Calendar of Events

efn Magazine
December-February quarterly issue no 207 has been published
EFN (Essex Folk News) is our quarterly magazine. Every issue includes articles and reviews, as well as a diary of folk events in Essex and a list of clubs and group

It is free to all EFA members, or can also be bought at certain folk clubs, price £2.
Contact editor@essexfolk.uk

The latest issue includes articles about the 90-year-old morris dancer who climbed the spire of Thaxted church, and a memory of Steve Monk and the annual Stepdance Day.

Dartford Folk Club features Barn Fire on 6th January
Brown Boots on 13th January
The Medlars on 20th January
and The Goblin Band on 28th January

Hoy At Anchor folk club is hosting Fran & Belinda and The Umbrella Factory on 6th January
Arfur Doo and The Toerags on 13th January
and Famous Potatoes on 27th January.

Wivenhoe Folk Club are holding their opening session on 8th January (unusually the 2nd Thursday of the month)

Lea Valley Wassail 10th January. Come wassailing in Abbey Gardens with the Chingford Morrismen.

Johnny Coppin and Phil Beer will be performing at Hitchin Folk Club on Sunday 11th January

Good Easter Molly dancing on Plough Monday (12th January).

Benslow Music are running a course, Magic of the Melodeon, with tutors Hazel Askew and Lucy Huzzard.  The course is 3 days, running fom 19th – 22nd January and is aimed at intermediate to advanced players.  There are bursaries and discounts available for those who qualify.

Pete Morton will be the guest performer at Romford Haverfolk on 21st January

Loughton Folk Club is hosting Al Neville on 22nd January and Doves Vagaries on 29th January

On Friday 23rd January Rebecca Leek will be hosting My Folks And I at the Great Bromley Cross Inn from 18:00-20:00 which promises a relaxed evening of folk music with musicians from Essex and Suffolk

Joe Topping and Sam Carter are a double bill at Hitchin Folk Club on 25th January

An audience without Jake Thakery will be at Colchester Arts Centre on Monday 26th January

East Anglian Folklore Centre are holding a Burns Night Celebration on Sunday 25th January at the Queen Street Brewhouse, Colchester
Tickets £12 (includes a first wee dram…Non alcoholic drams available)
Featuring Alice De Lumiere, Bethan Briggs-Miller & Ethel Fled With a Headline Set from The Medlars
All capped off with a singaround of seasonal tunes led by Lizzie!

Dove’s Vagaries are performing at Loughton Folk Club on Thursday 29th January

The Bardswell Club, Brentwood hosts Honey and the Bear on Friday 30th January

Join the East Anglian Folklore Centre at 4.30 pm at the Commons Café. Drop in, no booking required.

In February Sail Loft Club will be hosting:
Martin McNeil on 1st February
Dave Pavitt on 8th February
Yael on 15th February
and Rob on 22nd February

Monday 2nd February – John Kirkpartick celebrates 200 Years of the Squeezebox at Colchester Arts Centre

On 3rd February Georgia Shackleton and Aaron Bennett will be at The Hoy At Anchor folk club

On 4th February Romford Haverfolk will have a featurette showcasing Steve Mayes
And… On 18th they will be hosting Smoky Wind

Wivenhoe Folk Club are hosting Mulley and Winn on Thursday 5th February

East Anglian Folklore Centre are holding a fundraising gig on Friday 6th February at Colchester Arts Centre. Join them for a very special evening as they weave storytelling, ritual and song with many wonderful friends of the Folklore Centre. Programme of Entertainments Includes:
A live-recorded mega podcast with Eerie Essex, Norfolk Folklore Society and other special guests.
A garland of musical treats from local landscape inspired legends Armoured Man
& Oli Steadman (Stornaway) who will be performing a fine selction of songs from his 365 days of folk project.
Folklore Zine-Making/Crafting station.

Terza are playing on Friday 6th February at the Hadleigh Folk and Acoustic Music Night in the Ansell Centre, Hadleigh, Suffolk.

There will be a Barn Dance at Eastleigh Memorial Hall on 7th February. Tickets and information 07851 127644.

Colchester Folk Club hosts Fire And Dust: A Woody Guthrie Story – Reg Meuross & The Strike on Monday 9th February

Pete Morton will be at the Hoy At Anchor folk club on 10th February

Preview Club will re-open at The Plough, Westcliffe-On-Sea after the Christmas Break on 6th February

On Sunday 8th February Florence Sommerville will be at the Brentford Theatre

There is a weekend of Irish music and Dance with a concert in Cambridge (St Philips Church, Mill Road) on 8th February – tickets from Cambridge Trad Fest

On Sunday 8 February Christina Alden and Alex Patterson will be at The Bardswell Club, Brentwood

Tim Edey, the well known guitarist, will be performing at Hotbox (Railway Arches, Chelmsford) on February 12th.

Colchester Folk Club hosts Harbottle & Jonas on Monday 16th February

On 17th February Ainsley Hammill with Sam Kelly and Toby Shaer will be at the Hoy At Anchor

Friday 20th February sees Filkin’s Drift at The Bardswell Club, Brentwood

On Monday 23rd, The Brothers Gillespie are performing at Colchester Folk Club (Arts Centre)

Sail Loft Club will be hosting:
Goodnight Crow on 1st March
Vince on 8th March
Tim and Theresa on 15th March
Kathy Migdal on 22nd March
and James on 29th March

Colchester Folk Club features Gilmore & Roberts on Monday 2nd March
…And Sam Carter on Monday 9th March at The Arts Centre

On 3rd March Ashen Keys will be performing at Dartford Folk Club

The Shakleton Trio are at The Bardswell Club, Brentwood on Friday 6th March

Tuesday 10th March – North Sea Gas are at The Hoy At Anchor Folk Club

On 17th March Johnny Campbell will be at Dartford Folk Club

Chingford Fold Dance Club are holding a special dance on Saturday 28th March, Music by Chris Carpenter Caller Andrew King in Mornington Hall The Green Walk, Chingford E4 7EN

On 10th March Dartford Folk Club will feature Simon Kempston

On 18th March Romford Haverfolk are hosting Lynne Heraud and Pat Turner

Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman are at Dartford Folk Club on 24th March

Fairport Convention will be performing at The Apex, Bury St Edmunds on Wednesday 18th March with supporting act from Scotland, Jenn Butterworth

Colchester Folk Club features Steve Knightley Sanctuary: Songs from sacred places on Monday 16th March

…Boo Hewerdine on Monday 23rd March

…And The Churchfitters on Monday 30th March at The Arts Centre

On Sunday 22nd March Hannah Saunders and Ben Savage are at The Bardswell Club, Brentwood

Chingford Folk Dance Club are holding a special dance on Saturday 28th March from 7-10:30pm. Contact Suzanne Harper 0208 508 4770

Tuesday 31st March – Churchfitters are at The Hoy At Anchor Folk Club
and…
Dartford Folk Club are hosting Simply Dylan

Colchester Folk Club (at Colchester Arts Centre) features:
Monday 13th – Nancy Griffith Show: Clive Gregson and the Hayes Sisters
Monday 20th – Granny’s Attic
Monday 27th – John Jones

Sail Loft Club have
Pick Your Feet duo on April 5th
Laura Pickton on 12th
Little Kingdom on 19th
and Rob on 26th

The Sailor Swift Event is at The Estuary Club, 1386 London Road, Leigh on Sea

On 7th April Rosie Calvert and Will Finn are at Dartford Folk Club
and…
on 14th April they host Brian Willoughby and Cathryn Craig

Edwina Hayes is performing at Pakenham church (Suffolk) on April 17th

The following artists will be performing at Loughton Folk Club:
On 2nd April – Sam Brothers
On 9th April – John Ward Trio
On 16th April – The Blow Ins
On 23rd April – Steve Warner and Julie Simpson
On 30th April – Kelly and Woolley

On 21st April Mike Silver will be at Dartford Folk Club
and…
on 28th April Clive Carroll will be the guest artist

Sail Loft Club will be hosting:
Terry Hiscock and Rog Trevitt on 3rd May
Dave Symonds on 10th May
Peter Dunhill – any good thing. on 17th May
Den self penned on 24th May
and James on 31st May

5th May sees Linde Nijland and Bert Ridderbos at Dartford Folk Club
and…
on 12th May Dan McKinnon will be their guest

Cara Dillon is performing at Pakenham church (Suffolk) on Thursday 14th May

Colchester Folk Club hosts:
Monday 11th – Miranda Sykes and Jim Causley
Friday 15th – Cara Dillon
Monday 18th – Jon Boden and the Remnant Kings
at Colchester Arts Centre

In May Loughton Folk Club hosts:
7th – Linda Moylan
14th – Wickenwood Band
21st – Enda McCabe
28th – Awake Mother

Saturday 16th May from 6pm to 10pm.
The EFA Annual Ball – at Stock Village Hall, 58 Common Road, Stock, CM4 9LY.
Caller: Thomas Bending.
Music by Keeping Thyme
Bring a plate of food to share.
Dress optional – period costume encouraged!
Large free car park.
Tickets £16, but £15 for EFA members, from the Treasurer:
We are now selling tickets by email to:
Treasurer@EssexFolk.UK. using ‘BALL’ and your surname as reference.
or by post:
Nigel Gaspar, 45 Normandie Way, Bures, Essex CO8 5BE.
Numbered tickets can be collected at the door.
Telephone enquiries or ordering 01787 204033.

May 15th-17th is Old Leigh‘s Shanty Festival. Contact Tony Prior for more information 07805 641797

Louise and Chris Rogon are at Dartford Folk Club on 19th May

Monday 18th May – The Shackleton Trio are at Colchester Folk Club in The Arts Centre

Christopher Crompton is Dartford Folk Club‘s guest on 26th May

On 4th June Rick Christian will be the guest at Wivenhoe Folk Club

Tuesday 9th June – John Kirkpatrick is at the Hoy At Anchor Folk Club in Leigh-on-Sea

The East Anglian Story Telling Festival will be held at The Food Museum, Stowmarket on 19th-21st June. Contact Carl Merry for info: 07815 737364

Saturday 27th June – Bury Folk Festival at the Walled Garden, Nowton Park, Bury Road, Nowton, Bury St. Edmunds Suffolk, IP295LU.
Tickets are on sale now. https://www.buryfolkfestival.co.uk/

The Folk In A Field festival will take place from 2nd-5th July in Bradmoor Woods, Norfolk, PE32 1FQ

Sunday 5th July
Provisional date set for the EFA Annual General Meeting – at Widford Village Hall. Details to follow.

On Thursday 27th August Rick Christian will be giving a concert in All Saints Church, High Street, Walton-on-the-Naze at 7:30pm (Doors open at 7:00pm)

FolkEast will take place on 21st-23rd August at the Sotterly Estate, Suffolk

Lady Maisery at Colchester Folk Club on Monday 12th October