Veteran singer-songwriters bring favourites to club

FOLK duo Chris While and Julie Matthews usually play Nettlebed Folk Club twice a year, but 2025 will be a hat-trick.

The singer-songwriters, from Penistone, play the club next Tuesday. In December, they return with St Agnes Fountain.

In July, they played at the club’s 50th birthday celebrations and they also took part in BBC Radio 2’s series, 21st Century Folk.

They created a song for a man named Tom, who was found in the ladies’ waiting room at Reading railway station as a two-week-old baby, in 1965.

Julie says: “Tom was a foundling, he contacted Long Lost Family and then they discovered that his mum was an unmarried Irish Catholic woman who left him at Reading Station. She then went off to Australia and by the time they had traced her she’d passed away.”

Chris continues: “He’s a very happy man, he had a lovely adoption, having a very good life but he obviously had that little sadness in his heart.”

Julie adds: “It was a real honour for us to be able to kind of tell his story through song.” The two will be playing songs from their 13 studio albums, with support from special guest Megan Henwood.

“We call this our in-between year,” says Julie, “because we release a new studio album every two years. So, it’s dipping into the back catalogue and they’re like old friends, these songs.”

Chris While and Julie Matthews play the Village Club in Nettlebed on Tuesday, October 21st at 7.30pm (doors open at 7pm). Tickets cost £19 in advance, £20 on the door. For more information, visit www.nettlebedfolkclub.co.uk