Lichfield Festival of Folk battled some severe weather conditions this year but managed to put on a brilliant festival. Here are a few highlights from some of the committee and artist Farefeld.
Faye Mills
The highlight for me was Saturday 4th October, with the start of the evening with runner up of the song writing competition Igloo Hearts. Followed by a brilliant local band Farefeld, who managed to make me cry with their excellent performance of Caledonia, my favourite song, having been born and lived in Scotland. Then the fabulous Merry Hell, who write and perform all their own songs – wonderfully entertaining and all that for £18.00 – a bargain.
Stuart and Elaine Davies
The weather gods were not kind to us and with forecasts of rain and 50mph winds we had to take the decision to cancel the Procession and Dancing in the City for which we had planned to get nearly 300 people taking part. However, the indoor parts of the Festival went ahead and the disappointment we all felt soon evaporated as we got swept up in the excitement and fun of sessions in the pubs and a cracking evening concert in the Guildhall.
For us, singing Shanties with The Lichfield Lighthouse Company in the Earl of Lichfield and soaking up the atmosphere of the English Tunes Session in the King’s Head were highlights of the afternoon. Followed, of course, by the wonderful Farefeld and the amazing Merry Hell in the evening. Out of despair came an incredible festival experience. Perhaps we should rename LFF the Phoenix Festival!
Linda Watterson
Liaising with dance teams in the run up to the festival is always a lovely experience with everyone so keen to participate. This year all the sides had forwarded some great pictures of themselves for us to use in publicity along with short descriptions of their team. These were put together into a slide show for use as part of the children’s workshop. Due to severe weather conditions, we had to make the heart-rending decision to cancel the dancing and procession. However, as the slides were used on the day, I feel happy that all the dancers and musicians were represented albeit in a small way.
Taking part in the Lichfield Lighthouse / Nicely Matured Folk Shanty session was good fun. The two groups and the RNLI mascot almost filled the pub, but there was still space for some lovely participants to come and join the playing, singing and fun. The day’s highlight for me was the English Session in the Kings Head. It had a lovely feel and energy throughout, and some great tunes shared. Looking around the room it was great to see everyone enjoying the music, including a little whistle player barely a year old!
Mark White
Storm Amy may have played Merry Hell with our dancing, but Lichfield still found Common Culture with music throughout the City.
Cait and Chris (Farefeld)
Lichfield Festival of Folk 2025 – What a weekend! Great fun and brilliant sessions all round. We loved playing in the Guildhall as Farefeld — such a beautiful space and lovely audience. The Friday night ceilidh was a highlight, hosted by the LFF All Star Ceilidh Band with fantastic calling from Peter Cole — you couldn’t help but dance! We also had a wonderful time running our children’s shanty workshop in The Hub for the 0–5s – such enthusiasm from the little ones (and the grown-ups too!).
The sessions in the pubs were lively and welcoming as ever, and while the rain was a bit relentless and it was a shame the dancing had to be cancelled, it certainly didn’t dampen the festival spirit. Huge thanks to everyone involved in making it happen. Roll on 2026!
