Glasgow
Friends of MayDay (GFoMD) have announced another stellar line-up for the sixth
annual Great May Day cabaret celebrating International Workers’ Day (May Day).
This annual event at Oran Mor takes place this year on MayDay itself - Monday
May 1 – this year’s public holiday.
The Cabaret returns to its roots after a couple of years inclusion of drama into the celebrations, and appropriately this
year’s headliners are the acclaimed and award-winning Edinburgh-based roots
collective Southern Tenant Folk Union. They are ably supported by Leicester singer-songwriter and activist Grace Petrie, the welcome return of Marxist magician Ian Saville (wonder what he's got to say about Jeremy?), folk legend Arthur Johnstone, godfather of Scottish
stand-up Bruce Morton, Ayrshire’s
second-best ever poet Jim Monagahan,
plus Fraser Speirs, Stephen Wright, and
Gavin Paterson. All hosted by Dave
Anderson and supported by Thompsons
Solicitors. it promises to be a great night. Tickets available (£14) from the Bar in Oran Mor or (+bf) via the facebook page or website
It’s great that the cabaret has
attracted major talents like Southern
Tenant Folk Union, and that Grace
Petrie can come up and spend some time letting Scotland hear her fresh new
style. It is especially good that there are a number of cabarets across Scotland this year.
This year,
Mayday cabarets are also taking place in Irvine (Celtic SC – Fr1 28/4), West
Lothian (Loganlea Miners Welfare – Sat 29/4), and Blantyre (Miners Welfare –
Sun 30/4). Playing all four cabarets are core acts Ian Saville, Bruce Morton, Jim Monaghan, Fraser Speirs and Stephen
Wright. They will be joined by Grace
Petrie in Glasgow, Blantyre and Loganlea, rising star Maeve Mackinnon in Irvine and Blantyre, Arthur Johnstone in Irvine, Loganlea and Glasgow, and talented
singer Calum Baird in Loganlea
This
year’s Mayday marches will take place on different days around Scotland, with
the
largest on Sunday April 30 in Glasgow, forming at George Square at 11.00 and marching to Kelvingrove Park Bandstand. Others will be on Sat April 29
(Aberdeen, Dundee and Fife) and Sat May 6 (Edinburgh and Irvine). Both Glasgow
and Edinburgh’s marches feature Paul
Laverty, screenwriter of I, Daniel Blake as a keynote speaker.
Details here - http://www.stuc.org.uk/campaigns-and-external-events/mayday-2017.
Other
events around the MayDay weekend also include events at the Tron as part of its
Mayfesto season, and a short tour of a one-man play about the miners’ strike. Undermined by Danny Mellor, touring
with the backing of Unite Community, will play Aberdeen (The Blue Lamp – 26
April); Dundee ( Arthurstone Comm Lib - 27); Edinburgh (Out of the Blue Drill
Hall- 28); and Glasgow (STUC-29).
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| Rab Noakes |
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| Women Hold up Half the Sky |
Our old friend (and MU activist) Rab Noakes has a welcome concert in Cottiers Theatre on May 7. In his 70th year and 50 years since his first paid gig, the 'songwriter-performer on top of his game' will be joined by Kathleen MacInnes and Innes Watson.And there is the prospect of a fascinating exhibition in the Glasgow Women's Library (Landressy Street). Sisterhood is Powerful - posters from the GWL museum collection is on from 11 May - 17 June.
These and
many other events will be featured in the programme which is available via
the GFoMD website.
