life
OUT & ABOUT
“We book the best street entertainers from
Covent Garden,” says Debbie. “Vince and
Richard on their unicycle, who were so
brilliant at involving the crowd, were just
masters at clever quips and ad-libs; and The
Grand Theatre of Lemmings kept popping
up all over town in different guises. They
were so hilarious. Then Men o’ Wight were
plain daft.”
The music provides something for
everyone, from the precision of Wight Satin’s
ladies’ barber shop singing, and robust
male harmony of the Slipshod Singers, to
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the rockabilly Lonesome Valley Boys or folk
singing from the Dance Preachers. “We like
to book as many local bands which have a
good following as we can, as well as guests
from further away.” The Guitar Club of
Ventnor was notable for the quality of their
vocalists – as well as the guitar – and Fidgety
Feet are always a welcome addition to the
event.
But now it seems the 13th could be the
last Old Gaffers. The IoW Council withdrew
its funding of £5,000 around six weeks
before the event. “It costs approximately
£60,000 to put the Old Gaffers Festival on.
That includes the cost of the marquee, the
road closure signs, the security etc. It’s a free
festival – the only money we make is from
programme sales, car parks, a small fee from
stall holders, and the dance, for which we
are limited to selling 1,000 tickets,” explains
Debbie. “All the rest is from sponsorship.”
The only people to make money from
the festival are, quite rightly, the bars and
restaurants of Yarmouth and the stallholders,
Debbie says. “The people who run it are all
volunteers. But the council seem determined
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