SALTBURN FOLK SINGING GRANDMA DISCOVERS PHOTOGRAPHIC TREASURE CHEST OF CELEBRATED DANCE FESTIVAL
A 75-year-old grandma from Saltburn has opened a photographic window that celebrates the life and times of a much-loved dance-theatre festival…marking its 60th anniversary this summer.
Maggie Gee, a retired musician and tutor, has unearthed a wonderful collection of memorabilia documenting several wonderful years of the Billingham International Folklore Festival of World Dance, which celebrates six-decades in August (9th-17th).
In a remarkable twist the photographer who created the bank of documentary photography was actually Maggie’s father, Walter Crinnion.
The divorcee has a daughter Sally, and four grown up grandchildren. Maggie grew up in Billingham, and moved away after getting married, and now lives in Brotton, near Saltburn by the Sea.
Maggie played the bass guitar for many years in local social clubs but more recently has turned to the acoustic guitar. Maggie plays in folk clubs and open mic nights across the area.
Walter’s newly rediscovered photography vault spans from the summer of 1968, when Maggie was 17 going on 18, until 1974 when he sadly passed away.
The Billingham Folklore Festival was a real family affair for Maggie with all of her siblings getting involved. Joining Maggie were Liz, Harry (no longer with us), Mary, Pauline (shown in the attached archive photograph holding the guitar and Spanish flag) Veronica and Stephen.
Maggie recalls her first involvement with the Folklore Festival. It all began way back in the 1960s when she was about 17-years old. Before the festival had actually begun an international group from the Canary Islands were doing a display in the Billingham Trades Union Club, just along the road from her family home.
When the performers left the club, they came along the road singing and playing their music, which drew Maggie and her sister out to the front gate, where they proceeded to be serenaded.
Maggie explained: “My dad and elder brother were also walking home from a night out at the local club, when they saw the group congregating outside of our house.
“They started to run, after thinking it was some sort of bother. When dad realised that all was well, he asked me if I had invited them indoors for a cuppa?
“I don’t remember how many cups of tea were served that night, but it seemed to go on forever. This gathering cemented a warm friendship between our family and their group.”
From that moment on, Maggie’s dad Walter got involved with the festival as a volunteer, working as part of the stage crew in the Town Square. He also took a series of photographs over the years, some of which have survived the test of time and now make up Maggie’s collection of wonderful colour prints.
Maggie’s boyfriend at the time Stan was also a musician, and he interacted with their guys as best he could. But the main barrier was that he didn’t speak Spanish and their English was broken in translation.
However, it was established that the performers from the Canary Islands had never seen a banjo before, and likewise they had an instrument he [Stan] had never seen in his life either, which was called a ‘timple’.
The family proudly and generously presented the timple player with his very own banjo to take back home with him. But he couldn’t immediately return the favour as the international musician needed his instrument for the remaining shows before returning back to Las Palmas.
Maggie fondly remembered that several years had passed and they assumed he [the timple player] had forgotten his side of the bargain.
But to the family’s amazement, one day they received an unexpected knock at the front door that revealed a total stranger. He said: “Is this the address of the Crinnion family?” to which they replied “…yes it is”.
The mystery man said: “I have been on a cruise ship that called into Las Palmas, and I have a special gift for you.” It seems that the group from the Canary Islands had been asking passengers on various cruise ships where they had been dancing – if they were from England.
They struck gold as the passenger in question was actually from Peterlee, so they asked him to kindly escort the instrument to the North-East and present it to the family. Maggie says that even though six-decades have past Stan still has that very instrument in his collection.
Maggie reflects about the impact the Folklore Festival has had on generations of people across Tees Valley. She said: “I think that BIFF is important to the local area as it has encouraged international exchange between amongst local residents and worldwide groups.
“It brings enriched entertainment to the town, which is very much needed at this time. The festival has personally provided me with a wealth of memories that I will savour forever.”
Olga Maloney, Artistic Director of the Billingham International Folklore Festival of World Dance, said: “Maggie’s emotional and heartfelt reflection of the Folklore Festival perfectly represents some of the wonderful stories people have shared with us during our special 60th anniversary year.”
Olga continues by talking about the digital project the festival is currently producing to generate a community archive covering the past six decades. She said: “We have been inundated with people wanting to share their festival stories about times they have savoured down the years. The results of which will hopefully live on for at least another sixty years.”
The 60th anniversary of the Billingham International Festival of World Dance will take place in locations across Tees Valley between the 9th and 17th of August. For further information about the festival including showcase events, workshops and exhibition, please visit www.billinghamfestival.com This is also the place where people can find out details about the Memories project.
The visiting international dance companies will be flying into Tees Valley from as far afield as Canada, Indonesia, Mexico, Montenegro, Puerto Rico, and the USA. Tickets for some of the events start from as little as £1.
The 60th anniversary celebrations are being supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Stockton Borough Council, and Arts Council’s National Lottery Project Grants programme.