Rylan Clark and Rita Ora to headline London gay outdoor festival

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Rylan Clark, former X Factor contestant and Celebrity Big Brother winner, and singer Rita Ora, are to headline a gay outdoor music event in London this summer.

Both singers are to perform at the As One in the Park festival this summer, which is being billed asĀ “the first credible large-scale gay festival in London for over a decade.”

Other artists announced are Katy B, X Factor’s Union J, Offer Nissim and Skin, and more acts are expected to be announced soon.

The event had been held as a night in Vauxhall’s Fire club since 2010, however the organisers of the event, Orange Nation, have said they want to turn it into a whole-day festival.

ā€œWe felt it was time that London was no longer overlooked when it came to a major gay outdoor entertainment event. We will bring together the cream of Londonā€™s gay scene alongside the worldā€™s most internationally renowned gay brands,ā€ said Craig Elder of Orange Nation.

As One in the Park will also feature a presence from cabaret club Madame JoJoā€™s, lesbian festival L Fest, and gay bar Ku Bar. Further acts and DJs will be announced soon.

During Celebrity Big Brother, Clark broke down in tears and claimed he was more hated than paedophile Jimmy Savile, however he went on to win the Channel 5 competition.

Before being voted off the X Factor,Ā Clark had voiced his displeasure at ā€˜hatefulā€™ comments made by Gary Barlow at a charity event on Tuesday, in which he suggested that the judge had gone too far.Ā 

The gay former X Factor contender was snapped up as a presenter on ITVā€™s Daybreak programme just days after being voted off the musicĀ reality show.

In February,Ā Brit-nominated Rita Ora spoke about her very close friendship with a bisexual supermodel, Cara Delevingne, andĀ said that she had taken her ā€œoff the marketā€, and that she had ā€œstrictly no timeā€ for men.

The singer recently split up with her boyfriend, Rob Kardashian, and despite rumours that she has been dating X Factor winner, James Arthur, she said she was happy enough being single.