BBC Lifetime Achievement Award winning band to play 'some surprises' at Harrogate Theatre tonight

Performing tonight, Tuesday, at Harrogate Theatre, Fairport Convention will present a mix of long-established Fairport favourites since their formation in 1967 and some surprises from albums old and new.

Despite their ground-breaking 1969 album Liege & Lief being voted the “most influential folk album of all time” and winning a BBC Lifetime Achievement Award, there is a lot more to Fairport Convention than that.

Fans tonight at Harrogate Theatre will see founding member Simon Nicol on guitar and vocals, Dave Pegg on bass guitar, Ric Sanders on violin, Chris Leslie on fiddle, mandolin and vocals, and former member Dave Mattacks on drums.

The latter rejoins the band after the sad passing of Gerry Conway and is excited to be back with this magnificent group again.

"The band has always trod the boards regularly, partly because we have never really had that huge album success of our peers," Dave Mattacks told the Harrogate Advertiser.

"Our bank balance is a bit different to other bands from the era we started from.

“Fairport Convention exists nicely outside of the music business world partly because of its wonderful live following and partly because of the attitude of the band’s members.”

As to the question of a new Fairport Convention album, their last was released in 2020, Dave would be delighted to be involved, if it does happen, and say the band does have “sufficient material.”

This most versatile of drummers also revealed that a new live CD recorded on the band’s 2025 tour will be on sale on the tour.

For tonight’s show, which starts at 7.30pm, Fairport Convention will be joined by the award-winning Jenn Butterworth, an incredible guitarist and singer based in Scotland, as special guest on the tour.

For tickets, visit: https://www.harrogatetheatre.co.uk/events/fairport-convention/