Described as “The future of Folk”, Banter take English traditional music to the next level with their iconic interpretations of classic songs and dance tunes. Equally in demand as a dance band, Banter will treat us to a ceilidh at Allendale Village Hall on the evening of Thursday 18th June. Doors open at 7:00pm, with dancing from 7:30pm to 9:30pm. Tickets are £12 and available online or via Allendale Co-op. Those aged 14 and under are free but must be accompanied by an adult

We’re excited that DILUTEY JUICE will be playing on the Friday night of our festival (on Friday 25th September). North-East Drum and Brass pioneers DILUTEY JUICE first came together in the summer of 2020 as a response to the covid pandemic, to satisfy their thirst to make music together, and a need to send positive vibrations out into the community. DILUTEY JUICE take inspiration from a plethora of influences, performing fast and energetic Afro-Beat combined with euphoric hou

This year's festival is sold out and we are looking forward to welcoming those of you that were fortunate enough to buy tickets for the 2026 Allen Valleys Folk Festival in September. Let’s hope the weather is kind to us. We understand some of you are disappointed about missing out on tickets and we are so sorry we cannot do more. Ours is a small village based festival, organised and run by volunteers. We book about a dozen bands and artists for the festival weekend. We use ou

We are incredibly excited to announce that Johnny & Lillie Flynn will be performing on the Sunday afternoon of our festival weekend. This is a fabulous opportunity to experience a unique performance of music from brother and sister, Johnny & Lillie Flynn. Singing together in a special, small space with harmonies shaped by a shared childhood filled with the same family records spinning in the background. As they put it themselves: “We’ve always sung together. And we want to ce

Another fantastic booking for the Allen Valleys Folk Festival is confirmed. Tamsin Elliott and Tarek Elazhary are taking to our stage on the Saturday afternoon our festival. Tamsin’s critically-acclaimed collaboration with Egyptian oud player Tarek Elazhary explores the parallels and celebrates the idiosyncrasies of Egyptian Maqam music and English folk traditions. Their friendship and resulting duo album So Far We Have Come is a testament to the unifying power of music, and

“This is not a dyed-green-Guinness-and-a-bit-o’-craic Ireland, this is the coast of Connemara Ireland, this is watching the fog roll in around The Skellig Islands Ireland… Devastatingly beautiful”   Bristol 24/7 This St. Patrick’s Day, we are thrilled to announce that The Haar will be playing on the Sunday afternoon of the Allen Valleys Folk Festival. The Haar brings the fresh talent of traditional Irish singer Molly Donnery combined with three of the most exciting instrument

We’re excited that Rain of Animals will be playing on the Friday night of our festival (on Friday 25th September). Rain Of Animals is the euphonious collaboration between Pepita Emmerichs (Oh Pep!) and Theodore Barnard (Wire & Wool) and their love of all things mandolin, fiddle, guitar, harmony vocals, bluegrass, oldtime, trad, improvisation, tunes and songs. Their sound is both new and old, unique in its instrumental wizardry and musical integrity all at once. Since the rele

We’re excited that Wear’d Aliens will be playing at our family ceilidh again this year on the Saturday afternoon of our festival (on Saturday 26th September). Wear’d Aliens was established in 2019, inspired by the rediscovery of the Collingwood Collection, a family tune book tracing over 100 years of musical heritage in Weardale. Together with an ever-expanding group of young musicians, they breathe new life into distinctly local music that had lain hidden in a dusty corner o

“Seriously stylish playing that’s putting the sparkle back into the tradition”  Verity Sharp, Late Junction We are really excited to be announcing that Methera will be performing on the Sunday afternoon of our 2026 festival. Methera is a unique ensemble: a string quartet with roots firmly planted in English traditional music. Their national tours, BBC Radio 3 broadcasts and collaborations have helped them establish a reputation as a scintillating live act, blazing a trail thr

We are thrilled to announce that RE:VULVA will be playing on the Saturday night of our festival weekend. RE:VULVA are a  dynamic four piece fueling the uk folk revolution. This quartet comes fully loaded with talent, taking aim at hyper-masculine culture in music. The band features Janice Burns on mandolin, Holly Clarke on vocals and guitar, Cathy Geldard on fiddle and Amy Thatcher on synth and drum pad. These dazzling, talented women present virtuosity, strength, and power i

We are excited to be announcing that Sura Susso will be performing on the Saturday afternoon of our 2026 festival. Sura Susso was born in The Gambia, into a family of griots. Griots, referred to in Mandinka as Jali, are cultural figures in society across West Africa who carry the cultural knowledge and identity of the people. His father, Mamudou Susso, is a renowned kora player in The Gambia, and his late mother, Fatou Bintu Cissokho, originally from the Casamance region of S

'Sonically exquisite’ The Guardian We are thrilled to announce that Chris and Catriona will be playing on the Saturday afternoon of the Allen Valleys Folk Festival. This award winning duo have taken the most traditional of Scottish instruments and catapulted them into the contemporary world of music making. A 30 year long telepathy sees Chris and Catriona weave their way seamlessly between glorious soundscapes and music of breathtaking simplicity. The intense and rugged coast

We are beyond excited to be announcing that Lady Maisery will be performing on the Saturday afternoon of our 2026 festival. The combined vocal and multi-instrumental talents of Rowan Rheingans, Hazel Askew and Hannah James make up the uniquely captivating band Lady Maisery who have for well over a decade enraptured audiences throughout the UK and Europe.Individually three multi award-winning artists, Lady Maisery form a unified voice, carrying stories of sisterhood, human str

We are thrilled to announce that the legendary Joshua Burnside will be headlining the Allen Valleys Folk Festival stage on the Friday night of our festival. Joshua Burnside is an experimental folk songwriter, singer and producer. He takes influence from alternative electronica and Irish folk, chopping and blending them with a mixture of found sounds, world music and unorthodox production methods. Following an award-winning debut album and an acclaimed follow-up released durin

We are beyond excited to be announcing Valtos as our headline act for the Saturday night of our 2026 festival. Many of you will already know and love their music, and so can understand how thrilled we are to be welcoming them to Allendale. Valtos are Skye natives Daniel Docherty and Martyn MacDonald, and they have taken the Trad and Electronic music worlds by storm. Since their debut shows in December 2021, they have entertained audiences at festivals and sold-out venues nati

We have organised a local sale of festival weekend passes for the morning of Saturday 21st March at St. Cuthbert’s Church Hall in Allendale between 10:00am and 12:00noon. We will be selling adult festival weekend passes and youth festival weekend passes, for those aged between 12 years and 24 years. There will also be festival weekend passes on sale from 7:00pm on the evening of Sunday 22nd March online via Gigantic Tickets. The payment by instalments scheme will be available

A belated ‘Happy New Year’ to you and yours and we hope you have a brilliant 2026. Thanks to everyone who came to Hedgehog’s Skin’s New Year’s Eve Party at Allendale Village Hall and thanks to Joey and David and all the members of Hedgehog’s Skin, Hadrian Clog, Ollie, our piper and all the village hall volunteers for making the evening such a success. THANK YOU! Photo of the Tar Bar’ls celebrations in Allendale on New Year’s Eve by James Little Photography.

Wishing a Happy Christmas to you and your family. Enjoy the festive cheer! Here’s to 2026 and a fantastic year ahead, filled with great music and unforgettable performances. Thanks and all the best, Craig, Kate, Caitlin,  Phillip, Nick, Oran, Tim, Sue, Peter, Glynn, Hollie, Bryony and Kerry The Allen Valleys Folk Festival

Thanks to everyone who joined us for mulled wine, mince pies and a lovely evening of music and song. It was lovely to see so many familiar faces in the audience. And a special thanks to Janice and Jon and the Dale Singers. You were brilliant!

Join us for mulled wine, mince pies and a lovely evening of music and song. The Allen Valleys Folk Festival’s Christmas Concert with Janice Burns and Jon Doran and the Dale Singers takes place at Allendale Village Hall on the evening of Saturday 6th December. Tickets are now available locally at the Allendale Co-op and online . We hope to see you next Saturday!