Words and Music Festival

Sunbirds – Monday 9th October – Nantwich Town FC
Dave Hemingway, founder member of both The Housemartins and The Beautiful South, has been a special force on the UK music scene since the mid 80s.
As the man who sang that he loved you “from the bottom of his pencil case” and the familiar voice on other classics including “A Little Time”, Dave has been on our radios and in our lives for decades… and his newest adventure began in 2019 with the formation of Sunbirds.
Along with Phil Barton (guitar) Laura Wilcockson (vocals & violin), Marc Parnell (drums ) and Chris Offen (bass) Dave peddles the intelligent pop sound for which he’s famous, now tinged with a whiff of Americana and a rockier edge.
Sunbirds launch Words And Music 2023 with their Nantwich debut Nantwich Town Football Club on festival Monday. Currently recording their second album, this is a band very much on the rise. Catch them in this small intimate venue while you can… and don’t miss out, this band truly soars.
Sunbirds British take on Americana evokes Choke-era Beautiful South with warmth to spare” – John Aislewood MOJO Magazine

Martin Stephenson & The Daintees – Thursday 12th October – Nantwich Town FC
Straight out of Sunderland in the late 80s, Martin Stephenson and his rockabilly/indie folk flavoured Daintees emerged into a UK music scene ruled by Stock Aitken and Waterman, at the exact time when there was nothing less fashionable to tote than an acoustic guitar.
That they cut through and made an indelible impression is testimony to Martin’s inimitable melodic, humane songwriting, his passion and spontaneity as a live performer, and the band’s gloriously ramshackle interplay.
They gatecrashed the albums chart with their 1989 hit “Gladsome, Humour And Blue” and despite disbanding in the 90s they have retained a special place in the hearts of their passionate fan base, and are now celebrating 25 years since the release of “Boat To Bolivia” their debut album.
Come and experience a night of songs, storytelling and magic, right here at Nantwich Town Football Club.

Rosie Holt – Saturday 14th October – Nantwich Civic Hall
ROSIE HOLT is a stunningly original comedian, actor, satirist and social media sensation whose hilarious deadpan parodies of top politicians have gone viral over the last few months.
Her new, incredible one woman show  “The Thick Of It” comes hot on the heels of her Edinburgh Festival smash hit “Woman’s Hour”.
An artist of her time, Holt’s fictitious MP character embodies the rises, falls, farces, contradictions and gaffes of all too many recent front benchers.
ROSIE HOLT brings the hottest Comedy ticket of 2023 at Nantwich Civic on the afternoon of Saturday October 14.

Stornoway Saturday 14th October – Nantwich Civic Hall
After a six year hiatus Stornoway are returning with a brand new album “Dig the Mountain” and a UK tour. Prior to their break Stornoway achieved immense critical acclaim, fan adoration and two Top 20 albums, one of which was certified Silver. But in 2016 they announced that they were ending on a high with the following year’s farewell tour.
They still earned new fans, however, when their version of ‘The Only Way Is Up’ exceeded 2 million streams after being used in an advert and in various TV shows. Vocalist/guitarist Brian Briggs stopped songwriting altogether and instead pursued a new career passion managing a wetland for water voles and lapwings.
Nonetheless, Brian and bandmates Jon Ouin (keyboard) and Oli Steadman (bass) stayed in torch, and step-by-step they reconnected with the love of creating music that had first inspired them to start a band. With Brian writing in a makeshift studio on a remote coastal hilltop and Jon readying a series of ideas of his own, eventually an entirely unexpected fourth Stornoway album emerged – ‘Dig The Mountain!’, which is set to be released on September 8th via Cooking Vinyl. The album is launched alongside the new track ‘Trouble With The Green’ – the first new music in eight years.

Carol Anne Duffy & John Sampson – Sunday 15th October – Nantwich Civic Hall
Carol Ann Duffy was the first female Poet Laureate, holding the post from 2009. to 2019.
She has been a unique presence in UK poetry for many years now, Her poems are studied in schools at ISC, GCSE, National 5, A level and beyond.  She rose to prominence in the UK when her poem “WhatevervShe Was” won the Poetry Society national Competition in 1983.
After her unforgettable festival appearance in 2017 we are delighted to welcome her back to Nantwich.
She will perform some of her best loved poems – and some new work – interspersed with musical interludes by Sampson, multi instrumentalist who plays trumpet, recorders & a plethora of obscure wind instruments.
The two have been collaborating for 20 years and have performed at Festivals throughout Britain, Europe, New Zealand, Hong Kong & Dubai and in venues as diverse as tents in Hay & Edinburgh as well as The Queen Elizabeth Hall and Buckingham Palace. 

An Evening with Ocean Colour Scene’s Simon & Oscar Sunday 15th October – Nantwich Civic Hall
In 2015 Ocean Colour Scene celebrated their 25th Anniversary with a sell-out acoustic tour of some of the most prestigious UK Concert Halls, it was not only their most successful for 15 years, but also their best received, with ecstatic audience reactions every night.
Simon and Oscar are continuing the theme with a tour of intimate seated venues, the perfect stages for their acoustic performances of all the big hits and anthems, including The Riverboat Song, The Circle, Traveller’s Tune, Hundred Mile High City and The Day We Caught The Train. These shows are the latest chapter in a remarkable career that’s seen OCS rise from Breton shirt-wearing Stone Roses disciples to one of Britpop’s biggest bands (their 1998 arena the biggest by any K group that year). In their 30 years together, they’ve enjoyed five Top 10 albums, six Top 10 singles and a mantelpiece full of awards. But behind all the swagger and the style were great songs, with words and melodies that found their way into your head and heart. Its time to hear these songs again stripped back but every bit as brilliant.
We’re thrilled to have them come and play for us in Nantwich and can’t wait!

For more information or to buy tickets visit the website www.wordsandmusicfestival.com
Tickets are also available form Nantwich Civic Hall box office in person & over the telephone