The recently sacked Bermudian head of London Pride appeared in court in the capital city today in a civil contempt case brought against him by his former employers.

Christopher Joell-Deshields, who was in charge of Pride in London from 2021 until he was fired this month for alleged misconduct, appeared for a listed two-day hearing before High Court judge Barry Cotter.

However, after lawyers for the parties held talks outside the court, the hearing was told the case was adjourned until tomorrow morning.

Mr Joell-Deshields, speaking to The Royal Gazette outside the Royal Courts of Justice, said he would tell his side of the story once the matter was resolved.

“There is much more to it,” he said. “There is a lot more to it than just being in court for contempt of court.

“People need to understand the full story. That’s all I want to say at the moment until we have completed this matter and the real story can come out.”

Pride in London is Britain’s biggest LGBTQ+ festival and pride parade.

Allegations of misconduct against Mr Joell-Deshields were first reported by the national British media in September.

He was accused by unnamed volunteers of abusing his position as head of London Pride, according to TheGuardian, and an inquiry was launched.

The allegations included that he spent £7,000 (about $9,400) worth of vouchers donated by sponsors on luxury perfumes and Apple tech products.

Volunteers also claimed he created a “toxic” work culture, including allegedly sending bullying messages to a disabled volunteer over WhatsApp.

In January, as reported by the BBC, Mr Joell-Deshields appeared in the High Court, where lawyers for Pride claimed he failed to obey an order to hand over company devices and account log-ins, alleging two counts of contempt of court.

He pleaded not guilty to failing to hand over the accounts but admitted failing to submit a statement confirming that he had complied with the court order.

Mr Joell-Deshields, who had been suspended as chief executive of Pride in London and removed as its director after a leave of absence at the end of August 2025, was fired this year.

Pride in London said in a statement this month that the decision was “reviewed and upheld by an independent counsel following an appeal process”.

Mr Joell-Deshields said he “strenuously” denied the allegations and highlighted that there were no criminal charges or police involvement over the claims.

David Cunnington, a barrister for London LGBT Community Pride CIC, which trades as Pride in London, said at the start of today’s proceedings there had been “literally a flurry of late activity in this case”.

After the parties’ private discussions, Mr Cunnington said the talks had “achieved the purpose that we intended” and asked the judge for them to be allowed to continue this afternoon.

Mr Justice Cotter agreed, noting that the proceedings were “hanging over [the respondent’s] head, so he wants this finished so the pressure outlined [in a report submitted to the court about Mr Joell-Deshields] can be relieved”.

Mr Joell-Deshields is a former assistant director and office manager of the Bermuda Government Office in London and former business development manager for the former Bermuda Department of Tourism’s London office.

Last week, The Londoner newspaper reported that a new AI-generated rival Pride event appeared to be linked to Mr Joell-Deshields.

He told the Gazette today: “That’s not me. That’s not what activism is about.”

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