has covered all bases.

Goulburn Valley Pride president Suzanne Muntz said regional communities should have those opportunities on their own doorstep.

“Regional communities deserve opportunities to celebrate diversity too. OUTintheOPEN is proof that pride belongs everywhere, including regional Victoria.”

And after years of locals organising, volunteering and showing up for one another, there’s plenty here worth celebrating. Melbourne can survive without everyone for a weekend.

OUTintheOPEN runs across Greater Shepparton from 6–20 November 2026. Carnival Day is free on Saturday 7 November at Queens Gardens. Tickets for selected events and the full program are available at outintheopen.org.au.

All photos supplied.