Glam Goes Rustic - Back on the Road in March

Happy New Year!

I've decided to make no resolutions this year.  My only plan is to enjoy life and make the most of any opportunities that come my way.  :-)  

I'm really looking forward to returning to the Midlands in March.  I'll also be debuting Celebrating the Divas of Jazz in Gloucestershire too.  Here are the dates and locations.  I'll be performing with the wonderful Kate Williams on piano.  Do come and see us if you're nearby.

Fri 15 Mar - Upper Broughton Village Hall,  Notts  LE14 3BA      
Sat 16 Mar - Frampton Village Hall,  Lincs  PE20 1AR
Thu 21 Mar - Waltham on the Wolds Village Hall, Leics LE14 4AG
Fri 22 Mar - St Mary’s Hall, Radclffe on Trent, Notts NG12 2FD
Sat 23 Mar - Allington Village Hall,  Lincs NG32 2DZ
Thu 28 Mar - Evergreen Hall, Broadwell, Gloucs GL16 7DL
Fri 29 Mar - Westbury on Severn Parish Hall, Gloucs  GL14 1PF
Sat 30 Mar - Box Village Hall, Stroud, Gloucs  GL6 9HR                     

 

Glam Goes Rustic In The Midlands: Tealby & Mareham Le Fen

All of the villages we've visited have been lovely but Tealby was so adorable!  It was like something you'd see on a painting or chocolate box.  So pretty.  As you can see, the village hall was as pretty as the rest of the village.  The audience were great too - apart from two members who tried to storm the stage at the end of the first set.  Two big, fat, hairy spiders!!!  Eeek!  Someone in the first row kindly ushered them into the ladies loo so that I was able to continue singing.  Although that meant I had to cross my legs for the rest of the eveninbg.  :-)

After lunch at one of the oldest pubs in the country, we headed for Mareham Le Fen.  We were a little worried when we heard that our show clashed with the golf club's awards dinner - obviously a big problem in a small village - but our fears were unfounded as there was yet another full house.  We had a wonderful evening and it was made even more special when my pianist David discovered that he and the promoter Roz were "birthday twins" by one week and were born in exactly the same area in Essex.  All that way to find someone who grew up around the corner from you!

So another rural tour over and another wonderful store of memories of visiting some of the most beautiful parts of the country.  Can't wait for next March - when I'll be doing it all again! :-)

Tealby Village Hall

A vintage ice cream van parked beside the hall

Not manyshops in Tealby but this butcher's is apparently famous for selling the best sausages in Lincs!

The Kings Head - a thatched pub built in 1367

David with Roz -his birthday twin!

Glam Goes Rustic in the Midlands: North Muskham & East Markham

We visited two more beautiful vilages on the 12th and 13th October.    The B&B located right beside the River Trent was adorable - with gorgeous views.  The back garden led straight to the river and a lovely riverside walk.  And even better, it was next door the pub!  For lunch all I had to do was walk out of the back garden, walk along the riverside for 30 secs and then into the back garden of the pub.  Couldn't have been more convenient!

We had two great evenings. A very knowledgeable audience in North Muskham kept me on my toes and there was lots of lively banter.  In East Markham the next evening, things took a turn for the dramatic when an ambulance had to be called out as an elderly gentleman had cut his leg on his way into the village hall.  Thankfully it was only a minor injujry but they called the ambulance to be on the safe side.  After the delay the show went ahead as planned and it was another full house.  It's such a joy to perrform for people who love what I do and are so warm and appreciative.  I love my job!  :-)

The view of the river from my bedroom at the B&B

A walk along the riverside (after lunch at the pub!)

East Markham Village Hall

Glam Goes Rustic in the Midlands: Morcott & Belton

Wow!  Had such a great time last weekend.  Looking forward to more rural Midlands enjoyment this weekend in North Muskham and East Markham.  And as you'll see from the photos below, we were lucky with some amazing weather too.

Friday we arrived in Morcott.  It was a lovely little village.  So little in fact that we got lost!  We drove past what was the high street and were convinced it was just a side street until we got to the next village where we realised that the high street WAS the village.  Ha ha!  I obviously need to get out of London more!

Belton was a little bigger but still tiny with a population of around 500 and just one pub/hotel/restaurant for the whole village.  But I have to say we had an absoutely wonderful meal there.  It may be the only choice but I'm sure people come from miles around to sample the excellent food.   We discovered another lovely eatery in nearby Uppingham too,  A tea room with adjoining bakery which sold the most delicious home-made cakes.  Their chocolate and ginger flapjack was delicious!

Morcott Village Hall.  Gorgeous!

No it's not a public telephone box, it's a public defibrilator!

Close up of defibrilator where you'd normally expect a telephone

Church in Belton - and next to it, one of the few remaining free-standing maypoles in the country.

Glamming It Up in the Rural Midlands!

Autumn is here! I so love this time of year and am looking forward to getting out my winter wardrobe of coats, scarves, hats and boots!

I'm also looking forward to hitting the rural road again for six shows in the rural Midlands starting tonight.

LEICS, LINCS & NOTTS - Rural Tour

05 Oct - Morcott Village Hall, Leics  LE15 9DX       
06 Oct - Belton Village Hall, Leics LE12 9TU
12 Oct - North Muskham Rural Comm Centre, Notts  NG23 6HD
13 Oct - East Markham Village Hall, Notts  NG22 0QJ
19 Oct - Tennyson d’Eyncourt  Memorial Hall, Tealby, Lincs LN8 3XS
20 Oct - Mareham-Le-Fen Village Hall, Lincs  PE22 7RW

Hope to see some of you there.  I will try to get some photos as I've definitely been slacking with updating my blog lately.  Looking forward to donning the heels, fascinator and elbow length gloves once again.  

Reading Summer Proms and Manchester Jazz Festival

What a shame the sun decided to stay away this summer. I'm really missing spending the summer in Greece but with things as they are there at the moment it's unlikely I'll go this year. 

But I did spend some time in a very beautiful place recently. Our gig for the Reading Summer Proms took place in the amazing Reading Minster. Absolutely stunning!

And next week is my debut for the Manchester Jazz Festival. I'll be performing with Jonny Phillips on guitar and it will be a reprise of our European Journey show that we premiered at the 2011 London Jazz Festival. It's already sold out but hopefully we'll be doing more later in the year so I'll keep you posted...

Juliet Kelly's Vocal Zone - Something Old, Something New

Yes, it's been a very long time since I updated this blog!  *slaps wrist* 

But I haven't been totally slacking off.  I've just finished a new version of Vocal Zone and it will be airing on UK Jazz Radio soon!

Here's the tracklist:

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue

Diana Krall - How Deep Is the Ocean from Love Scenes
George Shearing Quintet Ft Nancy Wilson - On Green Dolphin Street from The Swingin's Mutual!
Gregory Porter - On My Way to Harlem from Be Good
Tessa Souter - Prelude to the Sun from Beyond The Blue
Tuck & Patti - Let's Stay Together from Paradise Found
Christine Tobin - (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman from Tapestry Unravelled
Zoe Gilby - Down In The Hole from Looking Glass
Vanessa Rubin - Dearly Beloved from Soul Eyes
Josh Kyle - The Thrill Is Gone from Possibilities
Richard Bona - One Minute from Scenes From My Life

Hope you enjoy/enjoyed it!