In 1975, after spending 5 years as a floor singer around the many folk clubs in the North East of England as well as being a resident singer at the famous Davylamp Folk Club in Washington, Bob Fox met fellow North Easterner Tom McConville and his career as a professional folk singer/musician began. In the year 2000 Bob celebrated 25 years of singing folk songs professionally with a number of tours both in the UK and abroad, starting with an appearance as 'special guest' on the Fairport Convention tour and continuing with folk club tours in Britain, Holland and Canada.

Since humble beginnings in a freezing farmhouse on the outskirts of Rochdale in the winter of 2006, outspoken alternative-folk quartet 4Square has accomplished an incredible amount in a relatively short space of time. Not only has 4Square’s music matured into the most unique and exciting sound you shall hear from the British folk music scene today; they have also shared stages with the likes of Steve Winwood, Fairport Convention, Richard Thompson and Seth Lakeman.

Cloudstreet - hot harmonies and beautiful ballads. John and Nicole's performances are packed with vitality, humour and excitement, as they breathe new life into some of the great songs of the Australian, English and Celtic traditions and carry the tradition forward with original songs and tunes. Driving guitar and Irish flute support their enthralling vocals. Their trademark dazzling harmonies and their impassioned presentation are leavened with humour and great tales from their travels. Cloudstreet makes their audience feel that they are the privileged viewers of something very special. (A "cloudstreet" is a row of thermals marked by cumullus clouds. When gliders fly from thermal to thermal by following the clouds, they "fly the cloudstreet", staying aloft for miles.)

It is difficult to identify where, precisely, Ian assimilated his stylistic knowledge of the Scottish folk tradition: perhaps from his dad, Pipe Major John Bruce of the London Scottish Regiment; from his older brother with whom he formed the Fraser and Ian Bruce Duo early in his career; perhaps merely from performing and mixing with traditional singers right across every major folk festival, folk club and venue in Scotland, England and Wales over several decades now. Whatever the source, it cannot be denied that Ian Bruce has emerged one of the great singer/song-writers of the Scottish Folk Movement. He has made quite a reputation for himself undertaking primary school workshops, on Burns, Ramsay and modern song-writing, throughout East Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway and South Lanarkshire. Through it all he has continued to develop as a song-writer. On stage Ian brings a huge presence which invariably has his audiences singing, laughing and crying. His perennial return bookings to festivals in Towersey, Warwick, Bromyard, Cleckheaton, Bedworth and farther afield are a testimony to his following amongst aficianados of Burns, contemporary folksong and even the better pop songs of the present day. So don’t miss him.

The very first guests at Ely Folk Club, back in September 1990, were the Kipper Family. Sid and his father, Henry, delighted the audience with their songs from the Norfolk village of St Just-near-Trunch, handed down to them from their ancestors, or so they claimed. Henry has long since retired, but we are very pleased to welcome Sid back to Ely Folk Club, twenty years after his first performance here. For your delight Sid Kipper, icon and iconoclast, pulls out the plums of his Yuletide repertoire old and new. Then he adds a sprig of holly, pours on brandy, and sets them ablaze. By their light he looks back at rural Christmases when snowflakes glistened, frosty winds made moan, and it really was deep and crisp and even. "It was cold, but fair. Well, even the rich couldn't light a fire with a little boy up their chimney, could they?" Present times are not ignored, and the show has tips for those new to rural life, culled from Sid's Channel4 podcast series 'The Kipper Country Code'. These are sprinkled over seasonal songs and stories, rhymes and reasons, with the odd musical instrument - or maybe two. Along the way Carol is sung, Belle's told, and Sherry is trifled with. There's turkey talked, pies minced, and sausages rolled. In short, Yule is comprehensively logged in a thoroughly entertaining fashion.

As well as being a superb vocalist and double bassist, Miranda continues to surprise audiences with her musical versatility, and demonstrates her ability as a guitarist and interpreter of song, slipping effortlessly between genres. She has a strong repertoire of songs and is currently developing material for her fifth solo album project. She is joined by Rex Preston; the most virtuosic mandolin player in the UK today. His style and fluidity augments Miranda’s songs beautifully.