July 18, 2008

to

July 20, 2008

This year’s Tolpuddle Martyrs’ Festival runs from the 18th to 20th July.

The free festival celebrates the memory of the Tolpuddle Martyrs and this year it also coincides with Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday.

There will be the usual heady mix of great music, comedy poetry and politics.

Entry to the festival is FREE but camping tickets are also available to purchase.

See below for full list of events

 

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Friday 18 July

Old Court, High Street, Dorchester
The Tolpuddle Martyrs in Song and Story
presented by Graham Moore in the original Old Crown Court where they received their unjust sentence of transportation in 1834. Songs from his celebrated Tolpuddle Man. An opportunity to view the cells.
Limited seats so please book early.
Tickets: £9 adults  £6 under-18s from Dorchester Tourist Information Office on 01305 267992. Download a flyer for more information (PDF)

Martyrs’ Marquee

Happy 90th Birthday, Nelson Mandela
Guest DJs Rita Ray and Max Reinhardt - Max and Rita’s LIBERATION BOOGIE. Viva rebel music that will continue to shake the world. Plus The Workers Beer Company’s special Freedom Cocktails.

The Mauves
Great local 4-piece local rock/indie band
www.myspace.com/themauves

Aidan Jolly
Eclectic and experimental. Songs that celebrate people and places and examine the changing ways of living.  With Jilah Bakhshayesh and Martin Milner.www.aidanjolly.com

Orpheus
Rich vocals, dynamic horn and a funky, driving rhythm section, amalgamate into a fresh, distinctive sound. Original soulful tunes to infectious dance rhythms. 

 

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Saturday 19 July

Open mic area

Poetry and Politics
11am-1pm. The poetry session went down so well last year we’re going to try it again. Dave Toomer editor of the radical poetry magazine Citizen 32 will host an open-mic session. Guest performance poets will kick things off. To book a slot contact Dave editor.citizen32@ntlworld.com

Sing In Union
1-5pm - Host Graham Moore invites all to come and perform for a session that keeps getting better.

Martyrs’ Marquee

Speakers’ Corner
Have your say. Stall holders can explain why they’re here.

Robert Owen
12.30-1.30 - A father to the cooperative movement, Robert Owen died 150 years ago. He led the massive demonstration to demand the release of the Tolpuddle Martyrs. Hear more of his life and work and see the exhibition in the cooperative marquee.

Tolpuddle to Tescos
1.30-3.00 - Discussion around the issues raised by the way we produce and buy our food and drink. Joanna Blythman one of Britain’s leading investigative food journalist and an influential commentator on the British food chain. Dr Charlie Clutterbuck, one of the world’s authorities on labour and the environment.
Prof Tim Lang Centre for Food Policy, City University, coined the phrase ‘food miles’. Union speaker. Fair Trade speaker

The Quangle Wangle Choir from Weymouth3.15

Organise
3.30-5 - On the 10th Birthday of the TUC Organising Academy this debate will consider union growth strategies and different ideas from around the world.
Elaine Bernard PhD, Executive Director, Labor and Worklife Program, Harvard Law School, US. Michael Crosby Global Partnerships, Regional Organising Director SEIU, New South Wales, author of Power at Work. Whilemina Trout, Union of Domestic Workers, South Africa. Paul Nowak TUC National Organiser

Nomadic desert dwellers - Bedouin Jerry Can Band
A collective of singers, poets, storytellers and coffee grinders with infectious rhythms played on junk scavenged from the former battlegrounds of the Six-day War of 1967 and other conflicts fought across Bedouin homelands in Sinai.

Saturday Night

7pm-midnight - Free thanks to the generous sponsorship of Ethical ThreadsSean Taylor kills the rumour that protest songs are a thing of the past. “If there is any justice in the world, you will see Sean Taylor in the acoustic stage of every major festival during 2008”: Love Music Hate Racism www.myspace.com/seantaylorsongs 

Mark Steel
One of Britain’s funniest comedians and subversive socialist too.

The Tones
Re-live the golden age of pub rock.  Driving rhythm and blues, soul grooves and Latin-tinged pop from the 60s plus some of their own compositions.  Put on your dancing shoes.

The Flatville Aces
Traditional Cajun music from Louisiana. Infectious dance rhythms pure, uncluttered and with enough passion and skill to make the Flatville Aces one of the finest Cajun bands around..

Ethical Threads ensure that everyone involved in the production of their garments gets a fair deal. Our shirts are high quality, ethically sourced, and sweat-shop free. http://www.ethicalthreads.co.uk/

 

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Sunday 20 July

Village Hall

Cream teas and refreshments thanks to the local community.

Martyrs’ Marquee

y’Strels Band
Out beyond Dorchester, where the telegraph poles end, you will find the disciples of  y’Strel, demi-god of Song. .
www.myspace.com/ystrel 

Tracey Curtis
Intelligent, melodic folk-poppy songs that manage to personalise political issues with wit, passion and compassion, delivered with a beautiful vocal style.  Tracy has a growing reputation as one of the UK’s leading new singer-songwriters.
www.traceycurtis.com

Puddletown School
pupils perform a new musical story based on the experience of the martyrs in Australia.

Elvis McGonagall
Stand-up poet, armchair revolutionary and recumbent rocker.  The 2006 World Slam Champion, the compere of the notorious Blue Suede Sporran Club and heard on BBC Radio 4’s Saturday Live.
www.elvismcgonagall.co.uk

Duckfeet
Settle down and listern to perfect sounds for a summer afternoon in Dorset. Jangly, melodic, country tinged music, with big riffs and close harmonies about love, binge drinking, mobile phones, minotaurs or train delays. www.myspace.com/theduckfeet

Ways of the Mouth
Formed after doing a youth project with a local studio, Three MCs and a DJ who sing songs life on the Jurassic Coast as you’ve never heard before.
www.myspace.com/waysofthemouth

Robb Johnson & The Irregulars
This year’s festival closes with one of the finest songwriters in the UK and his band. Their recent album,  All That Way For This has been winning rave reviews. www.robbjohnson.co.uk

Methodist Chapel – east end of Tolpuddle village

5.00 Methodist Service
The traditional end of festival service is held in the small chapel at the other end of the village.

Main Stage Provisional Programme

11.00 Graham Moore
Tolpuddle Man singer songwriter plays host for the day.

Seize the Day
It all started back during the road protest days of the late nineties. They’ve been protesting, campaigning and playing to audiences big and small ever since. Their songs will make you laugh, cry, or stand up and get active in changing the world for the better.
www.seizetheday.org

11:45 Grupo Lokito
Fusing Salsa and Congolese Rumba in an exuberant explosion of sound.

12.30 Speakers
Chair of the South West TUC welcomes
Dave Prentis TUC President and UNISON General Secretary
Elaine Bernard Harvard Trade Union Centre, USA
Dot Gibson National Pensioners Convention marks the centenary of the first state pension
President of the National Union of Students

1pm Devon Sproule
Born on a commune in Canada this young singer songwriter is winning rave reviews. “Perhaps the sweetest and most honest folk-pop this year.” Rolling Stone. www.devonsproule.com

1.05
While the music continues on the main stage, the guest speakers will walk over to St John’s church to lay wreaths on the grave of Martyr James Hammett.

1.45 Methodist Minister
David Wrighton of the Methodist Church leads the blessing of the Parade.

2.00 Procession
led by Musicians’ Union Great Western Jazz Band

3.00 Speakers

Hashemiya Muhsin Hussein President, Electricity & Energy Union, General Federation of Iraqi Workers
Brendan Barber TUC General Secretary
Kate Allen Amnesty International
Tony Benn

3.30 Alabama 3 - acoustic and unplugged
Acoustic stripped down versions of Alabama 3’s songs with Larry Love, Devlin Love, Rock Freebase and Harpo Strangelove.“truly the perfect choice for a night of bourbon, barbeque, and fun.”

4.15 - to be confirmed

5.30 - Finish on a high note with the end of festival party and Robb Johnson in the Martyrs’ Marquee or join the service in the Methodist Chapel