Welcome to the 11th Words & Music Festival. It’s often said in music ‘You’re only as good as your last gig’ and if the same applies here we are ‘only as good as our last festival’. We personally felt the 10th W&M was our best yet …BUT Thea, Fluff and I, along with our amazing team, remain on a mission to keep our event fresh, our bill diverse and to keep improving in all we do.

I want to briefly mention two goodbyes we’ve been forced to say this year. Philip Martin’s sudden passing in November was a great shock – he gave us big encouragement and support from our inception, and nurtured a fruitful kinship between our event and Nantwich Jazz, Blues & Music fest. On a different note, Grapevine, our dear mates and original ticket vendor, closed its doors for the last time in January. We wish Dave and Chris the happiest of retirements.

Amidst changes, the core values of Words & Music remain the same. We hope this year brings you great times and memorable moments, wherever you’ve travelled from. Thanks as ever for your support.

Nigel Stonier 2018