Oxford Folk Festival 2006

[Suzanne]

So you WERE there Cream-T. I must have passed you many times on Saturday; sorry I missed you.

Alas I did not see Sir Robert Peel - mind you, I had no idea what to look for; I did search for a bath chair but none was forthcoming.  Maybe it can come into use at a later festival.

[AndyCarter]

Boatboy and I had a fantastic time! Without a doubt it was the friendliest festival we've ever been to, and it was lovely to meet so many TAWers.

I've been entertaining my workmates this morning with performances on my new kazoo. Boatboy came away with a ukelele, and wants to know if anyone is interested in forming a Yukons tribute band.
He'd like it to be known as The Ukes of Hazzard.

We're honoured that anybody would like to form a Yukons tribute band (there's already one run by Oxford undergraduates I believe) although actually the auditions to get into the real thing aren't terribly hard. We actually used to be called The Ukes Of Hazzard until we found out that somebody else already had the name, but eagled eyed visitors to our website will notice one or two hints about the old name.

It was a fantastic weekend and great to see so many of you there. Well done and a massive thank you to everyone who helped organise it. Bellowhead were brilliant, my daughters have fallen under the spell of The Winterset and are even now plotting their own Bellowhead-Winterset crossover act. Myself, I thought Magpie Lane and Spire were fabulous and I'm looking forward to seeing more of them in future.

[Anne Dunn]

May I add my congratulations to all the organisers, what a great weekend.

I'm just so sorry I didn't find out who everybody was - name badges next year! Whoever designed the Hancock awards should be able to come up with something stunning?

Lovely to say hello to Sandy and Fi - Nick, you actually sat down at our table in the bar to eat your sandwich. I was going to say hello when you finished eating (I'm very polite) but even before you finished eating you were dragged away to deal with a renegade ambulance. But I saw you about a lot, dancing, taking photos, generally looking after everyone, and always with a big smile.

Thanks for the beer Chris, between us we managed to sample 6 out of the range, my personal favourite was the 'wedding ale' I love those light coloured beers.

And who was the MC for Sunday with the ponytail? I felt as if I ought to know him.

And I didn't find out who Sir Robert or Cream-T were - damn!

It's SO boring being back at work.

Roll on next festy - for me that's Cromer.

Anne

[Nick]

but even before you finished eating you were dragged away to deal with a renegade ambulance.

Renagade is a very interesting choice of word to use there...     

I did enjoy flitting from stage to stage filming the proceeds though and the bits that I heard and saw were fantastic without exception. I shall enjoy editing all the film and reliving properly the bits that went by in such a blur.

And it was really good to meet so many Talkawhilers too! I knew there were quite a few present but it was a shock and surprise to hear such a cheer when we gave out the Hancock award. 

and  to everyone who was there!

Cheers

Nick

[Nuthouse]

Just popped a bug Thank You to Jonesy&Groove and their fabulous daughters, Cream-T and Mic for their help in stewarding, to Sandy and Fi for their inspirational determination with OFF, to ChrisE for the port and Nick for the direction to the kebab van at Silly o'Clock in the morning & SoN of whom I am immensely proud for getting stuck in on all manner of jobs large and small across the weekend.

Lovely to see old friends and other Talkawhilers,,, what a fab weekend

Feet sore, mug of tea in hand, smelly socks in washer..... back on my wanders.....

See you at Oysterband. 

[Fi]

PHEW!

Well, what a weekend, I am absolutely and completely exhausted. Thanks to all for your kind comments, it really does make it worth it!.

Great to meet those Talkawhilers I hadn't met before; Cream T, Groove and Jones the Steam and your enthusiastic daughters, I believe I danced with them at Bellowhead (that's all a bit blurry to be honest). Sir Bob, you look very good for your age  , AnnieD...glad I've met you at last! Ellie, I didn't get to hear you sing...but I will soon I hope.

Jude and Anji - sorry I just spent the weekend dashing past you both...I hadn't time even to buy sparkly danglies...! 

...and Issy, I have photographic evidence of your smashing morris dancing...

I especially want to give a big thanks to Vicki Rose who helped us enormously over the weekend, a game girl not afraid to jump in at the deep-end, when asked at short notice to do something completely new to her she would go and do it.  (Un)fortunately (? ) for her she is now assimilated into the OFF hive and will not be allowed to leave...resistance is futile. And so are Nuthouse and SoN. Mic said she'd come back too...are you all mad??? 

Sunday's MC was Tim Healey, our artistic director and etc...he looks quite a lot like his Dad 


Am now off to have a long lie down...zzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Sandra]

I can only echo Fi in saying thank you for your so kind comments. You're making us blush! The fact that so may people seem to have enjoyed it really does make it worthwhile.

It was wonderful to see so may Talkawhilers. I just wish I had had more time to talk to you all properly rather than in rushing past or being dragged off.

An ENORMOUS thank you to all who helped. You were all stars, but special mention has to go to Nuthouse, SoN, Vickie Rose Andy (of the Yukons fame) and Ellie. We could not have done it without you.

I did actually meet CreamT several times, and spent hours with him backstage, but only discovered who he was last night!

We had a quick whip round this morning, and that, together with the loose change swept up from the Town Hall floor, was enough to finally secure Sir Bob's release. I can now reveal that the actual cause of the arrest was that I had failed to declare the presence of his bath chair in the application for the parade license.Consequently he was done for obstructing a lawful and licenced parade (holding a valid road closure notice) with a wheeled vehicle (I believe it is the first time it has been cited since 1805, but they are really gearing themselves up in Oxford for a new supermagistrate I hear).

I had to cry off the clearing up this morning due to a family funeral, so I had now best make amends by going and cooking doing the festival accounts. I also have to try and persuade Mr S (oxfordchris) to wash his face which is something he has sworn never to to do again since Eliza Carthy kissed him on Saturday night.

Sandra (a very embarrassed hussy)

[John Beresford]

A huge thumbs up for a splendid festival!

The performance that will stay with me longest is "On English Ground" - wondrous, stunning, enthralling, theatrical, balletic, gymnastic... I was exhausted from watching!

The range and variety of instruments and voices deserves a mention - we heard everything from sousaphone to soprano recorder, harp to zither, piano accordion to button concertina, drum kit to hammered dulcimer, close harmonies to ancient Icelandic chants sampled on a Macintosh computer.

A triumph for everyone involved.

[gower flower (Shirl)]

Phew! What a weekend.........

Arrived at the Town Hall on Friday night just in time to catch the Wrants. Musical talent, enthusiasm and humour all rolled into one youthful and delightful band.

They were followed by the charming sound of local singers Sue Brown and Lorraine Irwing who captivated me with their beautiful unaccompanied harmonies.

It's still only Friday folks! LOL!

By this time, I was comfortably ensconced in Town Hall Second Stage, so hung around to catch Short Drag Roger "Oxfordshire's Foremost Shanty Band" They were enormous fun, professional to the core, and the set was full of humour and musicality.

Have to agree with John B. On English Ground were EXTRAORDINARY on the Saturday. I kind of drifted in during their set. What an enthralling and highly emotional experience.

Caught some wonderful Morris Dancing at the Castle beforehand. Hello Issy! Great to see you

Other major highlights:

Rachel Unthank and The Winterset
Bellowhead
Steve Ashley and Friends
and FLOOK

Thanks to Sandy, Nick, Fi, and many others too numerous to mention.

Great to catch up with Nuthouse and SoN, Groove St and Jonesy, the lovely Jude, Anji, Vikki Rose, Ellie, Adrian, Chris B., - apologies to those I have left out.

WELL DONE ALL!

[gower flower (Shirl)]

WHOOPS!!!

Forgot to mention SPIRE. I wasn't sure if I would catch this band as it clashed somewhat with Steve Ashley and Friends (who included CHRIS LESLIE). However, I was mistaken.

If you have not yet caught them, I urge you to catch up. Wonderful powerful vocals from our very own Sian Braham, for a start. Take a bow, Sian!

Delightful to hear them, and more power to them all.

Shirl

[abby (tank girl)]

im Georgie ( George) and Oxford was great!

Dancing with Ellie and seeing people like stuard, Sandy boat girl, nick and many many more were also coool

Highlites of the week
Bellow heAD
Black oompa loompas
Rachel unthank and the winterset
and what was herd of ELLIE!

Can't wait for more folk festivals, i could try to remember my little fiddle (violin)

george (georgie)



Edit: George (daughter of Groove St) seems to be posting all over the board, using her mothers account. Seeing as this also gives access to IM's and The Arms, the account has been suspended.

[Karen]

The Oxford Folk Festival was the best festival I'd been to.  Yes, even better than Cropredy.

I had a great time and I'm so glad that I volunteered to Steward.  It was lovely to catch up with Mix, Sandy, Batesy, Nick, Fi, Vikki, Oxford Chris, Nuthouse, Son of Nuthouse, Cream T, Anji and Jude.  I met some wonderful new people, too.

I'm sorry that I missed so many Talkawhilers.  I suppose you were put off by the electronic tag on my ankle and the fact that I was handcuffed to my Probation Officer, Miss Cathcart.    

Karen

Styal Prison
Cheshire

[Sir Robert Peel]

We set off from Oxford Castle at zero eleven hundred hours promptly on Saturday morning in bright sunshine after a commanding briefing from Sandy.  With banners held high and a cast of hundreds of musicians, dancers, chaps in animal costumes, dhol drums, marshals and stewards we marched up New Road, into Bond Square and around the city centre halting in Cornmarket Street.  My august person and bath chair had been concealed in a hobbyhorse costume and I must admit to getting rather over excited when young women stroked my nag’s head and Japanese businesspersons insisted on having their photo taken with me.   

Peeping through the eyeholes of my costume, I could see Squeezy at the head of the procession with his band Melomania.  He was wearing a top hat festooned with Road kill, yes, I said Road kill – feathers, fur and goodness knows what else.  I determined to keep a low profile.  I was well aware that said Squeezy was going to kick my sit-upon and get his own back for a review of a Ratcatchers’ gig that I had posted in February.  I think I likened him to Jordan, but I cannot remember the details.

How one danced!  How one laughed!  How one nearly got one’s teeth taken out by the Outside Capering Crew as they leapt about one!

Melomania, the banner bearers, Sandy, Nick and yours truly peeled off and made our way to the Town Hall where I could see Devon’s finest farm hand, Cream T, waiting on the pavement to greet us.  Beside him was a chap in a shirt that required a notice under the Noise Abatement Act – it was my dear friend and drinking partner Stuart Loud Shirt.  As I was about to hail them, my attention was drawn to a chap on a window ledge above us, hanging onto a window frame by his fingernails and pointing a suspiciously shooterish implement in our direction.  Who the bleddy hell was it?  Fearing that it may be Jon Boden  (whom I had likened to Rodney out of ‘Only Fools and Horses’ in that same review) I unmasked myself and scooted like the bleddy clappers down St. Aldates, hotly pursued by Squeezy and a couple of Thames Valley’s finest Peelers.

Frankly, I was relieved when I was arrested and placed in Male Cell 4 for the duration of the festival.  It transpires that the ‘assassin’ swinging from the building was none other than ace photographer, Chris Bates, attempting to get the perfect panoramic picture of the festivities.  The Blighter!  Cream T visited me and when the Bobbies asked him to vouch for me, he claimed that he was unable to speak and had lost his voice.  The Blighter! 

I was allowed out of my cell to view CCTV images of the Hancock presentation relayed from the security cameras at the Town Hall.  I blew my nose loudly and sighed with great pleasure.  How I have enjoyed reading about your experiences of the festival, the city and the comradeship that has been forged through this little community.  Ah yes, dear Talkawhile, how glad I am that I am part of it.

Sir Robert Peel
Prisoner Consecutive Number 211/04/06

[AdrianW]

I too wish to thank everyone involved in arranging and running such a wonderful and well organised festival, and add to the embarrassment of Sandra, Fi and Vicki by singling them out for praise.

From my punter's point of view, most things ran very smoothly, and we were kept well informed when there were "problems". Quotes because relatively short delays in getting into rooms which did contain everybody with a ticket don't count as a real problem in my book. Queuing for hours and not getting in would be a real problem - but that didn't happen.

It was good to meet so many old and new friends.

It was good to see children enjoying themselves. Catch them young!

The outside stuff was fun, and seemed to be going down well with the public.

All the music I heard was good. Of the "conventional" groups which were new to me, I especially liked wRants and Spire. I must confess to not liking Bellowhead, but that's just my personal taste.

Of the unconventional performances, four for me were particularly enjoyable:
On English Ground. Morris becomes ballet. Wow.
New St George Waits (down at the Castle). Very amusing, drawing the audience into the fun.
Andy Cronshaw. Beautiful.
Steindor Andersen and Hilmar orn Hilmarsson. This was as described: remarkable - and also beautiful.

I missed a lot of course, inevitable with so much good stuff going on at once.

Maybe more information could be made available (or obvious) about fringe events? I ran into Lucy Kitt in Jesus, and would have tried to have listened to her if I had known she was performing the previous day.

[Ethans Granny (Carolyn)]

I'll go along with everyone else and say I had a fantastic time.  Ethan's Mum and I met lots of lovely new people from here and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.  So why do I have a feeling of disappointment and incompleteness about the weekend?

Because I'm an idiot - that's why!  WHY didn't I book for the whole weekend?  Why?  We got tickets for Friday and Saturday only and I can't remember why!  I did exactly the same for the Cheltenham FF last year and felt like this, so this year I did the whole weekend.  You'd think I'd have learnt really, wouldn't you?   

Oh well - next year I'll do the whole thing and I might even stay in Oxford rather than driving home every night   

Carolyn

[vikki rose]

Hooray! Wasn't it brilliant?! I still can't believe that it actually happened. Returned to London yesterday & the whole festival seems like a beautiful distant dream.....
I guess I am just re interating everyone else but huge thanks to the wonderful team who held it all together Sandra, Fi, Nick, Stuart, Sam & Chris, I love all of you & you were all fab. There were so many talkawhilers there, never have I seen such a large contingent! Oxford Chris, Cream T, Boatgirl, Dan, Ellie, Groove st, Jones the steam & kids it was lovely to meet you all and the old brigade of Jackdaw et all lovely to catch up.
I had a brilliant weekend & will hopefully see you all soon
Vikki xx

[Ellie]

Ay it were proper bo and no mistake.

I still have all 5 - count 'em anmd look at the pretty colours - wristbands on but am waiting for my bosses to ask me to remove them.

Unfortunately as I am stupid I sliced the top of my thumb off this morning so can't type much, but when i can i will write something usefull.

El

PS George and Daisy, you are far better dancers than me.  and it''s good to know that the Macerena can be danced to The Rambling Sailor