The boss of Pride in London, one of the world's largest pride events, has been sacked after he was accused of making personal purchases with thousands of pounds worth of vouchers intended for volunteers.

Christopher Joell-Deshields, who denies the allegations, was suspended as chief executive last September when allegations about his conduct came to light.

BBC News understands he has been paid his full £87,500 annual salary while suspended for seven months until his departure in March.

It comes as the 55-year-old is in an ongoing legal dispute with Pride in London after he was accused of trying to frustrate the investigation into his conduct.

Joell-Deshields has been approached for comment.

A group of volunteer directors for London LGBT Community Pride, the community interest company which runs parts of the annual pride event in the capital, accused Joell-Deshields of spending £7,000 of vouchers donated by a sponsor.

The vouchers were reportedly intended as raffle prizes and gifts to volunteers, but Joell-Deshields spent them on luxury perfumes and Apple products, the directors said.

In a whistleblowing disclosure, the volunteer directors also claimed there was a "bullying culture" at Pride in London.

Following an independent investigation into these claims, Pride in London said on Tuesday it had decided to sack Joell-Deshields. He had been chief executive since 2021.

He appealed the decision but it was upheld by an independent council, the organisation added.

Pride in London, which has around 100 year-round volunteers and four paid members of staff, said its interim chief executive, Rebecca Paisis, would be "implementing a new governance structure to ensure Pride in London operates at the highest standards".

This year's celebration is due to take place on 4 July, with sources at the organisation telling BBC News it will go ahead "as usual".

The event costs around £1.3m a year to run and relies on around 1,000 on-the-day volunteers. It's largely funded by corporate sponsors but receives around £175,000 a year from the Mayor of London's office, the Greater London Authority (GLA).

Leaders of London's pride event will be hoping news of Joell-Deshield's dismissal could help steady what has been a rocky few months for them.

The investigation into him also led to a legal battle in the High Court, which is due to conclude in the coming weeks.

In September 2025, a High Court judge ordered Joell-Deshield to relinquish control of Pride in London property, including bank accounts, internal systems and equipment.

In January 2026, he appeared back in court accused of two charges of contempt for failing to comply with the order, which lawyers for Pride in London argued was an attempt to "frustrate" the independent investigation into his conduct.

Representatives for Joell-Deshields told the court he had not returned a company laptop as it was bought for him by the company after his personal device was damaged in his line of work.

He admitted the second count of contempt for failing to provide a signed statement confirming he had returned all company property.

Last week, lawyers for Pride in London returned to court to allege the company property had still not been returned after seven months, and that Joell-Deshields had failed to file a defence in the case.

Deputy High Court Judge Matthew Butt KC made an order that means the court will find in Pride in London's favour if Joell-Deshields does not file a defence in the next two weeks.

During proceedings in September, representatives for Joell-Deshields said his agreement to comply with any court order regarding the return of company property was not an admission of guilt.

The BBC understands that directors at Pride in London eventually regained access to the internal systems and accounts by asking a former volunteer in the IT department whose login had not been properly deactivated to restore their accounts.

BBC News has approached Joell-Deshields for comment.

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