The Pulpit

AUGUST

24th Quiz

26th Poetry in the Pub

28th The Avocado Bros DJ SET

30th OT Food Festival (on Wood St) 

SEPTEMBER

2nd Matt Cook & Han Nelson

 It is an honour to be able to introduce the fantastic Matt Cook to a Swindon audience. Matt is a singer-songwriter and music promoter deeply rooted in the Wiltshire folk scene, with one foot in the past and one in the present.

Original songs sonically inspired by the likes of Mississippi John Hurt, Dave Van Ronk and Leon Redbone, but with contemporary lyricism. Bigotry and environmental destruction might get a bit of a kicking, but ultimately expect a set focused on human compassion, kindness and hope.

Matt is also one of the current custodians of the legendary Pump Acoustic Club.

Opening up the night will be the talented Han Nelson, a musician and songwriter who, as a member of Reuben’s Daughters is a familiar face at our shows. She played a beguiling opening set at the bands last Swindon headline show for us, and hadn’t been off stage a minute before we were getting diaries out to get her back again.

Expect a set of beautiful yet powerful ethereal contemporary songs.

6th Cheese Club

7th-13th SWINDON SHUFFLE 

16th Phil Maguire & Grace Pounds

Phil Maguire has been a far-too infrequent visitor to our shows in recent years. So we are glad we have tempted him back to SN1 again.

Phil Maguire is a folk and blues musician from South East London but now based in Devon that has been touring their unique blend of contemporary and traditional folk music for over 10 years. A life of gigging on the road birthed a couple of singles that were followed by the EP ‘The Church Bell’ in early 2022. 2023 then saw the release of his debut album ‘Valley Of My Dreams’. A contemporary folk record steeped in the tradition. Over the past 10 years Phil has toured extensively across the UK including notable shows at Green Man & Glastonbury Festival.

In 2025 Phil supported The Wellermen at a sold out O2 Academy Islington show and maintained a busy gigging schedule. 2026 sees album No. 2 ‘So Much Joy’, a folk/rock record, released into the world with a tour alongside it.

Support comes from the amazing Grace Pounds, who only made her SoP debut back in July. Such as the impression she made on us we snapped her back up as soon as we could!

Indie-Folk artist Grace has already received support from BBC Introducing, performed at various festivals, and shared stages with artists including Rachel Sermanni, Tom Webber, Wilswood Buoys and Funke and the Two-Tone Baby.

She Recently supported Tyler Ramsey (Band of Horses) in Oxford and performed as set at the brilliant Are You Listening? festival in Reading.

23rd Joe McCorriston & David Corrigan

Once a regular visitor to SoP shows, it has been some time since Joe McCorriston last played Swindon (9 years in fact), so we are very glad to have been able to secure this show with him!

Joe McCorriston is a songwriter and performer raised in Morecambe, now based in London, UK. A decorated musician with 15 years in the industry, he has built a cult-following touring around the globe playing his ‘pop songs for punk kids’.

In 2024, Joe returned to form with new singles ‘Liquid Remedy’, ‘Signs’, ‘Dear You’, and ‘Escape from Reality’. After a short break from the touring circuit, he is fit, ready, and raring to go with an avalanche of new songs and a bigger show in tow.

Support from local favourite David Corrigan, the former Astral Ponies frontman armed with a faithful, if slightly battered, acoustic guitar. You can expect stripped-down versions of some Pony classics, the usual country-tinged laments, and dusty old folk.

25th The Avocado Brothers DJ SET

29th Swindon FOLK CLUB (act tbc)

OCTOBER

4th  Cheese Club

7th Rev Ferriday

It has been a while since The Rev entertained us, so we are very pleased to have been able to tempt him to play his first Pulpit show. If ever there was a musician and a venue more perfectly matched…

With strong roots in Hillcountry Blues and Americana The Rev’s original music has a low down dirty blues sound and a deep vocal delivery that is strong in lyrical content. Hip-shakin’ acoustic and early electric guitar riffs are accompanied by sliding melodies and toe tappin’ foot percussion to capture that raw, foot stomping, Juke Joint sound.

“From Indie accolades via NME and John Peel Sessions while in 80s band Loop, this gritty Blues man has proven himself a many-faceted British talent” ​

10th The Avocado Brothers DJ SET

14th Bluebeard and the Desperate Hours (duo)

The stars have finally aligned and we have managed to bag a Pulpit set from Bluebeard & The Desperate Hours. Well, Bluebeard & A Desperate Hour, as for this gig they play in a piano and cello duo format.

So expect more considered, stripped back versions of their piano-driven pop-rock, music that draws on the emotional directness of Springsteen, the energetic positivity of Coldplay and the well-crafted arrangements of Elbow. They are melodic, hook-filled songs that place emotional honesty and connection at the centre.

21st Deadlight Dance

Deadlight Dance is the current venture from multi-instrumentalists Nick Fletcher and Tim Emery. The pair met in Sixth Form and first played back in 1989 in a short-lived Gothic Rock band. Staying friends and periodically playing together in the in-between time, they formed Deadlight Dance during lockdown, sharing a love of bands like The Cure, Sisters of Mercy and Fields of the Nephilim.

The band have played actively since forming, recording and playing live. From Bristol to Southampton to Lancaster, they have spread their wings taking in the Swindon Shuffle, as well as several appearances at local village pubs too. March ’24 sees them on the bill for All that Is Devine VI in Camden. The majority of shows have been around their home and surrounding counties. Their new album “Vox Populi” was released in March 2026.

Between the pair they handle vocals (Nick mainly), 6 & 12 string guitars, basses, bass VI, mandocello, mandolin, synths / keyboards, electronic / acoustic drums and drum programming.

27th Swindon FOLK CLUB (act tbc)

NOVEMBER

1st Cheese Club & OT DAY OF THE DEAD FESTIVAL

4th Sian and Rob Colquhoun 

11th Blair Chadwick

18th Tom Corneill (solo) from Young Martyrs

22nd XMAS LIGHTS SWITCH ON !!

24th Swindon FOLK CLUB (act tbc)

DECEMBER

2nd Jess Chivers

6th Cheese Club

9th Jol Rose