On Friday 2 May, we’re teaming up with 5th Column Films to celebrate May Day. There will be Morris dancing aplenty from the Belles of London City, and a screening of The Ballad of Shirley Collins, which will be followed by a Q&A with directors Rob Curry and Tim Plester. The festivities will continue in the Atrium Bar, with live folk music from Oliver Hamilton of Shovel Dance Collective. 

Widely regarded as the 20th century’s most important singer of English traditional song, Shirley Collins is someone who was born to invoke the old songs. Alongside her sister Dolly, she stood at the epicentre of the folk music revival during the 1960s and 70s. But in 1980 she developed a disorder of the vocal chords known as dysphonia, which robbed her of her unique singing voice and forced her into early retirement.

The Ballad of Shirley Collins tells the story of a woman who helped shape the folk music scene, and whose return to music after years of silence is nothing short of inspiring. Deliberately eschewing a straightforward biopic approach, Rob Curry and Tim Plester’s follow-up to their award-winning documentary Way of the Morris, is a lyrical response to the life-and-times of this totemic musical figure. Granted intimate access to recording sessions for Shirley’s first album of new recordings in almost four decades, the film is a timely delve into the arterial blood, loam and tears of our haunted island nation.

May Day celebration schedule:

18:00  Doors open

18:15  Morris dancing from The Belles of London City

18:45  Screening of The Ballad of Shirley Collins + Q&A

20:45  Live music from Oliver Hamilton of Shovel Dance Collective

Tickets are available for £15.50 for members, and £17.50 for non-members. Booking for this event is only open to members during the 48-hour presale, while general sales will open on Thursday 10 April at 18:00.

Please note that seating for the screening and Q&A will be unallocated, and this event will be taking place in our new Screen 3 and Atrium Bar, which does not yet have step-free access whilst we wait for our platform lift to be installed.