News

24/2/10 Band Competition

We are running a band competition, open to all, and the successful winners will get an opportunity to open the 25th Ely Folk Festival on the main stage on Friday 9th July 2010, and receive a Weekend ticket for all band members.

If interested please send a CD demo to:

EFF Band Competition
92 Morton Close
Ely
Cambs
CB7 4FE

Closing date for the band competition is 30th April 2010

The winners will be announced by 31st May 2010

Please remember to mark your envelope "EFF Band Competition" if you wish your entry to be considered. 

24/2/10

Following a review of tick sales, it is confirmed that we have sold out of caravan and campervan tickets.

20/2/10

We have already sold out of caravan and campervan tickets!!

We will see if we are able to release any more caravan and campervan tickets in the next couple of days.

20/2/10

Festival Box Office Open

18/2/10

The Box Office for the 25th Ely Folk Festival will open midday on Saturday 20 February. This year’s festival line-up showcases the cream of British folk and roots music. With acts including Oysterband, Faustus, New Essex Bluegrass Band, Vin Garbutt and winners of the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2010, Lau, the festival will reflect the richness and diversity of British folk and roots music. New for the 2010 festival is a Local Bands Showcase with local talent including Flaming June and The Bounty Hounds.

With a real ale bar, morris dancing, ceilidhs, sessions, music and dance workshops, and children’s entertainment, there will be something for everyone at this year’s festival

Given the quality of the festival line-up, early booking for the 2010 festival is advised (the 2009 festival sold out in advance).  Tickets can be purchased by phone (for credit card bookings), on-line at  www.elyfolk.co.uk, or you can download a form from the website and post.  Full details will be given when the box office opens on the 20th February.  Early bird tickets are available at a reduced rate before 1st June.

2/2/10 Box Office

Will open midday on the 20th February, when the following tickets will be available. You will then be able to  order your tickets for the 2010 Ely Folk Festival either by book phone (for credit card bookings), on-line or you can download a form. Please note that Day and Evening tickets will limited in number and may be withdrawn from sale at any time.

Ticket	Adult	Child (10-17yrs.)
Weekend ticket - after 1st June	£58	£19
Weekend ticket - before 1st June	£51	£17
Weekend ticket - concession	£42	Not available
Saturday - day and evening	£29	£10
Sunday - day and evening	£25	£8
Friday - evening only	£18	£6
Saturday - evening only (limited number)	£23	£9
Sunday - evening only  (limited number)	£16	£5
Camping - tents* - per person	£8	£4
Campervans / Caravans* - per person	£8	£4

** Camping (whether tents, caravans or campervans) will be charged per person and be available to Weekend ticket holders only

Sign up now to the festival mailing list to keep in touch and receive more information about the 2010 festival – details available on here .  The festival’s reputation for seeing great live acts in an intimate and family friendly setting means tickets go quickly once the box office opens.

29/1/10 Traders Applications 

Now Closed. No further applications to be submitted.

22/1/10  Festival Update

Although the weather is cold and grey at the moment, planning is well underway for a sunny and exciting Ely Folk Festival 2010. The festival will be celebrating its 25th anniversary in July 2010, and to mark this, a line-up of top British music acts including the Oysterband, John Tams and The Demon Barber Roadshow will perform alongside local East Anglian musical talent.
 
In addition, the festival will provide a medley of ceilidhs, workshops, children's entertainment, morris dancers, music sessions and informal ‘meet the artist’ opportunities that it has built up a reputation for. Information on acts and events booked for the 2010 festival is available on the festival website www.elyfolk.co.uk. 
 
From small roots in 1985, Ely Folk Festival has built a reputation for seeing great live music acts in an intimate and family friendly environment. It is now one of the top folk music festivals in Britain.
 
The Festival Box Office will open mid February 2010.

10/1/10 Festival Update

Planning is well underway for Ely Folk Festival 2010. Aside from booking top British music acts to perform at the festival, the festival committee has added an additional concert over the weekend to showcase East Anglian acts.  The festival is always keen to promote local talent and this will provide an opportunity for it to play alongside international names such as Oysterband, John Tams and Vin Garbutt. In addition, the festival will provide the usual medley of dances, workshops, childrens entertainment, morris dancers, sessions and informal ‘meet the artist’ opportunities that it has built up a reputation for.
  
Information on acts and events booked for the 2010 festival is available on the festival website www.elyfolk.co.uk.  The Festival Box Office will open in February 2010.

14/07/09 Ely Folk Festival 2009 was the best yet!

With all festival tickets sold out a week in advance, the sun shone all weekend on 1500 happy festival goers. A strong line-up, great music and a friendly atmosphere all combined to make the festival one to remember. Top bands Edward II and Baka Beyond had the main marquee on its feet dancing on Friday and Saturday nights, while singing legend Eric Bogle sang his best known song ‘The Band Played Waltzing Matilda’ to a hushed audience on Sunday evening. Up-and-coming bands Something Nasty in the Woodshed and Dog Roses added verve and attitude to an impressive musician line-up.

Complimenting the concerts, a programme of workshops, informal artists ‘unplugged’ sessions, dance displays, ceilidhs and children’s entertainment over the weekend was enjoyed by festival goers. The Saturday morning dance procession was watched by crowds of local people and visitors as fifteen morris teams brought colour, music and spectacle to the streets of Ely.

Chair of the festival committee, Trish Reed, said “Ely 2009 was a fantastic event and we’ve had lots of positive feedback from festival goers. It was hard work but we’re so pleased that everyone had a great time and we’re really grateful for the help we received from our volunteer stewards over the weekend. We’re already planning Ely Folk Festival 2010”.

Ely Folk Festival 2010 will be the 25th festival and will take place 9-11 July 2010.

13/07/09  Another Successful Folk Festival

What a fabulous folk festival, with all tickets sold out over a week in advance! The 24th Ely Folk Festival got off to a fine start on a hot Friday afternoon and evening with the Dog Roses, Strange Folk and the highlight of Something Nasty In The Woodshed, who went down a storm. Baka Beyond set the scene for the wide range of musical styles to come over the weekend

07/07/09  Final Preparations Under Way

The marquees are up and final preparations are being made for this years folk festival.

30/06/2009 Ely Folk Festival Sold Out!

The Ely Folk Festival is now sold out; including for both day, evening and weekend tickets.

29/06/2009 A greener festival

Ely is a beautiful city and we are keen to keep it that way by considering our impact on the environment.

We have taken steps in 2009 to improve our ‘green’ credentials by

1. Introducing more recycling facilities around the site – these will be on the main festival arena and around the campsite areas and will take cans, glass and paper.

2. Providing re-usable stiff plastic beer glasses to reduce the amount of plastic glasses thrown away during the festival. A deposit of £1 will be asked to cover the cost, which can be refunded at the end of the festival. A glass washer will be available for those who like clean beer glasses.

3. Establishing a baseline of electricity consumption so we can aim to reduce this in 2010.

4. Establishing a baseline of water consumption so we can aim to reduce this in 2010.

Please support us in our efforts and help us to recycle by using the facilities on site

30/05/2009

All camping inclusive tickets now sold out!.

29/05/2009 Winner of Festival Band Competition

The Dog Roses, a 5-piece band from South London were selected as winners of this year’s Ely Folk Festival Band Competition.

With stiff competition from 24 other entries, The Dog Roses impressed the judges with their eclectic mix of country music, west coast harmonies and old time Americano mixed with the occasional burst of punk and indie attitude. The band formed in 2003 and combine double bass, mandolin, accordion, fiddle, drums and vocals to deliver a vigorous and driving sound. They’re currently working on their fourth CD.

‘Highly proficient…..deliver lyrical doses of worldly wisdom, spinning a sweetly sincere line or being witty and wry.’  Traditional Music Maker

The Dog Roses will open the Friday night concert at the 2009 festival.  

19/05/2009 Ely Folk Festival listed in Sunday Times top 100 music festivals

The Sunday Times has listed Ely Folk Festival among its 100 top music festivals. The preview includes events ‘from big beasts to boutique, family-friendly to hedonists-only, in-town to back-of-beyond and even overseas’. The festival is one of only five folk music festivals that have made it into the top 100.

It is just not the Sunday Times that has recognised that the festival is one of the best around – canny punters have been snapping up tickets for this year’s festival with sales so far outstripping previous years.

With a bill that includes Peatbog Faeries, Edward II, Baka Beyond, Eric Bogle and John Munro, and Tanglefoot, Ely Folk Festival 2009 is set to be a highlight of the festival circuit this year.

01/05/09 Stewarding

As our event has grown in popularity and site improvements have been made, we have identified a need for additional numbers of suitable individuals to help undertake a variety of steward duties over the festival weekend.  Full training is provided and so previous experience is not essential, all we ask is that you are reasonably fit and able to build a good rapport with our festival goers. We are however, particularly interested in people with security qualifications, first aid experience and trained fire wardens.

Click here for more details

26/04/09 Ely Festival sponsors folk performances at Eel Day celebration in Ely

In a joint promotion with East Cambridgeshire District Council, Ely Folk Festival is sponsoring a number of musical acts at this year’s Eel Day celebration on 2nd May in Ely. This free event takes place at Jubilee Gardens, off Broad Street in Ely.

Steve Lockwood and Chris Newman, Adrian Nation and Andy Wall will all perform over the course of the afternoon. Steve Lockwood and Chris Newman form half of Hot Lips and Chilli Fingers who will be appearing at Ely Folk Festival in July, as will Adrian Nation.

Following the Eel Day procession through the town, the performances will kick off at 12.30 with Andy Wall, 1.30 with Adrian Nation, and Steve Lockwood and Chris Newman will take the stage at 2.30.

19/04/09 Ely Festival supports up and coming acts

Ely Folk Festival prides itself on seeking out and showcasing bright new talent and the 2009 festival is no different.  This year the festival will host a clutch of up and coming acts that celebrate the range and depth of young talent around.

Anna Sinfield an accomplished young singer songwriter inspired by London trobadours such as Laura Marling and Thom Stone. Adam Brown and Alan McLeod, two incredibly talented young local musicians who create music with flair and a pulsating heartbeat. The Toy Hearts, a five-piece from Birmingham who play their own brand of bluegrass. Flossie Malavialle, a performer from the south of France who has a huge repertoire of musical styles from traditional French songs to jazz, funk and soul. The QP, six talented musicians who play a mix of traditional and original numbers ranging from acoustic songs to Klezmer-influenced folk rock.

Festival tickets are going fast – early bird tickets available before 1st June

26/03/09 Ticket Sales Going Strong

The Box Office for the 24th Ely Folk Festival has experienced unprecedented ticket sales since it opened last month. Weekend tickets and camping spaces have been selling strongly reflecting the strong line-up for this year’s festival and the value-for-money ticket prices.

Early bird tickets are available at a reduced rate before 1st June. Details on how to purchase tickets can be found here.

04/03/09 Stewarding

We have recently written to our existing stewards inviting them to apply as stewards for the 2009 festival by the 30th April. If necessary we will then seek applications for potential new stewards from the 1st May via this web site. 

Please therefore do not ask to be a steward, unless already invited, in advance of this date as you will be unlikely to get a response before May.

15/02/09 Box Office

Box office open.

02/02/09 Morris Teams

Morris sides announced for the 2009 festival.

01/02/09 New Campsite and Parking Arrangements

New campsite and parking arrangements announced.