BBC Radio 2 is putting folk music front and centre in July with the return of 21st Century Folk. For the third year, five folk acts are writing and composing a song about people whose lives have been influenced by – or changed track – thanks to trains.
The stories of those who have contributed to the project are being told to coincide with Railway 200, celebrating 200 years of train travel in the UK.
From Monday 28 July to Sunday 3 August, Radio 2 will mark the occasion with a week of folk music programming across Radio 2’s Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe (Weds, 9-10pm), and The Jeremy Vine Show (weekdays, noon-2pm). Jeremy will also broadcast live from The Greatest Gathering, a festival to celebrate the past, present and future of rail travel, at Alstom in Derby. There will also be a chance to hear the songs, contributors and songwriters in 21st Century Folk 2025 on BBC Sounds and watch them by going to bbc.co.uk/folk
The artists taking part this year are Richard Thompson, Kate Rusby, Findlay Napier, Chris While & Julie Matthews, and Bill Ryder-Jones.
Helen Thomas, Head of BBC Radio 2, said: “Radio 2 is proud of its commitment to such a wide range of music on one single UK radio station. We have much loved weekly shows dedicated to folk, jazz, country, blues, musical theatre and hip hop, alongside our huge mainstream programmes. I’m delighted that today our 21st Century Folk project returns for its third chapter. Sincere thanks to the listeners, whose stories are so inspirational and unique, and the singer-songwriters who have turned these tales into truly moving music.”
Mark Radcliffe said: “Folk music tells the story of everyday life, with melodies and lyrics that are passed down through generations of families. It’s been amazing to see these listeners’ stories take on a life of their own with these special compositions, written and performed by some of the folk world’s most loved artists. I can’t wait to share them with the Radio 2 audience.”
Details of the contributors:
- Siggy lives in Hampstead, London and is part of the Windrush generation. The 85-year-old came to the UK from Barbados in 1962 and became a railway worker the day he arrived. He still loves his shift in Customer Services at Elstree & Borehamwood station and previously played cricket for the England over-70s. Siggy’s singer-songwriter is multi-award-winning artist, Richard Thompson OBE. He co-founded Fairport Convention – who invented the distinctive sound of British Folk Rock – and has been named in Rolling Stone’s top 100 guitarists of all-time. Like Siggy, he is cricket mad!
- Charlotte and David live near Bradford, West Yorkshire. Charlotte was beside a train track intending to take her own life when David, a train driver, got out of his cab and spoke to her until she felt able to board the train. She later contacted him to say thank you, they started dating and are now married with children. Their singer-songwriter is Kate Rusby, from Barnsley in South Yorkshire, one of the most successful folk singers of her generation. She is performing the song alongside her husband, musical director and Northern Irish musician, Damien O’Kane.
- Joanne lives in Darwen, Lancashire, and is an accountant by day, but in her spare time volunteers as a ‘steam locomotive fireman’ on the Llangollen Railway in Wales. Joanne survived a rare form of cancer in 2019 and is an activist for diversity and inclusion within the Heritage Rail sector. Scottish musician Findlay Napier, who lives on the Isle of Arran, has written Joanne’s song. He performs as a solo artist and as part of folk-rock supergroup, The Magpie Arc.
- Tom is a railway station foundling. In 1965 as a two-week old baby he was found in the ladies’ waiting room of Reading railway station in Berkshire. He was left well-dressed and tucked under a bench with a spare nappy and bottle. He discovered more about his story much later in his life, and now lives in Nottingham. Singer-songwriters, Chris While and Julie Matthews, from Sheffield in South Yorkshire, are Britain’s longest-enduring female duo having performed together for over 30 years. They have played more than 2,500 gigs and appeared on more than 100 albums.
- Ken is from Liverpool but now lives in Greater Manchester. He is an Alstom employee based at Widnes depot, and to mark 50 years of service a locomotive was named in his honour. Ken knew from four years old that he wanted to follow in his dad and grandad’s footsteps and his family have worked on the railways for a combined 157 years! Singer-songwriter, Bill Ryder-Jones, is co-founder and former lead guitarist with The Coral; he’s released several solo records and collaborated with artists including Arctic Monkeys, Graham Coxon and Paloma Faith. He shares Ken’s deep love of Liverpool.
Hear the songs, contributors and songwriters in a special programme, 21st Century Folk 2025, on BBC Sounds from Monday 28 July and on BBC Radio 2 on Sunday 3 August (8-10pm); and watch the five songs being performed in 21st Century Folk 2025 by going to bbc.co.uk/folk, from Monday 28 July, both produced by Pomona Audio.
The contributors and singer-songwriters will also be interviewed on The Jeremy Vine Show on Radio 2 across the week (from Monday 28 July – Friday 1 August, 12-2pm) where each song will be played on air. Friday’s edition of the show will be an outside broadcast from The Greatest Gathering at Alstom in Derby where Bill Ryder-Jones will perform his song, written for Ken, live. Radio 2’s Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe (Wednesday 30 July, 9-10pm) will be a train song special, and also include an interview with folk legend Peggy Seeger. Peggy co-created the BBC’s Radio Ballads in the 1950s, which, like 21st Century Folk, told the stories of real people using bespoke folk songs. The first ever Radio Ballad was about trains.
ED