Show of Hands and Michael Wood with special guest Kirsty Merryn

West Country legends Show of Hands (Steve Knightley, Phil Beer), and historian and BBC broadcaster Michael Wood are reuniting by popular demand to take us on a chronological journey over eight hundred years of the English radical song tradition.

The formidable pairing are coming together to present Songs of the People, which includes a wealth of songs that have been influential throughout the world. The concert will feature a mixture of history, storytelling and song with rousing choruses in a resplendent, one-of-a-kind showcase.

These songs are the soundtrack to the People’s History. They will cover the Great Famine and the peasants’ revolt in the 14th century, the English Civil War, the Diggers and the Levellers, Peterloo, the Chartists, and World War One, right up to the present day. These are songs that shine a light on the lives of ordinary men and women through times of struggle, fighting for the rights that are ours today.

Matilda James from Shakespeare’s Globe said of the 2019 show: “This beautifully constructed show, intertwining history and music, smartly unpicks and humanises 700 years of British history, the struggle for workers’ rights, and the dignity of labour, bringing these story-songs to life with wit, cheek and tenderness. An evening that is by turns entertaining, raucous and unexpectedly moving. It was a delight to host them in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse.”