Bristol Shanty Festival

Bristol Shanty Festival 2024 will run 21 September.

The City of Bristol has an incredible maritime history, shown off along 2 nautical miles of harbourside that just keeps getting better and better. So much atmosphere and so many places to visit. Amazing things to see, brilliant pubs and world class places to eat.

And given that we have more salty singing talent than any other city in the UK as well as the very best sea shanty crews, groups and choirs from counties within a day’s sail – well, it’s crying out for a maritime music celebration. So once again, local shantymen, High and Dry bring you the free Bristol Shanty Festival.

50 sets of nautical numbers by a variety of talented performers all for free.

There will however be collections for charity at all venues and we hope you will show your appreciation by giving generously.

Bristol Shanty Festival – 22nd & 23rd September 2023

On 17th September 2022, Underfall Yard will serve as one of the hosts for the second annual Bristol Shanty Festival. Join us, free of charge, at the Visitor Centre to welcome some of the most talented local sea shanty groups around! Performances will be from 12pm until 6pm, with our café serving food and drinks. Find out more about our guest performers in their own words…

Bristol’s Storm Force 10 shanty crew, keeping the history of ships and sailing alive, singing songs from all around the world with special fondness for local, Bristol, tunes and tales. Some songs are old, and familiar and some are brand new written by the crew.

Teignmouth’s Back Beach Boyz shanty crew were formed 1st February 2013, named after our famous “Back Beach”. We have practise nights on Thursdays at The Old Workshop, when anyone can pop in for a drink and listen to a shanty or few. We believe in having fun whilst we are singing and this helps us raise money for charities, by performing at charity events at beer festivals and pub nights. Also, our 1st album “Good Libations” raised over £1000 for Macmillan Cancer Support. Two local charities run by members in our crew also benefitted from our fund raising, Ride On – Cycling For All and Support for Children’s Oncology. We had a fantastic time at the previous Bristol Shanty Festival and are delighted to have been invited back this year, and wish everyone a “Shantastic” time.

The Barnacle Buoys have known each other for many years but we did not realise that we all had something in common; the appreciation of shanty music. After making the discovery the Buoys got together in February 2013 and shared a pint or two in the Old Inn, Clevedon and experimented with a few shanties. The rest, as they say, is history. The Buoys have their own unique style, pleasing our audiences and raising money for charity, primarily Children’s Hospice Southwest and the RNLI. We also regularly support our wonderful pier in Clevedon and have organised shanty events on board the cherished MV Balmoral.

The shanty was a work song, designed to impart rhythm and to motivate sailors for the strenuous physical exertion required to sail the wind-driven packet and clipper ships of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. By contrast, the Frampton Shantymen have no tradition of seafaring and we strenuously avoid physical exertion. Also, only a couple of us can still remember the late nineteenth century. Nevertheless, we continue to enjoy sharing our shanties and other vaguely sea-related songs with anyone willing to listen (or, preferably, to join in).

The Steepholmers are a sea shanty group that formed in Weston-Super-Mare in early summer 2018, with a little help from a certain popular video game with a nautical theme (seriously!). We meet every Wednesday for rehearsal and perform a range of popular sea shanties and sea songs; always remaining keen on learning new ones to enhance our repertoire. Some of us like dressing up a bit when the occasion requires – think tricorn hats and the ‘Poldark’ look, you won’t be too far off. We perform in public for community groups, in pubs, in bars, and at Sea Shanty Festivals around the UK. We play every 3rd Wednesday with invited friends our regular monthly ‘Shanty Night’ in Fork ‘n’ Ale, Weston-Super-Mare.

Established over 30 years ago The Harry Browns are renowned for their commitment to promoting the maritime history of Bristol as well their harmonies, humour and audience engagement. Seven performers sing with great joie de vivre un-accompanied or with guitar and fiddle.

Underfall Yard is just one of many venues hosting the festival this year. We’ll see you there!