Merry Christmas at the BCLM & A Happy New Year!

Getting into The Christmas Spirit at BCLM!

I’d like to start my blog tonight by thanking every-one for your lovely Christmas cards and gifts. It’s so kind of you all to think of me and very much appreciated. I’m afraid I’ve fallen down rather this year and I’ve not sent as many Christmas cards as I would have liked to. I’ve been working so hard, I’ve just simply run out of time. So please allow me to send my best Christmas wishes to you all via my blog. I wish you all a very happy new year and I look forward to catching up with you all again in 2023.

Out and About at The Museum!

So far I’ve currently completed 42 shows this month and I just have another 8 to do which will be taking me through to the New Year. It’s been a very eventful month one way and another but the best news of all is that the men came last week to replace our boiler and some of the pipes, we now have central heating again – Hurrah!

It’s easy to take central heating for granted and I can’t begin to tell you how wonderful it is coming home to a warm house and getting out of bed in the morning with-out feeling cold. The other big

On Stage at the Workers Institute!

job to do, is getting the kitchen sink and tap replaced which can’t be done until the new year. For the moment we’ve had the water turned off in the kitchen to stop the endless dripping. Hopefully not long now and I look forward to the day when everything is up and working again.

Thank-you to every-one who came to see me last weekend performing at The Black Country Living Museum’s “Glad Tidings” event. It was an amazing weekend as I performed four shows nightly. On Saturday I was granted special permission to take

Working with Photographer Harry Purdom!

pictures during the day. I never have enough time when I’m working to take photos which is why I often find it easier to employ a photographer. On this occasion I had the pleasure of working with Harry and Suzanne Purdom of H100 – Photography. It’s my intention to use the photos later on as part of a Christmas video so do keep watching this space.

The last time I was in Dudley I was performing for the museum’s 1940s event back in the summer. It was scorching hot

All Dressed Up for Christmas!

then and this time around we were all in our winter woollies. Last year I sang in the Chapel a mixture of music from the Music Hall and Operatic stage for their Christmas Nights. This year my brief was different and I sang in the Workers Institute a mixture of vintage Christmas songs and fairy tale related numbers from Disney musicals and popular films. I even included a little bit of Dickens with “Oliver” and “The Wizard of Oz” which went down extremely well with the audience.

Compered to the Chapel the Workers Institute is extremely warm as it has underground heating. I always plan my out-fits very carefully and I was expecting it to be much colder having packed thermal underwear and warm woolly stockings. As it transpired I didn’t need any of these items and I was able to shed my Christmas coats and show off my pretty Christmas dresses instead.

On Stage With Dawn as Ma Ragan!

This weekend I had the pleasure of working alongside Dawn who played 1960s showbiz promoter Ma Ragan as we worked an ran the Workers Institute stage together for the three day event.

I’m afraid this will be my last blog of the year and I shall be heading down after my last show on Christmas Eve to Portsmouth to spend the Christmas holidays with Paul and Poppy. I also have a few shows to perform along the South Coast which will be taking me through to the New