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Some Old Time Radio enthusiasts are seeking recordings of various BBC documentaries about canals, waterways, and the folk who live and work on them. They were all aired by the BBC North West from Manchester. Most are referenced here: http://www.cpatrust.org.uk/bham_ballads/ "They Brought The Sea To Manchester" 1969 There was a Radio Ballad-type documentary called "They Brought The Sea To Manchester." It features some songs too. In January 1894 Queen Victoria declared the canal open without leaving her carriage which was par for the course for her. Apparently when the lock paddles were opened for the first time the pressure of the water was so great several villages / towns got well flooded as the canal filled up. "The Big Ditch" 1975 This was in Series 3 of the Ballad of the North West. Again this was about the building of the Manchester Ship Canal. "Narras and Flats" 17th July 1973 This was part of the BBC North West series Ballad of the North West. This was in the canals episode which was broadcast on 17th July 1973. ==== Folks here might be interested that the lost Radio Ballad "A Cry From The Cut" is available here: https://www.mediafire.com/folder/odkpo4m988a8m/Radio_Ballads_-_The_Birmingham_Ballads Here's a version of the same recording from 1962 with historic slides (but sans music and songs) Details are here: http://www.cpatrust.org.uk/bham_ballads/ http://www.mustrad.org.uk/enth13.htm ==== Many thanks. Chris J Brady

Hello, this is a general enquiry about the logistics & experience of Eurovision around the docks in 2023 - Has anyone managed to get onto Salthouse Dock? Are you going to Liverpool & have any plans to celebrate the shindigs?

Hello all! Once the purchase of my partners narrowboat goes through, we plan travel round the network, and create “Canal Sessions” taking both my passions and creating positivity on the towpath! I am a House Music DJ and Producer by trade, and I feel i can pinch this niche network by promoting the canal network by using it as a backdrop for my livestreams/recordings. I must add, MUSIC will NOT be played out loud, this can disturb neighbours, and fellow boaters. It will all be sent digitally into a streaming software, but will appear as if the music is playing out live. It is all via headphones, and will just be myself on the camera and passersby. What are your thoughts? #canal #towpath #canalandrivertrust #positivity #positivemindset #musicproducer #musicbringspeopletogether #waterways #narrowboat #narrowboatlife #love

I know a fair few canal dwellers love their folk music. Anybody into jazz and classical? Jacqui Dankworth (daughter of Johnny Dankworth and Cleo Laine) is joining my orchestra to sing some Shakespeare-inspired numbers in a couple of weeks. Not only that, Michael Collie (of BBC Midlands Today) has an incredible theatrical voice and will be narrating Gregson's The Sword and The Crown. Promises to be a fun evening, slightly different to what you'd expect from an orchestral concert at the CBSO Centre in Birmingham. It's 2 minutes walk from Gas Street Basin (maybe 3 minutes stagger on the way back after you've visited the bar). Details and tickets - https://www.facebook.com/events/1733532330247717/

Between April 22nd and August 5th I will be touring a show celebrating women at work on the wartime waterways - it focusses mostly on the trainees (who were later nicknamed the Idle Women) because we are recreating the journey that they regularly worked: London, Birmingham, Coventry, London. We will be celebrating 75 years since the scheme started with Eily (Kit) Gayford and Molly Traill working with Ciss and Albert Sibley before going on to train many others. We have around 50 shows booked so I won't fill the forum with individual events, I think you'd get a bit sick of me! By way of an outline: End of April/early May - Limehouse, Mile End, London Canal museum, Cavalcade, Horsenden Farm (Perivale) Rest of May - GU Hillingdon, Ricky, Linslade, Milton Keynes, Stoke Bruerne, Stowe Hill, Weedon, Birdingbury Wharf June - Saltisford Arm, Hatton flight, Minerva wharf, Titford, Tipton and then onto the B'ham & Fazeley (still confirming venues there) and Tamworth. July - down the Coventry to Hawkesbury junction and the Greyhound, Rugby, Hillmorton, Braunston and back down the GU finishing at the Pirate Castle on August 5th. All the details are on our website: www.alarumtheatre.co.uk And you can see a short film about the project on You Tube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADjsDWKA4kY&t=1s We will be accompanied by NB Tench owned by Alex Bennett with Heather Boyce as skipper (Alex will be joining us as much as she can) and we are looking for women who would like to join the journey and help crew - it might be a day, a few hours, or longer, whatever suits you. If you'd like to recieved details of this as they become available please go to our website and sign up to the mailing list. It's a volunteer position but we are able to pay travel expenses to get to us and we'll feed you lots of tea and cake. Look forward to meeting lots of forum members en route! Kate

Folks (and Folkies!) The short version - I'm almost certainly going to the Festival de Loire this year in Orleans, it's 18th-22nd September in Orleans. The Songbird is keen on coming with me, which is a delight, but before Sara commits, Sara is not as interested in boats and waterways as I am, but is very interested in music and live music, at almost any level from buskers to stadium concerts (a passion I also share). I'd love Sara to come but not on a false premise. The festival itself is about waterways and boats, but I'm assuming that at a festival this size, and in a town like Orleans, some live music won't be hard to come by, but does anyone know? Has anyone been? Now, the slightly longer version, we're organising a riverside music festival in Chateau Gontier for summer 2020 and aiming to meet the French contingent (whom we already know through Twinning, CG is Frome's twin town - they have had Sara headline charity concerts in CG) and whilst it's a three hour drive to CG from Orleans, ya know, it's just a good excuse...

Hello fellow boaters ! We bought our boat last May, moved from Bristol to Newbury to 'pick it up'. We finally set off from Newbury in September, but.. sadly.. we got a rope wrapped around the propeller, and knackered the engine - within half an hour. We've been stranded in Newbury, having spent all of our existing cash on various other 'engineering issues'. Anyway, we're full time musicians, we street perform and gig around the UK - it's a sort of an alternative combination of soul/folk in the form of an acoustic duo.. guitar and vocals with accordion.. I blog regularly about our experiences. After everything, I massively look forward to getting on the move, living the real boat life, meeting all of you.. and playing our music wherever we go. If you want to follow the journey, or just even say Hi ! Check it all online Many thanks, have a fantastic 2014 ! Bex x www.facebook.com/rebeccacullenmusic www.rebeccacullen.co.uk (for the music and blog! It's all free, I promise )