FESTIVAL FORUM
Debate, discussion and argument - gear, bands and gigs - it's your call
PROGRAMME 2006
What's on this year?
All the bands, venues and times
TICKETS
Which stage requires tickets?
Click here for all the info including eTickets
ARTISTES
Many of the Fest bands and musicians
who have appeared over the years.
Bio's, pic's and loads of info.
PREVIOUS FESTIVALS
Vast archive of Photo's and Gig Reviews of Previous Festivals
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ISLE OF MAN BLUES CLUB
The Manx Blues Club; where the Festival sprang from
venue, dates, history etc..
NEWSLETTER: SUBSCRIBE NOW - FREE
Be in the know...first
CONTACT US
Keep
us
in the know and tell us about broken links, bands, gigs & any other news
TRAVEL
How to get to the Isle of Man
SPONSORS
Without our sonsors
there would be no
Fest - Who are these
generous people?
Lady
Isabella - the Great Laxey Wheel keeps on turning...
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Set high on the hillside towards the hamlet of Agneash and overlooking Laxey
Village is the Great Laxey Wheel and is as much associated with the Isle of Man
as are the cats without tails. Built in 1854 the Laxey water wheel, known as
the Lady Isabella after the wife of the Lieutenant Governor of the island at
the time, was designed by the Manx engineer Robert Casement and engineered to
pump up to 250 gallons of water per minute at a depth of almost 1,500 feet from
the workings of the the lead and zinc mines operated by the Great Laxey Mining
Company. In 1965 the Manx government bought the water wheel and the restoration
work which followed, preserved it for future generations. Since 1989 it has
been under the control of Manx National Heritage and is open to the public.
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Click logo for Info and news about manx bands and musos
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Blues in Britain Magazine
Check it out
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Click to check timetables etc
and to book on-line
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Click to check timetables etc
and to book on-line
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Click to check timetables etc
and to book on-line
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Bushy's Brewery supporting
the Fest since the last century.
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Millichaps Furniture Store - Ramsey
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Domicilium: Internet Providers to the Festival
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PDMS: On-Line Service Providers to the Festival
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Triskel Promotions - Live Music Promotion & Support
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Bushy's Big Wheel Blues Festival 2005 is
a fund raising event for the British Red
Cross. Please give generously.
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JOHN HAMMOND - FESTIVAL 2006!
The "legendary" John Hammond
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John Hammond
the virtuoso bluesman, singer and guitar player was on the Island for four days
and appeared on the Main Stage in the
Pavilion Ballroom,
Laxey Glen Gardens, on
Friday 19th May 2006
as well as making unscheduled appearances with one of the Island's top Blues
Bands,
Wicked Grin,
to a surprised and hugely delighted audience.
For more info on Maestro Hammond click
here.
RB Morris and
Hector Qirko
at the "Thinq Tank" Knoxville, Tennessee
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John Barker, this year's first time Fest Organiser, returned the Festival to
it's roots with a major reduction in venues and bands, with the weekend-long
Festival based around pure Blues gigs in the
Pavilion Ballroom,
Laxey Glen Gardens, two gigs (Friday night and Saturday night) were tickets
only and both sold out in advance. The Saturday afternoon session was
free.
There were
"fringe"
gigs in the Laxey pubs. This part of the event, which clearly added to the
atmosphere of the weekend, was run entirely independently of the Official
Festival Organisation for the first time. See the various news items at the top
of the page for more details or
here.
Connie Lush
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The details were as follows:
FRIDAY EVENING: 19th May 2006
Festival Friday on the Main Stage in the
Pavilion Ballroom,
Laxey Glen Gardens, was another brilliant winner this year with slide virtuoso
Kevin Brown,
the wonderful
Kevin Brown
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RB Morris
and
Hector Qirko
from Tennessee
and the legendary
John Hammond.
To see a report on the gig click
here.
SATURDAY AFTERNOON 20th May 2006 (free)
The Saturday Afternoon free stage in the
Pavilion Ballroom
, Laxey Glen Gardens, had
Anna Goldsmith,
Walter Ego,
Stone Creation
and
Wicked Grin.
strutting their excellent stuff. John Hammond also made an unexpected and much
lauded appearance with
Wicked Grin,
making the band's day - big time.
To see images and a report of the afternoon click
here.
To view the Programme click
here.
Steve Clayton
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SATURDAY EVENING 20th May 2006:
The Main Stage in the
Pavilion Ballroom
, Laxey Glen Gardens, featured
2005's
big festival favourites
Backdoor Slam
followed by
Steve "Big Man" Clayton
and, top of the bill, award winning and fabulous live performer,
Connie Lush and Blues Shouter.
There is a gig report of the Saturday Evening Session, with photographs,
here.
To take a look at the
2006 Programme
please click the Programme link to the upper left (and throughout the site too)
or
here.
IS THE FESTIVAL A COMMERCIAL EVENT?
No. It is a fund raising, non-profit making event organised and run entirely by
unpaid volunteers
who bring their experience of working in the commercial, professional and
business arenas to the festival. They all share the following aims:
1. To provide a week-end long festival of live music in Laxey for as many
people as possible and wherever possible FREE
2. To provide the best possible quality of music
3. To involve as many local people and businesses in the festival as possible -
this is very much a "community" event
4. To give the largest possible number of local musicians an annual opportunity
to play on a professional stage with other professional musicians and
technicians with professional equipment
5. To raise funds for our selected charity(s) and good causes.
6. To provide everyone involved with a weekend of fun and enjoyment
7. To provide our sponsors with a weekend of informal entertainment for staff,
clients and friends as well as a presence at what has become a successful
annual event.
TRAVEL TO THE ISLE OF MAN
The sea crossing to the Isle of Man
can be one of the cool things about the place. Choose either the Sea Cat from
Liverpool (takes about 21/2 hours) or one of the boats from Ireland; Belfast or
Dublin, Troon in Scotland, or from Heysham, North of Liverpool (4 hours approx)
and these can be enjoyable in their own right. There are bars and restaurants,
TV, films and quiet areas. If you book well in advance it will be a little
cheaper than if you leave it to the last minute. If you book air tickets well
in advance big savings can be made.
So,
click
here
for more information and links for booking on line.
Flights take about an hour
from just about anywhere for some reason and are a hell of a lot cheaper if you
book well in advance.
Click
here
for more information and links for booking on line.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT TO LAXEY
In previous years a free bus service back to Ramsey and Douglas at 12.30am both
nights of the Festival was available. With the downsizing of the 2006 Festival
there will ONLY be a late-night coach back to Douglas for which there will be a
charge of £2.00 and
only gig
ticket buyers
will qualify for a bus ticket.
Click
here
for more.
Regrettably Public Transport to and from Laxey is very limited - please
complain to the Isle of Man Transport Authority - perhaps, with enough public
pressure, they will be able to do something about it
PREVIOUS FESTIVALS
To see a stack of info about previous Bushy's Big Wheel Blues Festivals please
click
here
or on links throughout the website.
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