Hi, yeah s’me, keeping up the Song of the Day feature like dedication was as word I know the definition of!
No excuses not to, I mean I am of the generation when Roy Castle clasped his trumpet weekly, ready for the signing off of “Record Breakers.” No, it’s not a euthanasim, Google it whippersnappers.
Might also explain my fondness for brass. Brass is class, and a vital element of ska. Yep, four tunes in and I couldn’t resist sharing some ska with you.
It’s a commonly misguided notion that ska is a retrospective cult here in England. It tends to convey a bygone era of Two-Tone records, boots and braces.
Yet today, while said stereotype has a grounding, ska is an international phenomenon, particularly in South America. I did write a piece about this region’s love for ska, and how it’s roots out of Jamaica bare a different tale from our own.
To show you how fresh it can be elsewhere in the world, and it’s not a reminiscence for a
load of overweight balding pensioners as perceived in the UK, here’s all-female bar one Mexican band, Girls Go Ska, who I’m secretly in love with, (so secret they don’t even know themselves….until they use Google translate!) doing an instrumental jam.
Girls and ska; what’s not to like? Have a lovely rest of your day. Very good. Carry on….
- McDonalds Coming to Devizes?!
Okay, it was the April Fools joke I broke the Internet with in 2021, but it’s not the 1st of April today…..
Bishop’s Cannings Parish Council announced that they are “aware” of a proposal for a new McDonald’s drive-thru restaurant on the site of the Murco garage at Cannings Hill.
They explained a dedicated website has been set up by the applicant which states that a planning application has been submitted to Wiltshire Council.
which states that a planning application has been submitted to Wiltshire Council.
The Parish Council said it will “review the application once it appears on the Wiltshire Council planning portal and will update residents in due course.”
McDonald’s says it “has long wanted to expand its offer of amazing value and high-quality British food into Devizes to address an identified demand for a new McDonald’s in the area.”
“The proposed site is located at the former Murco Garage on Horton Road, just off the A361/Horton Road Roundabout in Devizes.”
“Our submitted proposals seek to transform this underutilised site into a modern employment generating facility, that serves local residents, whilst contributing to the wider economy of the Wiltshire area.”
Whether you’re lovin’ it or not, McDonalds will bring jobs for young people, and I believe that’s something to consider.
Me? I’m mentioning it for clickbait, but let’s not get over excited yet; no Big Mac orders will be taken today; it’s early days!!
- Using Fulltone as a Proper Noun
To most, “full” and “tone” are two separate words, but around here it’s been a portmanteau and a proper noun since 2019, conveying a unique musical experience where orchestral meets pop, thanks to The Fulltone Orchestra….
Yeah, they may play elaborate concerts around the South West from Exeter Cathedral and Bath Abbey to London’s Cadogan Hall and Birmingham Symphony Hall, but it is here, in Devizes where they proper job zip up their boots and return to their roots for a festival like no other.
To put it in dictionary form, it might look something like this AI invention:
Fulltone / ˈfʊlˌtoʊn /proper noun
1- The Fulltone Orchestra: A large, independent British symphony orchestra based in the South West of England. Founded in 2017 by musical director Anthony Brown, the ensemble consists of roughly 50 to 65 musicians and is celebrated for performing diverse, cross-genre arrangements—ranging from classical masterpieces and movie scores to rock, Motown, and electronic dance music.
2- The Fulltone Music Festival: A prominent annual multi-day outdoor music festival organized by the orchestra in Devizes, Wiltshire. The event showcases the orchestra alongside headline artists and guest vocalists performing large-scale symphonic concerts across a single weekend.
Origin: Formed in Devizes, Wiltshire, as a compound of full (complete, maximum) and tone (a sound of distinct pitch and quality), reflecting the expansive and powerful sound of a complete live orchestra.
Example usage: “We are buying weekend camping passes to Fulltone at Park Farm this summer.”
Editor’s additional note: “for the love of Jason Donovan, make sure you do!”
If you know me and my grammar, you’ll have come to the correct assumption I’m not one for dictionaries anyway! I’m no scholar in the classics either. I just know what I like, and through all the bobsy-die and Tempest in a teapot online skullduggery, the bottom line is, I promise you from past experience: when you get into that dome-shaped stage, almost iconic now in Devizes, and allow the sublime acoustics of a full orchestra to flow through you, it is magnificent.
And you’re not going to find anything like it hanging around Sidmouth Street waiting for your chicken sandwich to be cooked, or staying in watching a show hosted by Ant and Dec.
Fulltone Festival 2023 – Day One Image: Gail Foster “We’re bringing Jason Donovan to a field in Potterne,” organiser Jemma Brown told me. “Why would you not get behind that and see what two local people are trying to achieve?!”
Jason, Wurzels. Rozella, and all other gubbing or not, are only added bonuses. I was of the generation to reject pop crime manufacturers Stock Aitken Waterman, being honest, and Jason was used as a pawn, a male equivalent of Kylie, and I can’t give you the key to my combined harvester, because I haven’t got one, have I? But hey ho, a shuttle bus pulls in at the Pelican, even I have to admit, Jason Donovan coming to Devizes IS a BIG deal.
The Wurzels may be too far east for their liking, and quipped about Devizes in a song, but aren’t they the only band who made a greater success with a parody song than the original?! And I wouldn’t mind if I do; time is healer, and there’s too many broken hearts in the world, anyway. Jason was right, dammit!!
Don’t be that subject; communal love to be found at FullTone, but only if you’re there, looking gorgeous! I’m not out to repeat myself, we’ve done a preview for this extravaganza already. I can lead a horse to water, but I’m not prophesying that I can make it drink. But I think you’d be seriously missing out if you don’t buy a ticket, and one for your other half, maybe one for Auntie Doris too, to this one, at a new venue, with new horizons. Put her in the deckchair, let her rave.
The biggest mistake you could make is that Fulltone is a massive commercial enterprise, and that you’re going to be ripped off by a professional consortium, stuffing your dollar in their ears and laughing at you. “The reality of it is,” Jemma explained, “we are a husband and wife team running an independent orchestra and event, with no financial backing other than ticket sales – which is a massive risk for anyone to take.”
Slap me down and call me Madge Bishop if it ain’t true. Jemma’s been all over that book of face again, interrupting your constant stream of political propaganda, overkilling the advertising. S’ only cos she gets jittery, worrying no one is going to show their face. Everyone who organises any event gets this. Please believe me, it’s perfectly natural.
Don’t we all get a bit Nelson Muntz, and on our high horses when we mount that poisonous social media platform?! Just a tad?! I’m a bloody nightmare, right?! Just ignore me, I do.
Fulltone Festival 2023 Day Two Image: Gail Foster Bottom line; it’s not about any singular person, not even Jason, or The Wurzels, risking their safety crossing the county border. It’s about the show, and how it MUST go on. It’s about showcasing all those talented artists, all those musicians, singers, all of them, invited to bravely take to the stage.
We could walk up the canal, remembering the Boto-X, and its sad demise. Wander into town; first met the wife at that pub, now derelict. And who remembers the arcade where you hid away school lunch hours? Shame it’s gone, like the pie shop, Woolworths, Street Festival, the comfy sofa at The Four Seasons. Yeah, Fulltone has become a proper noun here, but let’s not allow it to be only used in past tense…..
Get a ticket here, enjoy yourself, and know we’ll be back together, together, because I really want to show you my heart is oh so true, and that all the love I have is, especially for you…..and everyone else going to Fulltone!
- Devizes’ Sammi Evans Features on Innereyefull Dub
If I was pleased to hear the vocals of Devizes singer-songwriter Sammi Evans would feature on a single, I was even more delighted when I asked Sammi if it was an electronic dance track, and she replied “it’s reggae!” Well now, this is really pushing my buttons…..
West London producer Andy Kent founded Innereyefull in 2005. Fusing breakbeat with jazz-funk and dub, the solo project then signed to Dusted Wax Kingdom three years later. By 2014 he started his own label, Inner-I Records, to self-release his music.
A prolific artist who received airplay on The Craig Charles Funk & Soul Show, took his debut album Playground on tour with a collective of musicians. This though, Andy says he’s “excited” about, and he “can’t wait for you all to hear the new single, which means a lot to me,” explaining because it’s the first Innereyefull music in six years.
Sammi is a Devizes-based singer-songwriter, often seen gigging locally accompanying Matchbox Mutiny, and attending open mics. She released her debut solo single in January.
The Thinking Tree is a rootsy, rolling heavyweight dub, and I must say, fits Sammi’s wistful and evocative chanting vocals perfectly. There’s the rockers one-drop to it, reflecting dub classics of Prince Jammy. Yet with contemporary echoing phrasing elements, subtler on the vocals than traditionally used at Tubby’s dub origins, reminding me more of Zion Train’s nineties outpourings, appeasing the alt-reggae crusty scene.
In theme too it blends, The Thinking Tree being a metaphoric place of solitude and reflection, it’s mellow, plodding and uplifting; all the right ingredients flow. With Robert Livsey’s percussion, guitarist James McMahon and mastered by Doc Paul Colin Moody, Sammi corrects my vocal accompaniment, telling me it’s a 50-50 collaboration with more in the pipeline. The single is from a forthcoming album, Return of The Inner Eye, due in 2027.
If this tune is solid, and up my street pounding on my front door, I’m over the moon at the prospect of Sammi becoming a vocalist for this rebirth, because I’m hoping she’ll encourage some local live shows, and as much as I love our local music scene, it needs more reggae….much more reggae, in my honest opinion!
As it happens, this new Innereyefull band plays the Trowbridge Festival this month and is supporting Dub Catalyst at The Pump in October. But for now, try this taster for size, out now on Bandcamp. On streaming platforms from 30th June.
- Looking Back At Devizes Arts Festival 2026
Featured Image: Gail Foster.
Features extracts from reviews by Andy Fawthrop, Ian Diddams and Madelaine Blake.
Does it ever stop?! The weekend is upon us again. I think I might need to skip this one, not getting any younger, and besides I did enough laughing, dancing and meeting interesting people over the past fortnight, thanks to Devizes Arts Festival…..
Celebrating its fortieth anniversary The Devizes Arts Festival really was amazeballs this year, and between our dedicated team of writers we managed to cover a fair chunk of it. Which we will now look back on with a cheap shot clipshow style article, like a nineteen-seventies TV Christmas Special!
So it leaves me to thank all the volunteers at Devizes Arts Festival for such a brilliant job, and making us feel welcome. And our writers, Andy, Ian and our new writer, Madelaine Blake. Thanks also to photographer Gail Foster for her use of the NRWO gig images.
Devizes Arts Festival kicked off like dancing shoes on Friday 31st May with London’s premier salsa orchestra, Salseology. Sacha Dench’ Journeys of the Human Swan and Beatrice Nicholas was showcasing African American classical composers on the following Saturday. Unfortunately we arrived fashionably late, I was busy with Rowdefest, so apologies for missing the opening.
By Monday, Andy is first out of the starting traps, and bangs out three-in-one reviews, all writing related. The first was a new feature at Devizes Arts Festival, the Have-A-Go Workshops, this one by Bath Spa’s Steve Tuffin, of whom Andy reported, “led a very practical class on how to go about writing a personal memoir, or indeed how to approach any form of creative writing. In what could have been a dry, dusty and boring subject, Steve presented a very lively, interesting and, yes, absorbing couple of hours.”
Anthony Horowitz’s “A Life In Murder” came next, to which Andy raved. “Horowitz proved to be a loquacious and captivating raconteur. He had plenty of anecdotes and examples to give, peppering his replies with humour and witty asides.”
And Becky Grey’s “How I Became A Ghost Writer” finished the trio, which Andy called a “sandwich of literary delights.” I couldn’t convince any of our writing team into covering some Sunday walks, and Jemma Brown’s singing country workshop. Not the most energetic bunch, and if you’d hear them sing you’d be thankful!
By Tuesday I thought I’d better get on the act, and attended a lunchtime recital with Fábio Fernandes. Being honest I didn’t expect much, I mean, it’s just a lunchtime recital, right? How wrong was I?! St Andrews was packed, and Fábio, well I called him “a virtuoso. He came to Devizes to educate as well as entertain, and he did both delightfully.”
Thursday, Andy covered photographer Nick Upton’s Behind The Lens; My Life in Wildlife Film-Making & Photography, saying, “this talk was a great sweep across Nick’s career over 40 years, and covering over 30 countries, but it illustrated not only the man’s undoubted technical and related skills, but also his obvious passion for nature, especially those projects closer to home in the UK. These included working with hedgehogs, harvest mice, dormice and the re-introduction programmes of cranes, great bustards, otters and beavers.”
While we’re talking beavers…. ermm, I went to see the Scummy Mummies show on that very same Thursday, reporting back that “you’ve never heard so many Prosecco corks popping from the Corn Exchange. It sounded like machine-gun fire in there, aimed directly at testosterone.”
Obviously I had pre-gig reservations, but by the end, I wrote, “as a geezer, you’d be forgiven for assuming this sounds excruciating, and this was certainly my pre-concern too. For if such a format was performed by anyone other than comedy geniuses, I’d still be of that opinion, but it wasn’t. This duo have the timing of The Greenwich Time Ball, are improv masters, and unless you were a subject on Louis Theroux’s Manosphere, wherever your testosterone balance lies, you cannot escape the simple fact that the Scummy Mummies are absolutely and undeniably hilarious.”
If Andy went for the more calming option, Clare Durham and Paul Martin’s “Collecting; An Art, A Hobby Or A Compulsion?” at Wiltshire Museum, reporting it as “a very entertaining session, and another of those little gems that keep the festival running,” he soon donned his gladrags for Robert Vincent, and besides being unaware of his music, Andy called it: “The vocals were soulful, insistent, yearning. The musicianship was spot-on. The songs were meaningful, well-constructed and simply wonderful. It’s been a while since I was this impressed by a band I’d never even heard before, but I was well won over. I was already on 9/10 by half time, and a no-questions 10/10 by the time we got round to the encore.”
They let me out on Saturday, for London-based Celtic folk-punker five-piece Man the Lifeboats. At a gig unlike their usual they might’ve misjudged the crowd. I said, “Man the Lifeboats realised not to judge a book by the cover, the reward for an accomplished and lively band at Devizes Arts Festival, will be these matured attendees rising from their seated positions and gyrating to their irresistible beats like middle-age never happened; and many did, because Man the Lifeboats were stompingly outstanding!” And they were, a great night that one.
Late out to bat, Ian strode confidently to the stumps with Howzat? The Six Sixes Ball Mystery” by Graham Lloyd at Town Hall, calling it “a fascinating talk about _that_ ball, the alleged lies and repeated falsehoods, and the litany of names surrounding it all.” Glad he did that one, I’m not out for cricket.
Andy hit back with a great ball, Bob Holman’s Have A Go: Phone Photography workshop, which was “another one of those little DAF gems which gave our good citizens a chance to actually “have a go”, rather than just sit back passively and be entertained. And this was definitely not entertainment, much more instructional in nature.”
Ian delivered on former world champion poetry slammer Harry Baker, one poem of which “brought a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat as it echoed feelings of my own for over thirty years now.”
Andy went to Swing From Paris, only to find they were actually from Gloucester and Worcester, but still, he said, “we got two highly entertaining sets of jazz, swing, waltz and gypsy rhythms mostly from the 1930s through to the 1950s, but also featuring tunes from as far back in the 1890s and forward into the 1980s. There was plenty of humour and self-deprecation throughout as Fenner talked us through the provenance of each number.”
Next, though it was my turn again, on the comedy….
“Milton neurotically fumbles with the microphone stand, but not his wordplay. As is his bed hair, any emotional instability or self-doubt is part of the act; he has us under his spell from the off. You couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the absurdity of his thought-process. I’m now of the opinion his manipulation of language and layered humour is second to none currently in comedy. He has nearly as many relatives as jokes, each one with their own punchline funnier than the next.” That was me, I said that. I took all the prestigious gigs, and this one was utterly hilarious, Milton Jones, and Adele Cliff were so, so funny!
Just when Andy, Ian and myself thought we had this under the thumb, in comes our new writer Maddie Blake to, not only drastically lower the age demographic of our dedicated team, but also provide us with a brilliant review of Bath artist Karen George’s sketching workshop at The White Chalk Gallery.
“What made this workshop so special,” Maddie wrote, “wasn’t just the chance to improve my drawing skills, but the atmosphere that was created within this group. Everyone appeared so eager and inviting, it was such a wonderful experience to create new friendships and share stories with those with similar interests in the arts. Despite varying levels of experience, the workshop felt accessible to everyone, and no one felt out of place. This workshop didn’t pressure you to create something ‘perfect,’ but something that captivates your enjoyment and experience of the workshop.”
Thank you, Maddie, and welcome to our exclusive and sometimes elusive writers team! So good was this review, I invited Maddie to come to the finale, Nothing Rhymes with Orange, but being I had a personal angle on this one, reporting on this finest Devizes musical output since the Hoax, I really wanted to write it myself. What a great finish to one of the best Devizes Arts Festivals yet.
“Last night proved Nothing Rhymes with Orange are at the top of their game, as they switched old with new seamlessly, and strived to become the universal name we locally knew they could from the very beginning.”
Nothing Rhymes With Orange @ The Corn Exchange Image: Gail Foster I also said, rather a lot, about the future of the Arts Festival. With a matured demographic in attendance, generally, I try to illustrate how diverse and accepting it is for all ages. The Gen Z fanbase turned out for NRWO, the elder Arts Festival regulars did too, and everyone was kind and courteous to everyone else. That is the magic of the festival, and I hope those younger took home the notion that the festival isn’t a Saga Holiday, and welcomes all!
There were obviously a few events we couldn’t cover, and I apologise to those involved for this, but we tried to capture as much as possible. It was a wonderful year at the Arts Festival, and we look forward to seeing how they might top this one!
If writing these was a competition, though it’s not, for the record, the highest hitting review was Andy’s one on Robert Vincent, followed by Andy’s three-in-one writing workshops, I made level pegging for the third best for the NRWO review, with Maddie’s sketching workshop review, then my review of Scummy Mummies pipped Milton Jones to the post for the fourth highest hitting article.
But we don’t worry about hits here; I couldn’t pick a personal favourite, oh, okay, go on then! It had to be between Milton Jones and Nothing Rhymes With Orange, of course. For Andy, who, let’s face it, did most of the hard work, picked Robert Vincent and Swing From Paris. “But I also thought the various have-a-go events were pretty good. Oh. That’s three!”
That’s okay Andy, have three, or more. Interesting though; Arts Festival team, the workshops did prove to be a welcomed addition. Same again next year?!
- Phil Beer to Perform at The Pump on Friday 4th December!
“Mr Phil Beer needs no introduction to anyone,” says a spokesperson for The Pump in Trowbridge, our grassroots venue kicking up turf on Rolling Stone Magazine last week!
Regardless of their mainstream coverage, thankfully The Pump hasn’t forgotten our grassroots media, and let us into their secret, announced only today. One half of the legendary Show Of Hands, Phil Beer makes his long fabled return to The Pump on Friday 4th December.
“We are overjoyed to have Phil here again,” they said, “It’s been a very long time.”
For those who don’t know, Phil is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, song writer and performer. Famous for his bands Show of Hands and Feast of Fiddles, as well as a past member of The Albion Band, Phil has been performing since he was 14 years old. With 59 years of shows and the many miles he has laid down on the circuit cements his place at the very top of the traditional folk standard in Great Britain and beyond.
He is in fact a Doctor of Music, after being awarded an honorary doctorate of music from the University of Plymouth in 2015!
With over 50 studio albums to his name, as well as a clutch of folk awards, there isn’t a better way to celebrate Phil’s contribution to music, than an intimate showcase of his excessive talents, than a gig down ‘The Pump.’
Opening the show is Canadian musician, Daniel Isaiah, who happens to be celebrating his birthday this day too!
7.30pm – Doors
8pm – Daniel Isaiah
8.45pm – Phil Beer
Tickets: £20 adv / £25 otd (if available) ♦ Doors 7.30pm
- “Bullshot Crummond” at the Rondo Theatre, Larkhall, Bath June 17th – 20th 2026
by Ian Diddams
images by Ian Diddams & Lisa HounsomeA few weeks ago I scribbled a preview of this production – Bullshot Crummond. I extolled its virtues of daftness, craziness, car chases, sword fights, stage punches, raised eyebrows, lingerie, and deadly tarantulas. Not forgetting the high dangerous converse forcefield!
Read that preview for further descriptions of this manic show – I’m not like Abba, I don’t repeat my previous work in a new
albumarticle. But I will mention the phenomenal work undertaken by the stage crew in ensuring the often quite substantial and complex scene changes were slick and not lengthy, allied to perfect performances by the actors who often opened the scene in reduced, spot lighting while the set change was being completed in darkened areas elsewhere on stage. This area alone was a joy and treat to behold – if one could tear one’s eyes from the fast paced, joke-a-minute action on stage.
Matt Nation plays the gung-ho, patriarchal overly confident Bullshot Crummond splendidly, with his perfectly executed raised right eyebrow while his arch enemy, villain Otto von Brunno is quite brilliantly delivered by master of the quick change Iorwerth Mitchell.
Otto’s wife, sidekick and evil femme fatale Lenya is deliciously portrayed by Natalia Weicƶorek, with Josie May-Ross displaying a fine selection of lingerie [ Ed. It’s NOT that kind of show!] as wonderful wupper-cwust heroine Miss Wosemary Fenton.
Her boffin Deddy, Professor Rupert Fenton fills the part of slightly crazed looking scientist (somewhere between Frankenstein and Doc Brown!) delivered with panache by Tim Carter.
That leaves a plethora of ensemble and cameo roles filled by some of the principals but also the hilarious James Vallance as Algy Longwort, Crummonds’ less than intelligent friend
and a bored waiter, alleged one armed police inspector and German hitman seamlessly performed by Jack Sandbach.
Hugh Darwin almost steals the show as the quite superb Marovitch, a henchman – never has a man ever been made for the role so perfectly; Hugh also provides a country police officer.
All that remains is to mention the narrator and bombshell Chloe Harris as a Cabaret style MC teasing her way though the action and the men in the audience.
The back stage crew already praised consisted of Penny “Handstand” Clegg and Sarah Larmour Shearn, while tech as ever was a slickly delivered by Alex Latham with the phenomenal Moray MacDonald on sound and original music. This crew delivered a stunning array of on and off-stage special, lighting and sound effects. Don’t blink – because you will miss something if not several things at once!
Unsurpringly the set is down to the usual genius of Rich Canning and his team while Chrissy Fryers and Charlotte Howard are responsible for the delightful costumes.
And of course maybe last, but always first, the stunning vision and planning and sleepless nights of director Charlotte Howard, ably assisted by the multi talented producer, Toby Slelton.
Is this the “best” written play ever? No. Is it the deepest and most soul affecting show? No. Is it a show you will laugh at constantly, wish to see again and yearn to never end? Most definitely – if I hadn’t already a full diary this week, I’d come every night if I could.
This may be a light hearted, silly romp but make no mistake… behind all the laughs and silliness are hours and hours of planning, preparation, and presentation; physical challenges and endless practice – and a doff of a hat here also to choreographer and stage combat director Alexander Meadow… chapeau! The comedic timing, the stage craft, the scene changes, all require hours of practise to appear seamless. And this cast and crew have excelled in their bid to make this all appear effortless, an excellent achievement by a team on the top of their game.
“Bullshot Crummond” is sheer escapism at its finest, in the same vein as ‘Allo ‘Allo with its gentle racial generalisations and parodies building a stupid story of derring-do, innate and misguided heroism, and above all… being ridiculously and stupidly….BRITISH!
“Bullshot Crummond” is performed at the Rondo Theatre, Larkhall, Bath from June 17th-20th at7.30pm. Tickets are available from ticketsource. Proceeds from this show will go to support “Man Down” a local men’s mental health charity and for that reason alone this show deserves your patronage.
Do go and see it. Then go again and take your friends. Resistance is futile!
- Award-Winning Circus Cortex BizZzar Comes to Devizes This July
Get ready for an unforgettable family day out as Circus Cortex BizZzar brings its award-winning Big Top spectacular to Devizes from 9–12 July 2026…..
Performing at The Green, Southbroom Road, Devizes, SN10 1LL, this thrilling production promises four days of world-class live entertainment for all ages. Featuring an exceptional cast of international performers, Circus Cortex BizZzar combines breathtaking aerial displays, high-flying acrobatics, side-splitting comedy, and edge-of-your-seat thrills in a fast-paced show packed with excitement.
From the moment the lights go down, audiences will be transported into a world of wonder, laughter, and circus magic.
Performance Times: Thursday 9 July – 5:00pm & 7:30pm Friday 10 July – 5:00pm & 7:30pm Saturday 11 July – 2:00pm & 5:00pm Sunday 12 July – 1:00pm & 4:00pm Advance Booking Offer Book early and save on selected seats: Red Seats – £10.00 (usually £15.00) Silver Seats – £12.50 (usually £25.00) Gold Ringside Seats – £15.00 (usually £30.00)
Advance Booking Offer
Book early and save on selected seats:- Red Seats – £10.00 (usually £15.00)
- Silver Seats – £12.50 (usually £25.00)
- Gold Ringside Seats – £15.00 (usually £30.00)
Advance booking is strongly recommended to secure the best seats at the best prices. Whether you’re a lifelong circus fan or experiencing the magic of the Big Top for the very first time, Circus Cortex BizZzar delivers a spectacular live experience filled with skill, laughter, and unforgettable moments. For tickets and more information, visit www.circuscortex.com
- Who are you most looking forward to seeing at CrownFest?
CrownFest at The Crown in Bishops Cannings is making a fantastic comeback this July with a stellar lineup, particularly supporting local acts, begging the question, who are you most looking forward to seeing there?
It’s not as easy an answer as it might sound, and hey, I’m not intending to answer it myself; I’ve got to remain impartial. I could be like Graham, though. You remember Graham? With the quick reminder? On Cilla Black’s Blind Date? Or am I showing my age now?!
Ruby? Hum, maybe not, cos you never saw him, he was just a voice, leading to the fact no one stopped to give a toss about his romantic welfare. What if Graham was single, and lonely, helping all those contestants find love, when behind the scenes he’s hurting, inside?! An outrage, that’s what it was; where was Graham’s weekend in Benidorm with a hot chick in legwarmers, a rah-rah skirt and more hairspray than it takes to hold a life together?!
George? Anyway, I digress. There’s those easy options for me, and if you’re a regular Devizine reader then not only are you a smidgen crazy, but you’ll be aware how crazy I am for Ruby Darbyshire, our newest sublime singer-songwriter on the circuit, my dear longtime favourite George Wilding, who’ll take any requests and turn them into magic, and of course, those irresistible indie pop darlings Talk in Code, all of which you mustn’t miss. Promise me this much?
Talk in Code? 
Lucas Hardy? Salisbury’s finest Lucas Hardy, who leapt on stage at the Wiltshire Music Awards and couldn’t wait for me to introduce him; the guy is a legend! Braydon Lees, though, that kiddo is making news. I’ve seen him a couple of times and he’s a breath of fresh air.
Braydon Lee? But if most of these have become my friends, there’s some new to me, so, who knows, they could be the ones you are most looking forward to seeing. You are coming, right? Tickets are £32.50, from here, Saturday 4th July at the Crown in Bishops Cannings, with the lovely beer garden, campsite and pizza!
Two stages, this time, and the others I’ve yet to tick off are: The Publicans, Innovator, 5 Nights at Adyans, Dylan Bratley, and Mother Ukers. The jury is out on them, but I can assure you the two tribute acts are awesome. Kinisha. as Tina Turner played the last CrownFest, which was a bit of a wet one, but we were rollin’ (ooh), rollin’ (ooh) rollin’ on the river.
Kinisha? If Kinisha is a given to me and past CrownFest attendees, I’ve suggested the other tribute after seeing this guys blow the roof off the Vic in Swindon. Hey look, I’ve made friends out of so many of the musicians performing at CrownFest, but I’ve been an Adam Ant fan since I was knee-high to a grasshopper and Ant Trouble is the only band you’ll ever get anywhere near to the real thing.
There’s a lot on this bill, and all of them worthy of being the answer to our question, who are you most looking forward to seeing at CrownFest. Perhaps I’ve got the lowdown on more of them than you, but you’ve taken heed of my worldly advice and, just like Graham with his quick reminder, it’s got to be George, Ruby or Talk in Code.
Or, perhaps I’m just the dandy highwayman you’re too scared to mention, spending my cash on looking flash and grabbing your attention?!
No, that’s really not me at all! You’d be far better off buying a ticket for CrownFest, than waiting for me to look like anything merely resembling “flash”…or spending my cash, come to think of it! Adam Ant in Bishops Cannings, though; how can you resist? I think, despite the fact any one of these fantastic acts could easily be the one I’m most looking forward to seeing at CrownFest, Ant Trouble might just be the icing on the cake.
- “Don’t Drive to Stonehenge” Advises English Heritage!
Summer Solstice in Wiltshire; it’s a crowd-puller, but even forty years after the Battle of the Beanfield and decades of attempted commercialisation, it remains a tourism the authorities clearly don’t appreciate…..
Wiltshire Police and English Heritage have ganged up on social media to warn revellers not to drive to Stonehenge or Avebury for this year’s summer solstice. Cue frustration, possible conflict, pedestrians on narrow roads, and chaos in neighbouring towns. All of which, I hasten to add, helps to maintain the tradition of division and bad blood between attendees and residents.
“We are pleased to welcome visitors from all over the world to these special sites,” Wiltshire Police expressed in a Facebook post. “However, we urge everyone to plan ahead to ensure they can mark the occasion safely and responsibly.”
It matters not how nicely they dress it up. Do as we say, not as we do; forty years isn’t so long ago for something described by ITN journalist Kim Sabido as “the worst police treatment of people that I’ve witnessed in my entire career as a journalist,” there’s never been a formal inquest, and police were cleared of wrongful arrest at a 1991 civil trial.
Even patronising overuse of emojis isn’t disguising that what followed was a stark warning; ‘we’re going to make this as awkward as we possibly can for you.’
“English Heritage strongly advises people not to travel to Stonehenge by car,” they continued. “Parking is limited and must be pre-booked via their website, and long queues are expected for those who do drive.”
Begging the questions, why is parking so limited? Because Stonehenge is so walled-in with surrounding urbanisation it’s impossible to supply adequate parking there?! Because folk have only been pilgrimaging to Stonehenge for the last 5,000 years, therefore a ‘sudden interest’ in the event took English Heritage by surprise?! If only there was a field nearby folk could park in….
179.2 million quid could be found to spend on surveys, legal fees, and archaeological mitigation for a failed £2 billion Tory project to carve up the sacred landscape with a concrete monstrosity, the lights of which would’ve deliberately been angled to block the sunrise, but there’s no magic money tree to pay a local farmer for use of a nearby field for folk to park in.
Nope, the onus is on the attendees; pay Salisbury city centre’s extortionate parking fees, and cram onto the “regular” bus service, they suggested, if reading between the lines. Come on you Reds! Extra late evening Salisbury Reds buses will be put on, apparently, but note, cash is typically not accepted for Solstice journeys, so you must pay via contactless. No bank account, travelling folk, no going on bus.
And here’s the ‘don’t outstay your welcome’ punchline: “Vehicles that are abandoned or parked on the A303 or nearby roads are likely to be towed away.”
Sunrise is at 4:52am on Sunday the 21st June; unless you fancy feeling the full force of the Road Traffic Act, those wishing to celebrate at Stonehenge should note the average human travels at the approximate speed of 3mph, so I’d start walking now!
Just think, our Neolithic ancestors dragged the bluestones 140 miles from Wales, and the Altar Stone came from Scotland. English Heritage’s selling point is to, “walk in the footsteps of your Neolithic ancestors at Stonehenge” yet fails to mention you might have to walk just as far as them to get there for solstice!
Yeah! That’s how we treat tourists on heathen pilgrimages around here, mate!
“One of the wonders of the world and the best-known prehistoric monument in Europe,” they call it, which kinda makes you feel somewhat patriotic. Where’s the support from flagshaggers when you need them most?! You might have to wait for Wetherspoons to build a branch on the byway.
Yet, for the residents of the county who know the kerfuffle at Stonehenge is such, a nicer time can be had at Avebury, and Police have installed some similar rules there too.
“If you’re heading to Avebury,” they warn, “the National Trust also advises that the car park cannot accommodate everyone and where possible, to use public transport, walk, or arrange to be dropped off.”
And I get this, because Avebury is a village with residents, whereas Stonehenge isn’t, and no one is to blame for this except Saxons. Bloody Germanic tribes, coming over here building villages on are English Neolithic monuments, nicking all are blacksmith jobs, and raping all are neanderthals. Get the 49 bus, neanderthals do!
But I did chat with Arch Druid of Avebury, Jim Saunders, who blessingly explained this year’s Avebury Summer Solstice celebrations in a more positive light. They include the God and Goddess Walk and Awen Ceremony at midday, the Ladies Circle at 1pm, and the Free and Open Gorsedd of Caer Abiri at 1:30pm.
“We’d also appreciate people helping us care for the site by using the bins provided, taking litter home where possible, and avoiding leaving offerings or tying objects to trees and stones,” he furthered, which is a much more hospitable attitude and therefore likely to be received welcomingly.
Grianstad Sona, Happy Solstice, because the bottom line is, if you go to either at solstice you’ll realise the troublesome narrative is mostly codswallop, and if even there was a little, it’d likely be caused by tensions the authorities created themselves, by not compromising for one day of the year, at least until it’s a commercial enterprise.
- Nothing Seems as Sweet as the Start; NRWO as Devizes Arts Festival’s Finale
All Images: ©Gail Foster
If last Saturday’s Celtic punk band quipped if the Devizes Corn Exchange was a bingo hall, and Milton Jones jested “it’s great to be here, in the past,” it took a band with roots to the town to introduce Devizes Arts Festival to a next generation, and, predictably, Nothing Rhymes with Orange smashed it, with zest….
It’s been a fantastic year for Devizes Arts Festival, their 40th anniversary, though it continues to attract a majority of older residents. It’s understandable, with the Devizes age demographic and the cost of living crisis particularly affecting our youngest. Not for the want of trying, chief organiser Vince told me of a “Battle of the Bands” of yore, which has the blueprint of a young Kieran Moore’s past input, but the vicious circle comes down to economics; a certain style of event not selling has the potential to financially ruin the festival, and has to go. Wanton to attract a younger generation being the reason why the price to this particular event was reduced; it worked.
Highlighting the diversity of their program is something I’ve preached for the years we’ve extensively covered it, and upon receiving a whisper they’d booked Nothing Rhymes With Orange at the end of last year’s festivities, I kept schtum, but secretly I excitedly prayed this might be key to crashing the invisible boundaries of the festival’s age demographic. Not blowing my own trumpet, but I was right!
Prayers answered by Bristol’s Nothing Rhymes with Orange, as our oldest and youngest gathered; the latter only slightly outnumbering, but both tolerant and respectful of the other. The most age-diverse Arts Festival event I’ve witnessed was one of the happiest, and deffo, liveliest! And also, one element to the gig’s success.
Nothing Rhymes With Orange @ The Corn Exchange The other, of course, was the band formed at Devizes School, quickly became the local Gen Z phenomenon I’d refer to as “Beatlemania in Devizes,” and departed to Bristol Uni. If that usually spells an end to school bands, Nothing Rhymes with Orange made the adjustment together, and I will continue to vow this tightness and comradeship is the secret to their success, as, through their dedicated motivation and raw talent, they went on to replicate the local phenomenon into a national one.
Last night, they returned to their roots, and though they collectively confessed it felt “strange” to be back, to me, many of their original homemade fanbase waited in anticipation for those early singles, which they can sing back to the band; that’s as vital to Gen Z as recording it all on TikTok!
It was an obligatory pressure for Elio, Fin, Sam and Lui, who wish to retire their earliest songs in favour of progressive newer ones, and they announced this would be the last time they would play them. Fittingly here in Devizes, but not without subtle apprehension from the band; understandable. I get this; if I had to replicate my teenage creative output in my twenties I’d have cringed.
Never say never, I expressed, for nostalgia builds through aging. While the early songs were welcomed by the younger crowds, what was most impressive for all in attendance, was surely the new ones.
Nothing Rhymes With Orange @ The Corn Exchange If the indie punk pop genre has come of age, and thrashing out three-minute rages is cliché, Nothing Rhymes with Orange are at the pinnacle to a progressive evolution of the sound, with matured experimentation akin to prog rock. And therein lies their contemporary universal magic.
Through superior technical ability, mood-setting bridges and intros, and paced melodies, while still maintaining the professionalism, tightness and adroitness they showed from the start, their new songs have so much more body and strength. They are a pleasure to hear, and appeased the entire crowd rather than those here to sing back the early works.
The merger was a shrewd move, beginning with the classics and moving onto newer ones, with a finale of Manipulation, one of their earliest crowd-pleasers. They may not have played them for a while, and it’s not like riding a bike, but now they’ve ticked that box of reunification with their original fanbase off, and can put those old tunes to bed, it’s time to move on.
Last night proved Nothing Rhymes with Orange are at the top of their game, as they switched old with new seamlessly, and strived to become the universal name we locally knew they could from the very beginning.
Their synergy reverberated, as it ever did, but with a newfound level of proficiency and competence, leaving those who knew them before in awe. With one eye I scanned them as those kids singing to a handful of teenagers in West Lavington village hall, but with the other, as if we were watching The Pretenders or the Stranglers on stage. It was as plot twisting and refreshing as Luke Skywalker returning as a Jedi!
Supported by a brilliant Cheltenham five-piece called Underscore, all guitars, drums, overspilling and confident originals, made for an amazing gig, and a particularly different Devizes Arts Festival event.
Underscore @ The Corn Exchange, Devizes Nothing Rhymes with Orange could’ve just come out and nonchalantly played Brotherhood of Man covers and I’d still have been happy to see them all again! But, they didn’t, I mean they wouldn’t, would they?! They knocked it out of the Corn Exchange.
A journalist once told me, you write on a subject, publish and move on. That’s why I’m not a journalist, as I hug the frontman’s mum and tell her I’m proud, and can’t imagine how she must feel.
Nothing Rhymes With Orange was never just a subject for me, it was a model, of everything Devizine means to me personally, to summarise a journey of a local youth band, and now, through sheer dedication and motivation, to see them never taking a step backwards, only forwards, to a world stage, fills me with great respect for them, hope and delight.
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