Life, the Universe and Everything

I've written about Towersey Festival before and how fantastic it is. This time, I'll mainly share pictures.... A small section of the campsite looking towards the Chiltern Hills Found a hurdy-gurdy player tuning her instrument outside the Ceilidh Tent "The Big Club", the main concert venue Inside The Ceilidh Tent with the Towersey Poplars in the background. I love these trees! I've known them most of their life. Twenty years ago they were newly planted saplings and we were asked not to tie washing lines or tents to them. Now they're grown up and provide a windbreak on the south and west sides of the village playing field. The newly enlarged dance floor is inspected by early arrivals Dance floor in use The floor seems even more chaotic at night. Band: DanceCupola, Caller:Gordon Potts The late night venue from the camp site Inside Towersey at night Some of the people are quite eccentric... There are man...

I don't often do "product reviews" but I am very pleased with my new camping Drainer. I had one like this before, given to me by a friend who found it in a charity shop. It folds up nicely and copes with uneven ground. There are similar devices in metal (rusts, sinks into soft ground) and wood (difficult to get clean, may rot) but this one is made of genuine plastic. The only problem is they don't work very well after being stepped on and that's why I bought another one from Ebay . All helps with my "Camping, Yes, Roughing It, No!" philosophy.

As well as the dancing at Folk Week there's a lot of Cream Teas on offer. Since the doc has given me anti-cholesterol tablets, I splurged out on four! At the Clock Tower, Connaught Gardens New for this year was "Trumps". The establishment started out as a traditional old-fashioned grocer - wood paneling, cheese counter, wines and spirits to the gentry, etc. In recent years, it sprouted a tea shop in one corner and this has now expanded to around 2/3rd of the floor area. So together with a lady inspector, I tried it There was a good quantity of jam and the scones didn't crumble as you spread the cream. Pricing was under £4 a head which is at the lower end. However, the star, as usual was the Clock Tower at Connaught Gardens. As well as a good standard cream tea, it's a place that takes cakes seriously too. Just feast your eyes on this cake in the chiller! (An advantage of modern tablet computers is that you can wipe off the drool so much easier th...

 The core of a great dancing experience is the music: Here, a large and diverse group of musicians came together to play for an dance outside .  Festivals are not all about organised events. I was with some friends having a meal near the Ham Marquee and some musicians sat down nearby and played some French dance music, just for the fun of it. So we got up and danced... At one of the more organized dances, I came across Basil again - he's slowed up a little over the years but he's still the most extraordinary dancer. He thinks nothing of break-dancing in a ceilidh or using a puppet as a partner. In this video he's "learning" the Bour ée from his partner although I suspect he knows more than he's letting on Here, Basil (right) compares notes with another dancer Adam is a respected fiddle player but also a bit of a poser  The late night dance venue on a remote hilltop The long walk home to the campsite The "Anchor G...

I went to Sidmouth for Folk Week mainly to dance but there;'s more to the town than the festival. In many ways it's a step back in time to the traditional English seaside. Some pictures: There's a lot going on Part of the small fishing fleet - their catch is sold locally Traditional beach pleasures - with modern, brighter colours The beach huts have been repainted too Street entertainments include pan-pipe bands and this "living statue" caught by the rain Catering for festival visitors Took this late afternoon beach scene pointed towards the sun shading the lens with my hand You could describe this wave pattern as "anthropomorphic" because it's due to two artificial islands in the bay causing two sets of waves to arrive at different angles giving interference patterns There's a bowling club... ...and determining the winner calls for careful measurement The only traditional butcher left ...