THE Alcester Winter Folk Festival is making a return to the town later this month with performers flooding in to bring acoustic music, traditional storytelling, sing-a-rounds and workshops to festival goers for three days of folk.

Traditionally known as the Winter Warmer, and more low key than Alcester's big summer folk festival, the February festival helps to raise funds for its grander partner, inviting visitors to park up their caravans in Alcester at the Greig Centre or St Benedict’s School, and join in with the festivities.

The festival takes place entirely in the Swan Hotel on Swan Street and organiser Marje Stanley is excited about the line up.

She said: “We’ve got local artists like Colin Pitts, a harmony group 'Notts Alliance', and we’ve got a new story teller Anne Bradford telling ghost stories about Redditch and Alcester. We’ve also got lots of workshops, a singing workshop, a spoons, where people can learn to play the spoons, and a dulcimer workshop, so anybody can take part in any of them, and they’re also for people to learn about the instruments. There are a lot of different kinds of dulcimer.

“People seem to love to join in with the singing. We all know it’s good for your mental health, so join in with old friends and new friends, folkies are very very welcoming people, kind hearted people and we welcome newcomers. They’re songs from history, they’re about these huge dramatic events, and heartache and life and it’s interesting.”

The festival runs from Friday, February 21 to Sunday, February 23. Tickets for the full weekend are £30 and can be purchased by sending a cheque made payable to ‘Alcester Folk Festival’ to PO Box 12619, Redditch B97 9AU. Day tickets can also be purchased throughout the festival from the ticket desk in the rear bar of the Swan Hotel.

For more information on the festival call Marje Stanley on 07788 536605 or visit alcesterfolkfestival.org.uk.