I went to a nearby one-day ukulele festival.
In fact there were two on the same day: one near St Ives
(Cambridgeshire), and one in Hagbourne (southern fringes of Didcot).
But the latter would feature a set from Fragile Lucy in the evening,
and I'd enjoyed seeing her at Shrewkfest.
I couldn't find out much in advance because the Didcot ukelele club
seems to exist entirely on Facebook. As it turned out, the afternoon
was an alternation of massed playing sessions, "open mic" sessions
(short concerts usually of 2-3 songs), and teaching bits of a slightly
fiddly song (the Cramps' version of "Goo Goo Muck") with the aim of
playing that together at the end. (Also a break for tea and cake,
included in the ticket price.)
The Didcot group.
Get thee behind me, temptation.
The Wallingford group, the local "rivals", who have their big day six
months away from this one.
A jacket potato and chilli supper was also included,
and then it was on to the concerts: Fragile Lucy was as full of energy
as every time I've seen her, and did a couple of impromptu duets with
Matt Quilliam towards the end of her set.
Matt's set was less the stuff I've liked him for (George Formby and
allied trades) and more 1960s and 1970s; I enjoyed his technical skill
but found myself less caught up by the actual music.
A good day, and I'll try to make it back. (Also to the Wallingford
event.)