Episodes

  • Folk on Foot Classic: Jon Boden in the Loxley Valley
    Jun 28 2026

    Enjoy this classic episode from October 2018.


    The former Bellowhead lead singer takes Matthew on a walk near his home on the outskirts of Sheffield. This landscape inspired his 2009 album “Songs from the Floodplain”, which creates a vision of a post apocalyptic future when industrial architecture is decaying and people are returning to a more rural way of life. As they walk down the valley, Jon sings “Going Down to the Wasteland”; by a whirlpool in the River Loxley, he performs "April Queen." Next we visit a disused brick factory - where empty kilns and rusting girders are being overwhelmed by trees and weeds - the perfect setting for “Dancing In The Factory”.

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    Find out more about Jon at https://www.jonboden.com

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    48 mins
  • Joshua Burnside in East Belfast
    Jun 18 2026

    Folk Album of the Year nominee Joshua Burnside takes us for a walk near his home in East Belfast, singing songs from his latest album “It’s Not Going To Be OK” along the way. He talks movingly about his friend Dean Jendoubi’s death from a drugs overdose - which inspired the album - and also about growing up in a divided city. We end up admiring the dramatic statues of characters from Narnia in C.S. Lewis Square and walking down the Bloomfield Road, as Joshua sings his song “Ghost of the Bloomfield Road” - which captures his reaction to becoming a Dad.


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    We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...


    Become a member and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot

    Or just buy us a coffee: ko-fi.com/folkonfoot

    Sign up for our newsletter at www.folkonfoot.com

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    Find out more about Joshua at https://joshuaburnside.bandcamp.com/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    58 mins
  • Official Folk Albums Chart Show—2nd June 2026
    Jun 2 2026

    This month’s show features music from Natalie Wildgoose, Anna McLuckie, Lady Maisery with Jimmy Aldrige and Sid Goldsmith, Lemoncello, The Longest Johns, Chris Brain, Ladylike and Jim Moray. Lucy Shields has a bumper edition of the album preview and gig news and Matthew Bannister will be announcing the next episode of Folk on Foot.


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    We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...

    Become a member and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot

    Or just buy us a coffee: ko-fi.com/folkonfoot

    Sign up for our newsletter at www.folkonfoot.com

    Follow us on Bluesky/Facebook/Instagram: @folkonfoot

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    Subscribe to the Folk Forecast to explore all the gigs and album news we ran through in the show: https://thefolkforecast.substack.com/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    52 mins
  • Folk on Foot Classic: Angeline Morrison in North Cornwall
    May 24 2026

    Enjoy this classic episode from June 2023.


    Angeline Morrison’s “The Sorrow Songs - Folk Songs of Black British Experience” was one of the most significant albums of recent times. On this walk near her home in North Cornwall, Angeline talks about her deep love for traditional music and her determination to chronicle in song the experiences of black Britons through history. By the grave of the master and slave who are buried together she sings “Slave No More” and on the beach where she first composed it, she performs “Unknown African Boy, (died 1830)”. There’s also time for a beautiful song in the Cornish language and her unaccompanied version of “Bushes and Briars”.

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    We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...

    Become a member and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot

    Or just buy us a coffee: ko-fi.com/folkonfoot

    Sign up for our newsletter at www.folkonfoot.com

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    Find out more about Angeline at https://www.angelinemorrisonmusic.com/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    1 hr
  • A Robin Hood Pilgrimage with Guy Hayward
    May 14 2026

    We’re in Sherwood Forest on the trail of Robin Hood in the company of Guy Hayward, founder of the British Pilgrimage Trust and former Cambridge choral scholar. As we head to the Major Oak and beyond, Guy shares many theories about the Robin Hood legends, sings ballads about his adventures and extols the joys of pilgrimage. He even dives into a river in search of Robin Hood’s cave.


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    We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...


    Become a member and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot

    Or just buy us a coffee: ko-fi.com/folkonfoot

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    Find out more about Guy at https://guyhayward.com/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    58 mins
  • Simon Nicol in conversation at Cecil Sharp House
    Apr 26 2026

    Fairport Convention founder member Simon Nicol joins Matthew Bannister on stage at the Indoor Festival of Folk at Cecil Sharp House to review a musical career lasting over 60 years. Simon talks about teaming up with Ashley Hutchings and Richard Thompson to start Fairport, tells how the band got its name from his family home and gives an emotional account of the motorway crash that killed drummer Martin Lamble and Richard Thompson’s girlfriend Jeannie Franklin. Then he recounts the making of the legendary album Liege and Lief and explains how the band still survives and thrives despite countless line up changes. It’s an intimate and revealing conversation with a key player in the creation of English folk rock.


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    We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...


    Become a member and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot

    Or just buy us a coffee: ko-fi.com/folkonfoot

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    Find out more about Simon and Fairport Convention at https://www.fairportconvention.com


    Cover photo by Alan Blundell

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    55 mins
  • The Young’Uns at Roseberry Topping
    Apr 16 2026

    Nearly eight years after they first appeared on Folk on Foot, that irrepressible trio The Young’Uns are back – with Sean Cooney, David Eagle and Michael Hughes performing songs new and old as we climb the Teesside landmark Roseberry Topping. The conversation ranges from learning to laughs – especially given David’s impeccable comic timing. We discuss the challenges of writing songs about living people, hear about the music inspired by the industrial transformation of the area and find out how David used an accordion to contact his Dad in the early hours of the morning. Join us for an uplifting day out.


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    We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...


    Become a member and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot

    Or just buy us a coffee: ko-fi.com/folkonfoot

    Sign up for our newsletter at www.folkonfoot.com

    Follow us on Facebook/Instagram/Bluesky: @folkonfoot


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    Find out more about The Young'uns at https://www.theyounguns.co.uk/

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    56 mins
  • Folk Album of the Year Award Gala: Highlights
    Apr 12 2026

    Re-live the musical highlights from the spectacular Folk Album of the Year Award Gala at Rochdale Town Hall, with performances from Barry Kerr, Cynefin, Edith WeUtonga, Grace Stewart-Skinner, The Gigspanner Big Band, Joshua Burnside, Peggy Seeger, Poor Creature and Spafford Campbell.

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    We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...

    Become a member and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot

    Or just buy us a coffee: ko-fi.com/folkonfoot

    Sign up for our newsletter at www.folkonfoot.com

    Follow us on Bluesky/Facebook/Instagram: @folkonfoot

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    58 mins