Derby Folk Festival to turn the city into hub of live entertainment
Published: 26 September 2022
Lots of live entertainment will take to the streets of Derby
Derby Folk Festival is back for the sixteenth instalment this weekend, and the Fringe programme has now been announced.
As people flock from across the UK for the Derby Folk Festival, we’re delighted to announce the Fringe programme, supported by our partner venues The Old Bell Hotel, QUAD, Museum of Making and Cathedral Quarter. The programme is composed of mainly free events, aside from those accessible with the Fringe Supporter Saturday ticket, with performances and entertainment happening throughout the weekend.
Kicking off the fringe festivities is a music session in the Old Bell Hotel Tudor Bar from 6:30pm on Friday 30 September. Free to enter, the Tudor Bar is home to a friendly atmosphere, warming fire, and lots of live music. Audiences are welcome to sit and listen or bring an instrument and join in. These sessions will also take place on Saturday 1 October between 11am and 2pm and Sunday 2 October between 11am and 1pm. Andy Martin will be leading the sessions during these times, but you’re free to carry on playing whenever you like!
Saturday 1 October will then see a great selection of acoustic music in the QUAD Café area to enjoy from Christine Redfern, Deborah Short & John Adams, Marc Block, Old Sea Legs, Annette Oakes and Winter Wilson. Elsewhere, Cathedral Quarter will host various dance sides located at the Waterfall near the Market Place, Cathedral Green, Sadler Gate and the Cornmarket. These dance teams include After Dinner Clog, Makeney Morris, Restless Soles and Black Pig. There will also be a flash mob ceilidh that will take place at the waterfall at 1:30pm.
Alternatively, following on from last year, there will be a very small ticket charge of £5 for the fringe events in The Old Bell Hotel Ballroom on Saturday, known as the Fringe Supporter Saturday Ticket. This will help to support the ever-expanding fringe festival, with the ticket money going towards the costs of putting the events together. Tickets will be exchanged for a wristband, gaining audiences access to the events held in the Ballroom of the Old Bell Hotel all day on Saturday. Performances in the Old Bell Hotel Ballroom are by Arbrevyn, Darren Claxton, Careen, Franklin & Featherstone, 5 Hills Out and Steve & Julie Wigley. There will also be a free to watch Song Maker Competition from 6pm which will be judged by Julie Wigley and Jez Lowe.
The final day of the fringe programme, Sunday 2 October, will feature three highly anticipated events for you to join in with at the Museum of Making from 10:30am. These are the Hoverla Ukrainian Ensemble, a French / Breton Bal-Session and the Dave Wilson Workshop. Elsewhere, Steve & Julie Wigley, Winter Wilson, Doug Eunson & Sarah Matthews will perform at QUAD’s Café and Liberty Hill, Chip off the Old and Heart of Oak will be dancing in the Cathedral Quarter.
As well as the impressive fringe programme, the main performances of Derby Folk Festival will be taking place between The Mick Peat Stage, The Old Bell Ballroom and Derby Cathedral. Headlining this year’s festival are Sound of the Sirens, Spiers & Boden and Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman.
For those coming to Derby for the occasion, we would recommend the Jurys Inn hotel for accommodation, as this is close to all the action of the festival, but a full list of place to stay in the area can be found on the Visit Derby website.
Similarly, to supplement your time in Derby during the festival, QUAD, The Old Bell and Derby Museums will all have food available, as well as a wide range of eateries in the Cathedral Quarter. A full list of food and drink options can be found on the Visit Derby website. There will also be an onsite bar in the Marquee hosting the Mick Peat Stage.
Tickets for the weekend (£90) or individual days (from £20-£40), along with the Derby Cathedral concert From Pub to Pulpit (£15 or £5 with the purchase of a weekend ticket), and Fringe Supporter Saturday (£5) are all available now on the Derby LIVE website, at the Sales and Information Centre Riverside Chambers, Full Street, Derby, DE1 3AF, by calling 01332 255 800 or at the Box Office stand on the day.