Herne Bay Folk Festival 2025
Starts Friday 25th July 2025 at 4pm
Due to the fantastic success of the last 2 years and taking on board many of the comments from the public, Herne Bay Folk Festival has been extended in 2025 to run over 3 days, with the addition of Friday and Sunday which will be held at Hampton Bay Park with it’s fantastic Old Garage Bar as one of the venues. Also the site offers camping for all Festival go-ers.
Saturday will be around the town as previous with main venues, street acts and other stages along Mortimer Street to cater for the wide range of folk music from; Cajun dance to Celtic rock; from shanty to sessions; from solo/acapella singers to Americana/blues bands. Street acts and Morris dancing too. The Headline Evening concert starting at 6pm at Bay Unite will nicely round the day off
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The Programme has now been completed and there is a large list of acts scheduled.
We are delighted to feature headline acts from out of the county: the beautiful voice of the fabulous Edwina Hayes, the witty and entertaining Anthony John Clarke and the fun, stomping and quirky- Luna Barge.
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This line up includes many local favourites and the hardest part was saying ‘no’ to the many acts wishing to play. Even with the many stages and venues it’s impossible to fit in everyone.
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Remember it is a Free Festival.
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Watch out below for regular updates and the Latest News about the Festival.
Festival Features and Guide
The Festival is uniquely structured to offer maximum flexibility of "festival experiences" over the weekend. We have our Edge of Town site at Hampton Bay Park. This is for those who like the open air/arena type festival [but ther will be no gates or security bag searches to get in the way]. There is also the Around the Town programme where the activities and events take place in the large cluster of pubs and venues in the heart of Herne Bay Town.
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​So the Festival is designed to suit everyone's preferences: spending the whole weekend camping; spend a day in Town; or maybe just travel in to dip into favourite events.
Herne Bay folk are used to the tides flowing in and out. In the same way the Folk Festival has it's own tidal flow system to follow for the headline events:
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Friday from 3pm to 11pm -Edge of Town at Hampton Bay Park.
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Saturday during the day from 11.am to 6.pm- Around the Town in Herne Bay
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Saturday evening from 6pm to 11pm Evening Headline Concert at Bay Unite in Mortimer Street.
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Sunday all day until 11pm Edge of Town at Hampton Bay Park
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Festival Highlights
​Look through the Programme to see the full and impressive line-up of superb folk acts performing at the Festival. You can look them up on their bios and links shown in the Artists section.
Also there are many opportunities for participation throughout the weekend. come along and join in. All the events are open to all. Any age and no previous experience needed.
These are just some of the highlights:
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Cajun Dance & Workshop - Led by Kay Anderson and with Crisis 3 to support. Saturday 11.30 Ex Servicemen’s Club
Songwriter’s Circle - Led by Milton Hide. Budding and experienced songwriters share their techniques, ideas and offer a song or 2. Sunday 12.30 Hampton Bay Park
Festival Choir - Led by Shan Reid. Learn a song or 2 and perform at the Headline Concert on Sunday. Rehearsals Saturday and Sunday 11.30 at Hampton Bay Park. Concert Sunday 5.30 pm Main Stage Hampton Bay Park
Songs & Shanties - Led by various folk artistes. Join in acappela songs and shanties. Saturday all day She Rose
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Music sessions - Led by various expert folk players. Join in with fiddles, guitars, squeeze-boxes, whistles, bodhrans and other instruments Saturday Bar 85. ---- Sunday Hampton Bay Park
Floor Spots - Turn up and sing/play. Book in with the host of the session if spaces available Various venues throughout the weekend.​
Latest News
20th May 2025 Yet another change but this is really good news??
16th April 2025 Here it is-- Final Acts and Venues confirmed!!!
​We have had to change our main venue for the Saturday. Instead of "The Vibe/Vibette", the Main stage will be "The Ex-Serviceman's Club" . We are pleased to add this very welcoming venue to our list. Conveniently located in William Street, just off Herne Bay High Street: just 200 yards from the other venues. It provides 2 main stages and has a well stocked bar that offers drinks at club prices- including draft ales and lager etc.
There is a dance floor area which will be perfect for the Cajun Workshop and Dance led by Kay Anderson supported by the multi-talented band Crisis. Other acts appearing during the day include: Bellibone Rig, Ian Petrie & Sue Hudson, Sam Brothers, No Worries with Sally Ironmonger & Brian Carter concluding the day's proceedings in town at 6pm.
We are also pleased to add CACAO Atelier as a new venue. This is Kent’s first ceremonial cacao experience. serving premium, daily wellness cacao in a cozy, tranquil café setting. It is ideal as a "Quiet Space" for a time of tranquility, peace, acoustic vibes, spoken words, poetry and maybe even yoga !
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Superb New Venue!!! We are lucky to have just secured a fantastic venue for the Evening concert on the Saturday. "Bay Unite", the re-purposed church in Mortimer Street will be ideal for the headline acts with it's space, seating, acoustics and convenient location. There will be a bar serving beer and wine and we can accommodate up to 200 people if need be. Perfect!!
​1st March 2025 Added: New Venue, New Stage and New Acts
​This year we add "The Divers Arms" to our list of venues. This is conveniently situated along the sea front on Central Parade with ample room to accommodate a stage of music.​
​Extra for this year we welcome the introduction of a "songwriters" stage. It will be called the New and Home Grown Stage . The hosts will be the duo Milton Hide who are experienced songwriters themselves and later From the Workshop, AKA Jonnie and Helen who are fast building a reputation for penning their own Indie/alternative folk songs. The many guests for the sessions will include Arthur Kitchener, Bob Kenward, Rayre Folke, Staggered Ray and Alabaster Orphans who will offer their original songs in their own individual styles.
We are also pleased to announce the legendary Enda McCabe as one of our Headline acts. Dublin-born, Enda is a talented Traditional Folk performer & a fine vocalist. and has toured extensively for many years and well- received at concerts and Festivals.
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17th January 2025 ​New acts announced.
So popular at last year' Festival, we are delighted to welcome bring back the amazing folk “supergroup” Shake Me Up Sally The act that contains two bands in one: Sally Ironmonger and Capella. Sally & Brian offer fantastic home-grown songs from their own experiences and many featuring tales from around the local area. All presented with humour, harmony and [h]exceptional vocals and guitar playing. Capella– aka Tony & Lesley Petty are well known for their superb acapella harmonies and deliver a well considered and mixed set of songs for all tastes. These acts will appear separately on the programme and also join together to entertain as a headline act.
We also welcome back Deadhorse Morris & The Broomdashers who will be dancing around the town at various locations. They invite Festival goers to join in and try their feet at Morris dancing. I’m sure you will see some of them leading a shanty or 2 in the “Songs and Shanties” stage at She Rose
Artistes
Anthony John Clarke
Anthony John Clarke is a Northern Irish-born singer-songwriter for some time based in Liverpool but now living in Southport. Playing solo, duo or with a band, He has played and M/Cd at folk clubs and festivals all over the UK and beyond, and he has a number of albums to his name including An Acquaintance Of Mine, Man with a Red Guitar and Sing A Chorus With
Website: https://anthonyjohnclarke.com/
Edwina Hayes
A singer/songwriter who is a regular on UK and international stages. As well as featuring as a headline at many folk festivals, she has toured extensively as support act to many artistes such as Jools Holland, Nanci Griffiths and Louden Wainwright 111rd ​
Website: www.edwinahayes.com
FB: www.facebook.com/edwinahayesmusic
Spotify: www.tinyurl.com/2uh7a285
Instagram: www.instagram.com/edwina_hayes
Shake Me Up Sally
Luna Barge
LunaBarge are a double-stomping, energetic, uplifting, indie-folk trio. They are armed with banjo, guitar, ukulele, uke bass, 3 vocals & 2 stomp boxes. They like to find the little things in life that make it worth living and encapsulate them in their catchy original songs.
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https://lunabarge.bandcamp.com/follow_me
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https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAJvK079B5u2BPDl9GjLqQmrj9L87lUZu
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https://bsky.app/profile/lunabarge.bsky.social
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https://open.spotify.com/artist/4OayEUsXUeb0VhJzXwC6J2?si=jj7xeEAzTKab9m1-_WnYiQ
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Shake Me Up Sally is a collaboration of Sally Ironmonger & Brian Carter and Capella (Tony & Lesley Petty). Two highly respected duos, coming together to produce rich vocal harmonies with expert musicianship. It’s folk, but not as we know it.
Flailing Angels
Crisis 3
Flailing Angels is a local Celtic-Rock Band that plays traditional and modern Folk numbers with an added punch, so get ready to dance and have a good time. The line up is: Ray Fielder on Mandolin, Cittern, Fiddle and Lead Vocals : Simon Pollard on Bass : Guy Foster on Guitar and Vocals: Bob Hubert on Percussion and Banjo. With, at time, guests: Carol Foster on whistle and vocals and Chaucer[AKA Jeremy Kendal] on flute/pipes/ https://www.facebook.com/FlailingAngels/
Bob Kenward
Crisis 3 are a combination of the collective talents of Singer/Guitarist & concertina player Chris Sadler, Multi- Instrumentalist Chris Taylor and Fiddler Steve Moreham .
Their repertoire includes a mixture of Americana, Cajun, Bluegrass, and Blues with a strong bias for songs and tunes you can dance to. They also play for ceilidhs.
The band began as a duo of the 2 Chris’s hence the name Crisis! They were soon joined by Steve to make Crisis 3. They recorded a well received CD “Out Of The Woods” with Julian Whitfield (ex Happy Trails and Altones ) on engineering & double bass duties.
Chris Taylor was a founder member of The Oyster Band, Gas Mark V and Fiddler’s Dram and remains an occasional member of the Oyster Ceilidh Band. He is a master of the Harmonica in the blues, country and Irish styles. He also plays the Cajun Accordion, Melodeon, Bouzouki, Guitar, Mandolin & banjo. Chris T has been a stalwart of the Kent folk scene for many years. With Fiddlers Dram he appeared on TV’s Top of the Pops and was in the line up on Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Chris Sadler’s background is in Irish Traditional music and he played on the London Irish scene for many years with the likes of Slip Jigolos and various members of bands such as Alias Ron Kavana, Shane McGowan & the Popes, Four Men & a Dog & Sin E. However, when it came to singing he tended to lean more towards the Americana songbook. He appeared as the concertina player in the feature film “Ladies in Lavender” and played for Ant & Dec on TV’s Big Breakfast.
Steve Moreham has played in many bands in various parts of the country He was a member of notable Kent bands such Atlantic Currents & Jumbo Gumbo. He is a versatile fiddle player who is adept at playing many styles
Be ready for some dancing!!
Their repertoire is Americana with the emphasis on songs you can dance to: Cajun, Bluegrass, Country and Blues. https://www.facebook.com/crisis.americeire/?locale=en_GB
Bob Kenward’s songs light up the Kent folk scene… from smugglers to branch lines, from oasts to apples, music-hall oddities and a hint of Captain Swing… choruses for audiences to sing, lyrics to amuse and mull over. Guitar, harmonicas, mandolin and always a tale to tell… an entertainer and a festival free spirit…
Sam Brothers
Enda Mc Cabe
Enda McCabe – has a lifetime of experience as a vocalist, guitarist, songwriter and storyteller. Over the years he has enthralled audiences in popular Folk Clubs in the UK, headlined his own shows and performed in festivals both in the UK and Ireland. He has released three albums and is currently working on his fourth. He switches with ease from songs in English to songs in his native Gaelic. He plays guitar and mandola and you can expect an entertaining performance.
Described by Acoustic Magazine as “Always Compelling...”, Sam Brothers is a young Canterbury, UK based Folk Singer-songwriter whose performances bring to mind the Soho and Greenwich Village Folk Scenes of the 1960's. His bluesy guitar, stompbox and harmonica filled performances are deeply rooted in the music of greats such as Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Bert Jansch, John Lee Hooker and Fairport Convention.
Sam has been busy promoting his new EP "The Folksinger" with tours in Japan, Germany and UK.
Capella
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The ever popular Capella are one of Kent’s finest and best loved duos, with a repertoire of traditional and contemporary songs sung in beautiful 2 part acapella harmony.
With choruses and topics ranging from social injustice to dodgy accountants their relaxed and witty style is always a winner with audiences.
Milton Hide
Milton Hide, Jim Tipler and Jo Church from East Sussex, weave eloquent, well-crafted story-based songs. Jim’s guitar and Jo’s clarinet blend perfectly with the duo’s pure vocal harmonies. Their music has been described by critics as “reminiscent of the Moody Blues” (Living Tradition), “a touch of Fleetwood Mac” and “vintage Steeleye” (Spiral Earth).
Building on Jim’s experience of many years playing in folk and roots bands, they joined forces as Milton Hide in 2016
A must see, Milton Hide will transport you into a fascinating, sometimes melancholy, sometimes hilarious world of stories in song, introducing a host of intriguing and memorable characters on the way. At the end of the evening you will be humming their music all the way home.
No Worries
No Worries are a Kent Folk Duo who perform a mix of traditional and contemporary songs and tunes on six and twelve string guitars with percussion, harmonies and a-capella.
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Sally Ironmonger
& Brian Carter
Sally Ironmonger & Brian Carter have been writing, performing and bickering together for nearly 20 years. They have produced 4 studio albums of songs about shipyards, prostitutes, trips to the seaside, self-deprecating amusing songs and protest anthems.They are an absolute one off.
They have a quirky and distinctive style, with Brian’s unusual and accomplished guitar technique the perfect accompaniment to Sally’s unique voice. They love what they do, and their aim is to entertain, with songs that make you laugh, or cry, or just think.
https://www.facebook.com/sallyironmongermusic
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Bellibone Rig
Bellibone Rig are a major band on the Kent folk scene playing a wide range of traditional and modern folk songs and tunes with a few original song added to the mix. Grahame Knibbs- Fiddle; Pete Palmer -vocals and guitar, Ray Fielder -vocals, cittern,mandolin and harmonica; Ginny Delphresis- Backing vocals and percussion.​https://www.facebook.com/groups/1011437943043630
Henty & English
Kevin Henty - Long-standing Kent folk singer and musician, playing guitar and melodeon. Having played at over 160 venues in Kent, Kevin has played with Jumbo Gumbo, Atlantic Currants, Ron Trueman-Border, Triage and Gypskazz.
Matthew English - Exciting young fiddle player who has recently appeared on The One Show and BBC South
East. Well known for his outstanding charity work as well as his musical flair, Matthew has played with Springish
Border Crossing
An Englishman and a Scotsman go into a pub and start singing ....
Paul Steele
Sheppey based performer frequently seen around various folk clubs of Kent and London.
Nothing to sell and nothing to promote. What you see is what you get.
Unavailable for weddings, birthdays, bar mitzvahs, beer festivals or anywhere with a hog roast, but selectively available for fundraising and awareness raising events or charitable and ethical functions.​
Arthur John Kitchener
Arthur Kitchener is an acoustic artist to keep track of. As a singer songwriter he will make you feel that you are listening to someone who knows his craft and will end up improving the quality of the finished product. Jay Adler NY Music critic..
The first time I listened to Arthur John Kitchener I could readily understand that he was an original and genuine UK acoustic artist.I also was completely bowled over by his album art which depicts World War 11 and post war photographs. He is an artist of unmitigated experience and class, he knows the music business cold.
​https://www.acerecords.co.uk/welcome-to-our-world#:~:text=Welcome%20to%20our%20world%20is,bands%20in%20the%20early%201980s​
From The Workshop
Alternative folk duo From The Workshop is Helen Rosemary and Jonnie Temple, both based in Bromley. Helen first met Jonnie in February 2023, when he delivered a parcel to her, in Biggin Hill, Kent… the day after her dog got run over..Little did they know, a year later they would be singing and writing together.
Jonnie, with 20 years of punk rock and ska, had started to embark on a solo folk adventure. After 20 years of not singing, Helen wanted to give it some and it turned out she was quite good after all (thank goodness).​
From The Workshop are continuously evolving, writing and performing original foot-stomping folk songs and heartfelt ballads, with themes reflecting their lives.
…Sadly, the dog didn’t make it…
Ian Petrie & Sue Hudson
Ian and Sue have delighted audiences for over ten years with their soulful performance: a celebration of song from both sides of the Atlantic, accompanied on guitars, concertina, ukulele and bouzouki. The duo came together thanks to a shared love of song and harmony. Ian Petrie has led several successful bands and has a fine reputation as a singer and songwriter who takes a sideways look at life. After an international career with folk duo Tundra, Sue Hudson changed direction to explore the music of America with roots in British traditions.
Nick Lawrence
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"A Very Original, Great Singer/Songwriter!" - Kent Folk on BBC Radio Kent
From foot-stomping folk to heartfelt ballads to historical commentary and storytelling, Nick draws from the well of traditional and contemporary folk to compose his songs. His compositions evoke images of centuries gone by, be that wassailing in the winter, the re-telling of Viking raids in Kent, or spurned love, where the audience will be singing along, laughing, and maybe even shedding a tear throughout the performance
We 2
Alabaster Orphans
Local electric guitar and vocal duo “WE2” and their bass soul brother Matt will be bringing their own take on some ‘Jamaican folk!’ reggae classics & more at the Festival. They’ll be giving a cheeky thirty minute guest appearance to get people moving at The Divers Arms Saturday afternoon from 3.30pm. Don’t be fashionably late...
Come join the cast of psych-folk trio Alabaster Orphans as they sing you songs of desperate diplomats, iron lungs, flowers on the moon and the ghosts of taxidermic fawns lost in German sanatoriums. Equal parts inspired by the harmonies of The Everly Brother’s, The Beach Boys and Benedictine chant, the group pay homage to the timeless with an eye fixed firmly on the future.