Shirley Collins

Shirley was heard on Radio 4 on Tuesday 25th March at 11.30am in "Love, Death and the Lady: The Life and Music of Shirley Collins" featuring excerpts from her writings and recordings, plus special guests. Shirley was awarded an MBE in the 2007 New Year's Honours List for Services to Music. The award was presented by HRH The Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace on May 8th 2007. She was also awarded the Honorary Degree Master of the University by the Open University for Notable Contribution to Education and Culture Shirley is patron of South East Folk Arts Network and Folk South West.	Photograph Katie Vandyck	Shirley received a Good Tradition Award at this year's BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards on Monday February 4th at The Brewery in London. It was presented to her by Graham Coxon of Blur. Along with John McCusker on fiddle, Graham sang Shirley's version of Just As The Tide Was A-Flowin' in tribute.
		Shirley curated, presented and performed in a series of events on London's South Bank between March 25th and March 30th, under the title "Folk Roots, New Routes".
		"America Over The Water" had its first outing of 2008 at the Loughborough Folk Festival on Sunday March 9th, and was followed by the Purcell Room on Saturday March 29th as part of "Folk Roots, New Routes" at the South Bank.
		Shirley's show about Southern English Traditional music - A Most Sunshiny Day - has been re-written and re-edited, and is available for booking, as is I'm A Romany Rai - Shirley's show about the gypsy music of Southern England. Both shows played the Purcell Room on Saturday March 29th as part of "Folk Roots, New Routes" at the South Bank.
		"Down The Lawson Track" - a show about the Australian Bush poet Henry Lawson - had its latest outing at the Cheltenham Folk Festival this month. Shirley joined Martyn Wyndham-Read, Iris Bishop, Gary Holder, John Dipper and Pip Barnes.


	"America Over the Water" was published by SAF Publishing in 2004. A new paperback edition was published in October 2006.

	"America Over the Water" was nominated in the Folk/Ethnic/World section of the Association for Recorded Sound Collection's 2006 Awards for Excellence.

	'I found it very touching indeed....... truly moving' David Attenborough