We round off our summer season with a visit from LIZZY HARDINGHAM, an artist who is paving her way as a powerhouse performer with beautifully delivered songs.
 
 
Folk-infused singer-songwriter Lizzy sings songs that drive straight to the heart, giving audiences a chance for genuine connection and empathy. Her wonderful voice grabs the listener from the very first note and keeps them holding on until the last. Think Christine Collister, Joni Mitchell, Sandy Denny and KT Tunstall all wrapped into one.

In 2022 she celebrated a brand new, full band, Help Musicians UK supported record, How Did We Get Here? A 16 date tour with the likes of Katriona Gilmore, Jonny Wickham and Ellie McCann presented a jubilant, rich and full sound, but Lizzy's powerful and emotive voice stole the shows as usual. In short, "Lizzy has a dazzling combination of voice and songwriting talent that rarely appears.”

Lizzy will be joined on-stage at Downend by Katriona Gilmore on fiddle, Jonny Wickham on double bass and Lukas Drinkwater on electric guitar.

Opening the evening will be DAN SEALEY, who started his career with folk rock band ‘Ocean Colour Scene’ and toured the world, played headline slots at major festivals for over a decade and co-founded the band Merrymouth with Simon Fowler. Merrymouth featured award-winning musicians, John McCusker, Andy Cutting and even a guest appearance from Chas Hodges (Chas and Dave).
 
 
Dan now takes his own show on the road, featuring music from all the bands he’s played in, along with the often-hilarious stories he’s amassed along the way – plus material from his forthcoming album.
 
Tickets for the concert, which takes place at CHRIST CHURCH DOWNEND on Friday 18 July 2025, are available online HERE and from MELANIE’S KITCHEN (cash only). They are priced at £14 each in advance or £16 on the door. Doors open at 7.00pm and the music starts around 7.45pm. This event is also included in our Spring Season Ticket.
 
There will be a bar, stocking cider, soft drinks, wine, hot drinks and real ale from Bristol’s HOP UNION BREWERY. Audience members are encouraged to bring their own glass/mug/tankard, as well as reusable bottles for water, as part of the drive to be more environmentally aware; there is a 50p discount for those that do. There will also be sweet treats available at the bar courtesy of Radstock-based THE GREAT CAKE COMPANY, as well as a prize draw, which helps to fund the support artists for each concert.
 
For further information, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or find us on FACEBOOKINSTAGRAMBLUESKYYOUTUBE or TIKTOK.

Tonight, Bristol is sweltering under a climate-change sky. It's sticky and oven-hot. People slump in the Christ Church chairs, enjoying the tiniest bit of respite, hoping for comfort. It's fortunate, then, that CARA DILLON seems to have her own, in-built, air-conditioning system. She is a gentle breeze, the soft breath from the North (Northern Ireland in her case). 

This feels like a special night for Downend Folk & Roots. It's absolutely packed, for a start. But it's a validation too; there have been plenty of big folk musicians here over the years but few of them are bigger, or better, than Dillon.

The number of Folk Awards that she's been nominated for, and won, is extraordinary but, as soon as she sings, entirely understandable. Her voice is simply glorious.

As I Roved Out is clean and clear as a diamond ring, it glitters like cut glass, it is cool like a crystal stream. Immediately the heat of the day is washed away. Her Irish lilt is so full of home that it's incredibly hard not to picture rolling hills, low mountains and dramatic coastlines. Dillon is, as ever, accompanied by Sam Lakeman who adds wonderfully subtle guitar. He never overshadows, constantly stepping back to allow her to shine.

Their set is studded with traditional songs. A brace of Swallows - She's Like the Swallow and The Tern and the Swallow - are effortless. Dillon's voice glides between clear-blue-sky-high and deeper, edged with gorse, but it flits between the two, as easy as flying. Bright Morning Star is more upbeat, but just as beautiful. Dillon and Lakeman in perfect harmony.

There's harmony from the audience too. A reverential murmur rolling from the pews during The Gem of the Roe which becomes a Sunday-evening, heartfelt rapture on Tommy Sand's There Were Roses.

Cara Dillon’s most recent project is Coming Home, a book of poetry accompanied by an album. It's full of family, of memory and love. The title track is half spoken, half sung and scatters words to the winds, allowing them to float across the audience, landing like confetti kisses. Lakeman plays gentle piano while Dillon’s words captivate. She does the same on Giving, a poem about her mum, and no heart goes untouched. 

There is such a languid grace about much of this evening that it is all the more thrilling when they lift the tempo a fraction. Éirigh Suas a Stóirín is deliciously Irish, carried on Lakeman’s feverish strumming and Dillon’s whistle while Raggle Taggle Gypsy descends into charming chaos. There is tenderness and enormous fun amongst all of the loveliness.

By the time they encore with The Parting Glass the sun has set and the sizzle has left the pavements. Cara Dillon and Sam Lakeman steer us, gently, into the night, refreshed and ready to welcome the longest day.

When the evening was at its warmest, however, local(ish) duo HERON ISLAND had to try to rouse the audience from their sun-stunned torpor. Chaz Thorogood and Giles Nuttall came armed with acoustic guitars and a clutch of quality indie-folk songs and the stickiness of the day was quickly forgotten. Suitably sunshine-y and flecked with harmonies, they are wonderfully radio-friendly in the best possible way. Los Angeles has an excellent line in wry humour and Long Run is blessed with a damn good tune. 

The weather might have been doing its level best to knock the stuffing out of Downend but Cara Dillon was effortlessly cool. A blessed relief.

Words: Gavin McNamara
Photos: Barry Savell
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 To have an artist of CARA DILLON's stature perform in this corner of South Gloucestershire goes to show how well-thought of our monthly concerts become in the last eleven years, and it’s no surprise that this concert is already down to balcony seats, with the main allocation downstairs having sold out in record time. 

 
Cara is an extraordinary, multiple award-winning Irish folk singer, and she'll be joined on-stage by acclaimed musician and producer Sam Lakeman. Throughout an enviable career which has seen them explore opportunities to tread many different paths – from releasing folk crossover albums on indie label Rough Trade; recording on Disney soundtracks to collaborations with orchestras and even leading dance DJs – Cara has continuously chosen to firmly plant herself within the landscape of her Irish cultural heritage and that’s something to celebrate. 
 
Their enduring partnership has ensured they have remained at the very pinnacle of the folk genre for well over two decades and this performance will feature a selection of acoustic songs from previous releases and may also include material from her highly anticipated 2024 release, Coming Home, her first in over six years. Within it Cara effortlessly blurs the lines between spoken word and song to stunning effect, exploring profoundly personal memories, her native Co. Derry and the people, places and customs she holds closest to her heart; revealing a newly found freedom to express herself within the tiniest of details and life’s larger mysteries. Join Cara and Sam for an intimate evening full of exceptional music and the genuine warmth they bring to the stage.
 
Supporting Cara & Sam will be HERON ISLAND, a duo that sparked into existence on a narrow boat trip on the River Avon in the summer of 2023 to write, record and gig songs which drew on their shared experiences of childhood in the south Devon countryside and their love for honest music built around the guitar.
 
 
Tickets for the concert, which takes place at CHRIST CHURCH DOWNEND on Friday 20 June 2025, are available online HERE and from MELANIE'S KITCHEN (cash only). As you can see, we've already sold out of the downstairs allocation, so there are only balcony seats available, but there's a great view and many people think they're the best seats in the house! This one's a little more expensive at £20 in advance or £22 on the door, but it will be worth every penny and then some. Doors open at 7.00pm and the music starts around 7.45pm. This event is also included in the Summer Season Ticket.
 
There will be a bar, stocking cider, soft drinks, wine, hot drinks and real ale from locally-based HOP UNION BREWERY. Audience members are encouraged to bring their own glass/mug/tankard, as well as reusable bottles for water, as part of the drive to be more environmentally aware; there is a 50p discount for those that do. There will also be sweet treats available at the bar courtesy of Radstock-based The Great Cake Company, as well as a prize draw, which helps to fund the support artists for each concert.
 
For further information, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or find us on FACEBOOKINSTAGRAMBLUESKY or YOUTUBE.

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