Oct 2026

Once again, it is my sad task to remember John Green, formerly of One Accord, all of whom were great friends of Folk at The Barlow and sang here several times. John passed away unexpectedly in September and we remember him fondly.

 

The 15th Edgworth Folk Festival will take place from 2nd to 4th October at The Barlow. The line-up this year is exciting. There are concerts with Peter and Barbara Snape with Poppy Weatherall, Litany, Douglas / Moss, Bandersnatch, Redmayne, The Laners, Andy Connally, Drop the Floor, Steve Canavan and Including some of our singaround regulars, The Matilda Trio and Glyn Shipman. There will also be a ceilidh with The Change of Key Ceilidh Band. This Festival helps to raise much needed funds for The Barlow, which entirely run by volunteers. Full details of who is on, how you can book, and information about Folk at the Barlow is on our website, www.folkatthebarlow.com.

 

Please note that other than events that are part of the Festival, there will be no singaround at The Barlow in October. The next will be in November (see below).

 

 Our next guest at Folk at The Barlow, on 16th October, will be Steve Turner. Steve has appeared as our guest artist both here at The Barlow, and at our previous venues in our early days. He is known as a pioneer of highly sophisticated English concertina song accompaniments, stretching the boundaries of traditional forms, with one of the best voices in the business. He is a multi-instrumentalist, who also plays mandolin and tenor banjo. Steve began his career on the Manchester, UK folk scene at the end of the ‘60s, with the Geordie band “Canny Fettle”, touring with them for 8 years and making 2 albums with them. In 1979 he won the UK Melody Maker’s national “Stars of the 80s” competition, which persuaded him to turn professional, and for the next 12 years he toured solo, nationally and internationally, releasing 4 albums with Fellside Records during this period (Out Stack, Jigging One Now, Eclogue and Braiding). After 13 years away from the folk scene he made a welcome return in 2004 performing in folk clubs and festivals, and in 2008 produced his 5th album, the highly acclaimed “Whirligig of Time” which featured UK luminaries Martin Carthy, Nancy Kerr and Miranda Sykes.Since then he has released a  further 5 albums, Rim of the Wheel , Spirit of the Game, Late Cut, Curious Times with his current 10th album A Host of Furious Fancies” released in January 2026.

 

Steve will be supported by Southport based band, Vinny and the Engineers. They are an acoustic trio featuring Vinny, Barry, and Sarah, playing traditional folk and modern songs using instruments like the shaker, mandolin, octave-mandola, guitar, and bass.

 

 

The next singaround at Folk at the Barlow will be on Friday 6th November. If you’ve not been before, this is a very friendly, informal session where all are welcome whether you want to sing, play or just listen. We start at 8pm.

 

 

The acts we put on in our monthly concerts are selected by the Committee. If there any acts from the folk music world that you wish to see at Folk at The Barlow, please tell a member of the committee. They will be happy to help.

 

For details of these events, booking details and future events at Folk at the Barlow, please visit our website at www.folkatthebarlow.com We ask that wherever possible that you book your places in advance via our website, or alternatively pay at the door by Debit or Credit card. We will, of course, always accept cash, but if we can keep this to a minimum it will make life much easier for us.

Sessions are held at the Rose and Crown in Edgworth. Songs are on the first Monday of each month, and tunes on the third Monday. Hence, the next song session is on 5th October and tunes on 19th October.

There is a regular session on Tuesday evenings at The Plough, on Lee Gate in Harwood. Contact Fiach and Amber McDonald, or Kirsty at The Plough for further details.

For fans of open mic style sessions, The Saggy Bottom Girls hold their events at the Masons’ Arms in Egerton. The next one is on 21st October, and again on the third Wednesday of each month thereafter.

The Met, in Bury present a varied and interesting programme of related music. Visit their website at themet.org.uk/whats-on/folk-music/ .

 

2 – 4.10.26

Edgworth Folk Festival, The Barlow, Bolton Road, Edgworth. www.folkatthebarlow.com 

5.10.26

Song Session, Rose and Crown, Bury Road, Edgworth

16.10.26

Steve Turner supported by Vinny and the Engineers www.folkatthebarlow.com

19.10.26

Tune Session, Rose and Crown, Bury Road, Edgworth

21.10.26

Singers’ Night, The Masons Arms, Egerton

6.11.26

Singaround- Folk at The Barlow. www.folkatthebarlow.com

Tuesday Evenings

Session at The Plough, Lee Gate, Harwood