Lots of bright colours, glamour, more underwear on display than normal, and a lot more smiles and laughter than usual filled the streets of Lismore for the annual Tropical Fruits pride parade this afternoon.

About 300 people lined the streets after the parade assembled in Bridge St, North Lismore, before crossing the bridge and going down Molesworth St to Lismore City Hall for the Haus of Fruits Soiree, which goes on until 8pm.

The Tropical Fruits NYE Festival is a four-day LGBTIQ celebration at the Lismore Showgrounds where there are a New Year’s Eve party, New Year’s Day Pool Party and New Year’s Day Recovery Party.

Tickets for the annual Tropical Fruits’ new year celebrations are capped at 4000.

Tropical Fruits chairman Brett Paradise said the parade marked the official start to festivities and there would be a Welcome to Country and performances at Lismore City Hall.

Haus of Fruits is based on the ballroom theme of the eighties, which was created by oppressed African-American transsexual women that created a culture for themselves.

“It was what really came out of Madonna’s Vogue video, which drew heavily from the ballroom scene in Manhattan, and so it was about dancing and showing off and being glamorous in your own way,” Paradise said.

Established in 1988, Tropical Fruits is the LGBTIQ community group in the Northern Rivers region of NSW.