21st Century Folk

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The Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe

Music: Folk

Mark Radcliffe explores the wide range of folk and acoustic music from around the world.

Mark Radcliffe explores the wide range of traditional and contemporary folk and acoustic music from around the UK and the world, with regular interviews and live sessions.

The Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe: 21st Century Folk: Katie: Parties with a Difference in Northumberland

Katie: Parties with a Difference in Northumberland

BBC Radio 2 - The Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe, 21st Century Folk, Katie: Parties with a Difference in Northumberland

Katie Toner and her magical parties inspire a song by Angeline Morrison and The Unthanks.

Katie Toner runs accessible children's parties and sleepovers. Angeline Morrison and The Unthanks tell Katie’s story through music.

Katie Toner runs parties and sleepovers that are accessible to all children.

Her story is part of Radio 2’s 21st Century Folk, where singers write songs about real people from the North East of England.

Katie is from Northumberland. She is autistic and has ADHD, and due to those differences she found it very hard to enjoy typical children’s parties. Now a young adult, she is determined to create experiences that all children can enjoy.

Songwriter Angeline Morrison meets Katie, before writing a brand new song inspired by her life and work. The music is performed by Northumbrian band The Unthanks.

Angeline Morrison is from Birmingham and now lives in Cornwall. In 2022 she won Cambridge Folk Festival’s award for upcoming talent: the Christian Raphael Prize. She also released ‘The Sorrow Songs: Folk Songs Of Black British Experience’, which was produced by Eliza Carthy for Topic Records.

The Unthanks are one of the UK’s most loved and respected folk groups and famously draw on their Northumbrian origins. Centred around the sibling harmonies of Rachel and Becky Unthank and the arrangements of Adrian McNally, their music is distinctive and beautiful. The Unthanks' 2022 album Sorrows Away hit the Official Albums Chart and followed their acclaimed work for Mackenzie Crook’s BBC One series Worzel Gummidge. 

21st Century Folk is inspired by the classic BBC Radio Ballads. It sees five real listeners have songs written about their lives.

Mark Radcliffe presents.

The Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe: 21st Century Folk

Amazing music. Played by an amazing line up.

Radio 2: Amazing music. Played by an amazing line-up. The home of great music, entertainment and documentaries

A cultural 'time capsule' of life in the North East of England for 2022 through folk songs

Real life stories of our listeners in the North East of England, using original folk music to create a lasting legacy of their experiences.

Real life stories of our listeners in the North East of England, using original folk music to create a lasting legacy of their experiences.
Five stories given to songwriters, who will write original songs based on the listeners' experiences. The songs will then be performed by a range of artists, including musicians with links to the region

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The Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe

21st Century Folk

Katie: Parties with a Difference in Northumberland

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