Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy has been confirmed as the official venue for the Olympic Sailing events in 2012.

To mark the part that Weymouth & Portland are going to play in hosting the sailing events, Wessex Folk Festival are running a song writing contest. Songs must have a maritime theme (however tenuous!)

There is a £100 cash prize ……… Entry deadline 10 May 2008

Rules and information for the song writing competition.

Even if you don’t fancy writing a song but are able to get to Weymouth 6th - 8th June 2008, there is lots going on at this UK West Country folk festival … Well worth checking out.

Bye for now

Rob

There is a secret door in the corner of the wood panelling to the library which contains a fascinating multimedia collection of folklore, customs, traditional music, dance and song from around the world.

On the other side of the room is a door leading to the huge entrance hall where, in winter months, a great wood fire rages and warms the core of the building.

Find out where I am after some more tantalising clues.

Bye for now

Rob

(Rob Hopcott - online author - fiction - news)

See you there or more info (with podcast) from Wassailing in West Somerset

We played lots of tunes and sung a few songs to an appreciative audience. Read all about it at Dunster Lodge Residential Home in Minehead, Somerset, UK

On New Year’s Eve, I decided to visit the Pennymoor Singaround and play some traditional English and Irish folk music with some old friends which was great but I also discovered a local Bluegrass Music session and a fascinating local Somerset / Celtic craftsman who specialises in making traditional Sugan furniture.

Read all about it at traditional Sugan Celtic furniture, folk music and a happy new year.

Bye for now and a Happy New Year
Rob

Fantastic tunes with my old musician friends in an environment where so much is achieved.

Read about Christmas really got under way with a crash and a bang.

I really had a great time. For 1st Sunday of the month afternoon pub entertainment in a down to earth traditional water front inn, it’s a place I will definitely go back to.

Traditional folk music at The Dolphin, Barbican, Plymouth, UK

Folk music clubs can often not be the most romantic of places. Very often the musicians play their music and the audience …. talks amongst themselves, often quite loudly.

This new short story by Rob Hopcott, entitled Bagpipe Lover, offers an alternative scenario. After playing his piece, the piper looks across the crowded bar and falls for a glamorous damsel. Unfortunately, said damsel is not distressed and is already surrounded by some hunky men, not to mention her husband.

But all is not lost for our bagpipe playing musician as he discovers in the quiet county lane outside the bar when he leaves for his home.

Bagpipe Lover proves passion rules OK even in the hearts of traditional folk musicians

It’s free and online so why not check out Bagpipe Lover

Copyright Rob Hopcott 1999 - 2006, all rights reserved. All characters are fictitious and no reference is intended to any person living or otherwise.

Here I will post stories, articles, fiction and opinion about my folk music interests.

As an active on-line author, I often use folk music venues as the background to my short fiction stories and online novels / novellas.

When I travel to different folk music festivals or music sessions, I often blog about the session to give people a bit more of a flavour of the folk events than they would get merely from an advertisement as to date and time.

If you have an interest in folk and folk music, I hope you will use the wonderful features of RSS to pop back and see my folk music site.

Folk music and culture are a wonderfully rich part of our heritage and I look forward to sharing this fascinating journey with you.

All best

Rob