Friends of Dorothy Society

The Friends of Dorothy Society (FODS) is a society of LGBT bell ringers and their friends. It is based in the UK but has members in other countries.

The society started when a notice was placed in the Ringing World (a weekly publication for bell ringers) in May 1991. The notice aimed to assemble a band to ring for the London Pride Festival that year. A number of people responded to the notice and the bells of St Martin in the Fields, Trafalgar Square were rung for that year’s parade.

The society holds a spring tour and an autumn tour each year. The first tour was to Bristol in October 1991. Since then, members of the society have toured many cities throughout the UK. The first international tour was held in May 2006 when members visited Washington DC. The society regularly rings for London Pride (at St Martin in the Fields) and Brighton Pride.