Sean Taylor head lining the Friday Night Blues

Knutsford Music Festival Full Programme Announced

Knutsford Music Festival returns with a bang this month with an exciting line up set to take stage and a full programme of fringe events around Knutsford. The three-day festival will take place from 9thth to 11th June with a special pre festival concert on the evening of the 8th.

Festival organisers at the Town Council have arranged a brilliant night of blues and a classical music evening as well as collaborating with BBC Radio’s Mark Radcliffe to bring a line-up of incredible folk music to the festival.

A sold-out special one-off show will kick of the weekend at Thursday 8th at Knutsford Little Theatre with a folk compilation from Mark Radcliffe & Friends.

Friday showcases folk musician Georgia Ruth with support from Chris Fox & John Parker at St Johns Church at 7.30pm. Over at Brook Street Chapel there will be ‘Friday Night Blues’ at 7.30pm featuring Simster & Small Blues Duo, Southern Fried Groove Queens with a headline performance from troubadour Sean Taylor.

During the afternoon of Saturday the 10th there will be a free open to all event on the Moor from 12 – 4pm featuring live music and activities for all ages. In the evening, Katherine Priddy will headline ‘Folk at the Church’ with support from The Weeping Willows.

Sunday’s line up includes the folk performance from Budapest Café Orchestra at Knutsford Little Theatre starting at 7.30pm.

Tickets for all headline events can be purchased via www.knutsfordmusicfestival.com .

Throughout the weekend there will be some fantastic fringe events popping up in establishments throughout Knutsford and Knutsford town centre. With everything from Americana rock to community choirs there will be a gig to suit every musical taste.

The fringe events include;

Friday 9th June
6pm Luson at The Lost & Found
7:30pm Lucas Marks & The Glorious Unknown at The Lost & Found
8pm Nelson Peach at The Angel

Saturday 10th June
11am Knutsford Beats on Regent Street
1pm Phoenix Voices Choir on Regent Street
1pm All Day Music at The Lost & Found
4pm Dexter’s House Jazz Bad at Dexter & Jones
7:30pm Gus Glynn at The Tea Room
And Music all weekend at The Courthouse from The Courthouse Live Sessions

Sunday 11th June
11am Knutsford Star Choir on Regent Street
From 3pm a dynamic selection of music from Simon Sackey, Blue Walker and Kojo

You can now see all events planned on our gig guide: Knutsford Music Festival 2023 Gig Guide.

Katherine Priddy

Knutsford Music Festival’s Fantastic Folk Line Up

Next month Knutsford Music Festival will return for its sixth year starting off on the 8th June with an exclusive pre-festival event at Knutsford Little Theatre from Mark Radcliffe & Friends. This one-off show, hosted and featuring BBC Radio presenter Mark Radcliffe, will not only launch the music festival but is also one of four acts in the Folk programme of the long weekend event. This opening night is close to selling out so act fast to secure tickets.

The Town Council is again working with Mark to host a weekend of leading folk acts, at Folk in the Theatre/Folk in the Church.

Starting on Friday the 9th June at 7:30pm at St John’s Church, Welsh musician Georgia Ruth will be headlining. Using folk influences to create a truly unique sound, her debut album Week of Pines won the Welsh Music Prize in 2013 and was nominated for two BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. The support act will be Chris Fox & John Parker Folk troubadour and bassist duo.

Katherine Priddy will headline on Saturday 10th, again at the beautiful St John’s Church, at 7:30pm. The Birmingham-based artist who emerged onto the Folk scene with her long-awaited debut EP ‘Wolf’ in 2018 will be joined by Australian Alt-Country duo The Weeping Willows.

Closing the weekend, and the final night of the folk programme is Budapest Café Orchestra bringing gypsy and folk flavoured music in their own surprising way. Doors open at the Little Theatre at 7pm with the event starting at 7:30pm.

Mark Radcliffe said ‘Once again thanks to the council, St.John’s and Knutsford Little Theatre for supporting me in my ongoing mission to brink the very best folk and acoustic artists to our little festival. I really urge you to come. I promise you music and entertainment of the highest standard and we need you there. We want to keep this going and without you backing us – we can’t do that. So come. You won’t regret it’.

Tickets for all the Knutsford Music Festival Events including all Folk performances are available at https://www.knutsfordmusicfestival.com/buytickets. The festival also includes evenings of classical music and a Friday Night Blues session, alongside a variety of performances in local businesses. Programmes with full details of events will be available from venues around Knutsford very soon.

A man on a stage in the Moor

Knutsford Music Festival 2023

Dates have been confirmed for the 2023 Knutsford Music Festival, which returns for a three-day celebration of all things music this June!

The popular festival will return this summer for its sixth year, following five successful festivals between 2017 and 2022. The festival hosts a variety of events across the weekend in multiple venues across the town centre.

Three nights of folk shows hosted by Mark Radcliffe will return hosting a number of folk award winners and nominees in Knutsford Little Theatre and St John’s Church.

Friday Night Blues will also make a comeback after a sell out show in 2022, which was hosted at Brook Street Chapel Hall.

Music on the Moor will take place on Saturday 10th June. This free event sees live music, refreshments and activities for all ages from 12-4pm on the Moor behind King Street car park.

Local businesses will also host their own music events throughout the weekend as part of the festival fringe with events ranging from open mic nights, acoustic and band performances to DJ nights!

There is currently an open call for artists to get in touch if you are interested in performing at this year’s festival. You can email info@knutsfordmusicfestival.com to apply.

Full plans for this year’s festival programme will be confirmed over the coming months – to keep up to date with news and announcements you can follow the festival on social media or visit www.knutsfordmusicfestival.com

Knutsford Music Festival 2022 Artists Announced

Knutsford Music Festival returns with a bang this year with an exciting line up set to take stage across a weekend of musical entertainment.

The three-day festival will take place from 10th to 12th June, with a variety of events across the weekend coordinated by Knutsford Town Council.

Festival organisers at the Town Council have teamed up with BBC Radio’s Mark Radcliffe to once again bring a line-up of incredible folk music to the festival, with events split this year across Knutsford Little Theatre and St John’s Church.

Folk sensation Kate Rusby will headline the Saturday night folk event at St John’s Church with support from Catherine and Ciara McGoldrick.

Friday night will see critically acclaimed duo Zervas and Pepper will headline at the Little Theatre joined by local favourites Fine Lines who will support alongside singer-songwriter and producer Tim Prottey-Jones.

Sunday’s line-up promises just as much with a headline performance from the lively eight-piece Hope & Social who will be joined for support by local singer-songwriter Chris Tavener, who combines jangly-guitar rock and a biting sense of humour.

Also returning in 2022 is Friday Night Blues, taking place in the beautiful Brook Street Chapel Hall on Friday 10th June and headlined this by Mat Walklate who returns followinga  sell out performance in 2018; this year he is joined by duo partner Alex Haynes, with support from local folk stomping duo Two Hats Blues Band.

All ages can enjoy outdoor fun on Saturday 11th June, as the festival brings music back to the Moor. The free event, which runs from 12-4pm, features live acoustic music from incredible local talent, as well as activities for all ages including a children’s music themed craft workshop, African drumming for all ages and more activities and refreshments provided by local vendors.

Taking place on the Sunday at a venue to be confirmed is A Brief History of Music, a fun 90-minute tour of western musical history starting in the middle ages which combines the vigour of the medieval period, the musical intricacy of the Renaissance, the grandeur of the Baroque and the pomp and bombast of Victoriana!

Tickets for all headline events will go on sale on 1st March at 12.00pm via www.knutsfordmusicfestival.com – tickets are limited so don’t miss out.

Join the festival’s mailing list via website to receive up to date news and announcements including notification of ticket sales opening. For any info relating to the festival please email info@knutsfordmusicfestival.com or call 01565 653 929.

A woman plays guitar with a man playing double bass in the background

Knutsford Music Festival a Success

The return of Knutsford Music Festival has been hailed a success by local residents who enjoyed the town’s first major event since the start of the pandemic. The festival returned for its fourth year at the weekend from 13th – 14th August saw a programme of music performances across the town centre. The Music Festival is organised by Knutsford Town Council.

Visitors were treated to two nights of sensational folk music at St Johns Church headlined by folk superstars Blue Rose Code and The Breath consecutively. Each night was sold out to a huge crowd of folk fans who came to support the incredible shows organised in partnership with BBC Radio’s Mark Radcliffe.

The rain mostly held off for the free outdoor event Music on the Moor which was held on Saturday.  Hundreds of local people came along to enjoy a relaxed afternoon. The event was opened by Mayor of Knutsford Cllr Stewart Gardiner who thanked local residents for supporting the festival for another year, and four hours of live music from amazing local talent followed. Visitors also enjoyed an African drumming workshop whilst balloon modelling and face painting was also on offer for families.

A number of open air performances also took place in the town centre, from singer songwriter Chris Howarth in Cotton Shop Yard, the incredible gypsy-jazz guitarists Modjango under 60 King Street and a varied programme of choral singing from Knutsford Beats and Knutsford Star Choir on Regent Street.  A number of local businesses also hosted fringe events including Wine and Wallop, Cheshire House Bar and Grill and The Old Sessions House.

Town Council Events Officer Alex Brown said “It has been great to hear such positive feedback from those who attended the varied events across the festival and how much they enjoyed seeing the festival return.”

The Town Council welcomes any feedback on the event and suggestions for how it can be improved for 2022.

Full photos from this year’s festival will be available soon on the Knutsford Music Festival website and social media platforms. Enquiries for next year’s event can be sent to info@knutsfordmusicfestival.com

A group sit in a circle playing drums

Music Festival Postponed to August

Knutsford Music Festival has been postponed to August 2021 by organisers Knutsford Town Council.

The festival, traditionally held in June, was due to feature from 11th to 13th June 2021, but has been rearranged for 13th to 15th August. This is to allow a better chance for the festival to proceed safely as the country slowly moves out of Covid-19 lockdown restrictions over the spring and summer months. The festival was launched in 2017 and enjoyed three successful years before the pandemic saw its cancellation in 2020.

The Town Council is keenly now planning for an August festival which will bring together an array of musicians in a three-day celebration of local talent. The event will feature festival staples including folk events, free Saturday afternoon session Music on the Moor as well as the fringe festival featuring many local businesses.

Music will also be brought directly to the town centre streets as musicians will entertain shoppers and visitors throughout the festival weekend.

Any musicians wanting to apply to perform at this year’s festival can still get in touch by contacting info@knutsfordmusicfestival.com.

Knutsford Town Council will continue to monitor the current lockdown situation and whether the event can go ahead and will provide updates to the public as plans proceed. For full updates and news you can visit www.knutsfordmusicfestival.com or follow the festival on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Two men looking at a stage wearing t-shirts which say "crew" on the back

Knutsford Music Festival 2021

Knutsford Music Festival is set to return this summer from 11th – 13th June 2021!

Festival organisers at Knutsford Town Council are working on plans to bring back the popular event this summer. The festival was launched in 2017 and enjoyed three successful years before the pandemic saw its cancellation in 2020.

Organisers are hopeful to run the festival this summer, bringing together an array of musicians in a three-day celebration of local talent. The event will feature festival staples including Mark Radcliffe presents Folk at the Theatre, which runs across the three days of the festival and features Folk Award nominees and winners, hosted by the popular BBC Radio 2 and 6 presenter.

The festival will also bring back Music on the Moor, the open-to-all Saturday afternoon session which features live acoustic music, entertainment and activities for families and new features to include food and drink vendors at the free four-hour event. Organisers are also exploring a second Sunday afternoon session to offer more free and safe fun for local people to enjoy during the festival.

Some fringe events may return to local businesses which offer free alternatives to headline events, where local bars, restaurants, pubs and more will host local musicians for some relaxed entertainment.

Any musicians wanting to apply to perform at this year’s festival can get in touch by contacting info@knutsfordmusicfestival.com with some information about you, links to videos and websites or social media pages.

Knutsford Town Council will continue to monitor the current lockdown situation and whether the event can go ahead and will provide updates to the public as plans proceed. For full updates and news you can visit www.knutsfordmusicfestival.com or follow the festival on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Two men looking at a stage wearing t-shirts which say "crew" on the back

Knutsford Music Festival 2020 Cancelled

Knutsford Town Council has continually monitored the latest government advice concerning the spread of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) and the evolving social distancing advice designed to limit the spread of the virus. Our priority is always public health and we strive to make responsible decisions when planning events to protect the public, our volunteers and our staff.

The Events and Town Centre Management Committee met on 26th May to review the latest guidance with respect holding the Knutsford Music Festival in September. With huge regret the decision was taken that it would not be sensible to attempt to hold the event and as such there will be no Knutsford Music Festival 2020. Knutsford Town Council prioritises the health and safety of our residents and we do not feel that continuing with a large-scale event at this time is the best way to do this.

We know that this will be disappointing for those who were planning to join us for a great line up of musicians, for the performers who were due to perform and for our local businesses who were organising events in their shops, bars and restaurants but we hope that all can understand this decision was made with the best of intentions to keep our residents and visitors safe. Planning for the 2021 festival will begin immediately with a view to announcing the dates of next year’s events as soon as possible.

We will be contacting everyone who purchased tickets for events to offer a refund and ask that all ticketholders bear with us as we process a large number of refunds.

The council will continue to closely monitor the guidance in relation to events as things develop over the coming months. Currently there have been no changes made to the Pumpkin Path event scheduled for 31st October or the Knutsford Christmas Markets scheduled for 28th & 29th November. The committee will review advice closer to these events and make decisions as to whether these events can be safely held in the coming months.

Knutsford Town Council would like to thank everyone for their patience as we work hard to minimise disruption during this tough time and we will continue to keep the public updated with our plans as we proceed.

If you would like more information, you can contact the council’s Events Officer at alex.brown@knutsfordtowncouncil.gov.uk.