One of the largest crowds ever recorded in Singapore for a civil gathering turned out yesterday at a gay rights rally, against a backdrop of noisy opposition from religious groups in the run-up to the event.

An estimated 26,000 people descended on Hong Lim Park for the "Pink Dot", an annual event since 2009 that aims to discourage discrimination against same-sex couples.

Sex between two men is illegal in Singapore and punishable with up to two years in prison, though it is rarely enforced.