7th WIRRAL FOLK ON THE COAST FESTIVAL
“A great weekend of family entertainment”
It’s that time of year again when we give you advance notice of the Wirral Folk on the Coast Festival. This is Merseyside’s only fully-fledged folk festival and it’s well worth supporting. The entertainment in the grounds is all free, so why not pop along and join in the fun?
The 7th Wirral Folk on the Coast Festival of Music and Dance (to give it its full name!) takes place from Thursday 23rd to Sunday 26th June 2011 and is a wonderful weekend of family entertainment provided by over 150 performers.
It all takes place at the beautiful OC Sports and Leisure Centre, Bridle Road, Bromborough, CH62 6AR.
An extensive programme of music and dance is scheduled in the grounds of the Centre, plus free entry to a large craft fair/market place.
The free entertainment in the grounds will feature the Viking enactment group – ‘Wirhalh Skip Felag’, (The Wirral Viking Society) who will present a sequence of workshops and demonstrations of Viking life including, coin making, spinning, weaving and story telling. They will also re-enact Viking ‘battles’ on the Saturday and Sunday afternoons.
Other free attractions will be – Rolling folk club concerts, Singarounds, Music sessions, Story-telling, Poetry, Belly dance displays and Morris dancing. The Wirral Alliance of Poets will also be ‘in residence’ organised by John Gorman a former member of the Liverpool 60’s group The Scaffold. John is a leading light on Wirral for ‘all things poetry and literature’.
In addition to the above, visitors can if they wish purchase tickets to attend the fantastic programme of entertainments also taking place inside the main OC building, including 5 main stage concerts, a ceilidh dance and a Rock and Roll ‘Bop’.
The full line-up of festival artists is (left to right above) TV and Radio star and comedian Richard Digance, singer/songwriter and comedian Vin Garbutt, and Skiffle band Peter Donegan and the Original Lonnie Donegan Band.
Also performing are Pete Abbott and Other Roads (ex-John Wright’s band), Poet and comedian Les Barker, singer/songwriter Anthony John Clarke, Australian influenced Martyn Wyndham-Read, French singer Flossie Malavielle. ‘Songs of the Sea’ will be provided by Hughie Jones (ex-Spinners), the Yorkshire-based quintet Kimbers Men, Bernie Davies and no doubt The Tom Topping Band. Fake Thackray (better known as John Watterson) will recreate the songs and humour of Jake Thackray.
Other artistes appearing will be – Tyde, Gareth Davies-Jones, Tri, Naimh Boadle, The Hut People, The Jeps, Anna Shannon, The Deacons, Graham Bellinger, Jamie Landsborough, Brendan Fahy, The Celtic Notes, Martin Pleass, Greg Russell, Vocal Point, Bill Malkin & John Sylvester, AcousticA, The Marrowbones, Alison Parker & the Third Man Ceilidh Band, The Zazu Gypsy Tribal Dancers and The Mersey Morris Men.
John Owen the Chair of the festival committee said “We are absolutely delighted that once again we have the support of the local council in promoting this wonderful family event to which everyone is welcome. It thrills us to think that we are playing a major part in the development of tourism on Wirral”.
Weekend, Day and Concert tickets can be purchased but be quick as they are going fast. Camping on-site for the whole event is available to Weekend ticket holders only.
The ticket hotline telephone numbers are:-
- 0151-652-0734
- 0151-678-9902
Further information can be obtained by visiting the event website – www.wirralfolkonthecoast.com