Appearances 2022

Appearances - 2022

Were you there? - have you got any comments or pickies for any of the appearances below? if so, please let us know

22/12/22 Himbleton House

Thank you very much to you 16 WUCCIES for your excellent playing and singing today at Himbleton House. More importantly thank you for joining in the fun. Oh and playing the proper end to ‘Dance the Night Away’! Small crowd, but appreciative and all getting something from the session. I got two proposals!! It was the last gig for PCUK and not only did we add a substantial £150 gig fee to the running (now stopping) total but they put an extra £50 in the bucket. A fitting finale to a fabulous year of fund-raising. WUC should be very pleased and proud. Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year - John He

Well fellow strummers what a fabulous gig at Himbleton House this afternoon Thanks John for a great lead and great Base from Mark everyone really played their hearts into the gig and the audience joined in right from the first to the last song to all of you cheers Colin R 🎼🎼🤠🤪🤪🎄🎄

Yes great gig. I had fun with the two ladies next to me. Singing along all the time. And chatting away to me in-between numbers Great lead and bass playing, good playing and singing . Nice one to end the year. HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE. Bev

20/12/22 Meadow Court

HI all, Many thanks to those who played and sang at Meadow Court Retirement Village today. We sang and played well, and the audience rattled their rattles and sang along as best they could whilst filling their faces with festive fare! It was quite warm in the room, though, and I think we really earned the £150.00 gig fee and the £62.25 collection in Yvonne's hat. Another great result for Pancreatic Cancer UK, though, and many words of thanks and appreciation at the end. Just one more gig to go this week, then we can retire the Christmas Repertoire for another 12 months and all have a well-deserved rest! Trevor

14/12/22 Park Heath Social Club

Hi All, Many, many thanks to the fine nine who played at Park Heath Social Club this afternoon. And many thanks to the wonderful audience who played percussion with panache and sang along with most of the songs. I don't know about the others, but I thoroughly enjoyed our session - which went on a bit longer than we were booked for - and, as if that's not enough, they gave us money for enjoying ourselves. As well as the £50 gig fee, there was £47 from the raffle and the collecting bucket. Well done, Wuccies! Cheers Trevor

13/12/22 Kingfisher Court Droitwich

Hi All, another excellent WUC gig tonight. People putting themselves out to further our charitable work and entertain deserve praise. Gig fee only but £120. I sent this to them. Many thanks for your performance tonight. I thought you were a credit to Worcester Ukulele Club and helped to create an entertaining and joyful evening for the lovely people we encountered at Kingfisher Court. Thank you for putting up with my mysterious ways! Big thank you to Steve V for bass, Yvonne and Jean now known as the ‘Hand-Jive Twins’ and Martin who scat sang ‘I Wanna Be Like You’ at very little bidding!! To Pete, Terry, Les, Nick, Chrissie, Dot V thanks for tying it all together with kazoos and great strumming. Regards John

9/12/22 Hand Made in Hallow Craft Group

Hi Wuccies, Many thanks for being a ‘supergroup’ in Hallow today. Smiles and laughter from the band were replicated by the audience who sang, clapped and played their percussion instruments so well. All of the audience came up and spoke after in glowing terms, not to mention the organiser who ‘rebooked’! Three ladies have provided contact details so they can join one of our beginners sessions after Christmas. As ever there were those who shared their experience with Pancreatic cancer. Never good to hear but good to share. No collection today but one of them insisted on giving £10 so there we are. Not the way I imagined joining the ‘leaders’ but together we made it work and had fun. Regards John

9/12/22 St Andrew's Church Malvern

HI All, Many thanks to everyone who played at St Andrew's Church in Poolbrool, Malvern, this afternoon. We played and sang really well, got a good reception from a sizeable audience who were more than happy to join in with the singing and the clapping, and we got lots of positive feedback afterwards. Well done, Wuccies!... especially for being totally unfazed by a change in leader at the very last minute. (We Wuccies are nothing if not adaptable and flexible). The collecting bucket contained a marvellous £91.28, which will be added to the £50 gig fee to give a total of £141.28 for PCUK. Standing at the door, bucket in hand - a bit like the verger with the collection plate at a Sunday service - I received many, many appreciative comments, both about our performance and about the great success that we have had with our charity fundraising. No fewer than 7 of the audience told me that they had lost a loved one to pancreatic cancert, and they really were grateful for our efforts. Brilliant job, Wuccies! Now have a rest... until Monday evening! Cheers Trevor

2/12/22 Christmas Markets Worcester

Hi all, Well, it took some doing, but the cash has finally been counted. Not because theres any element of competition in any way whatsoever, but purely out of interest, the three separate events raised the following:

Hopmarket: £125.44
Bell Square: £237.48
Cathedral Plaza: £132.91
GRAND TOTAL: £495.83

A really good day's singing and playing, which - though tiring - was extremely enjoyable and rewarding. A huge "well done" to our two tame reindeer, aka Anne and Rosemary, who did an astounding job. Cheers Trevor

PS: There were only 4 duff coins: 50 Singaporean cents, 20 Singaporean cents, 5 Canadian cents and one totally unidentfiable coin which I guess hails from the far east!

26/11/22 Falcon Mews, Bromyard

Many thanks to the band that played at the Falcon Mews, Bromyard. Special thanks to those who crossed time zones from the Peopleton region to be there. We played to a small but very enthusiastic audience and gave a thoroughly decent performance. Pudsey Bear appeared, having made the long trek from Worcester Crowngate (See Geoff's pics. below). One novel duty has been added to the gig leader's list......auctioneer! Yours truly was asked to auction a bottle of mulled wine which made a creditable £9 from a member of the audience with the aid of some helpful bids from other band members! Thanks again to everyone. Allan.

18/11/22 Children In Need 2022, Crowngate, Worcester

Hi Team Pudsey, What a day!...
Just amazing on every front, one of the best in 7 years!! As always so lovely to see the people of Worcester enjoying themselves young and old alike and so generous with their donations in these most difficult of times. I will be counting into the early hours; but looks promising! Thank you to everyone for coming to support this event I know I do ask a lot of you and you never complain or let me down. Special thanks to the gallant souls that don Pudsey Bear, it is a good job there are no videos in Phase Eight changing rooms!! Special thanks to my energetic, enthusiastic Chief Helper Anne who really ought to take up a career in photo shoots of Pudsey and People, a natural!! Thanks to Bev for organising the Mayor, and also the clips in the paper which people read and came down to see us. Thanks to Geoff for the photos and videos and for getting us on the tele!! Thanks to our leaders John H, Rob, Phil and Trev, brilliant leadership and fun! and to Bruce, Ann, Kate and Stephen for brilliant bucket duties!... And finally, I do have to say a very special thanks to Allan for being an emergency Pudsey. A young girl came down especially to see Pudsey and was in tears as he had gone home; but Allan Corder to the rescue who transformed into Pudsey in 3 mins flat and the young lass ran up and flung her arms around Pudsey beaming! It was a sight to behold! Hope I haven’t left anyone out, thank you soooo much and I will let you know the amount Monday evening! Sleep well. Love Rosemary x

12/11/22 Callow End Pudding Club

Well, we certainly worked hard tonight didn’t we? The first half was a bit noisy, fortunately after they’d had their puddings (and we’d had ours) they were much more receptive and joined in and sang along. But, however hard we worked it was all worth it as we managed a decent collection in my hat! There was £129.94, with that and the gig fee we made £204.94. After the gig I said to Trevor that as we got a good collection perhaps we should use my hat again. Trevor said that because of the size of my head my hat was probably bigger than the bucket anyway!! Love ya Trevva! So, well done everyone. Elaine

09/11/22 2 Gigs Round Up

Hi All, Thanks to everyone who played today we had two great gigs. This morning we played for Stan's birthday at Worcester Warriors Foundation Dementia Cafe. He was totally surprised to see us there and had a great time singing and dancing along to us. It was fantastic to see some people there whose memory was severely affected by dementia, recognising some of our songs and singing along. One guy was even crying because he was able to recognise songs from his past. This evening we played at Crookbarrow View and had another tremendous gig. The residents there are always ready to join in and sang along and danced to our songs. Recently, members of WUC have been giving ukulele lessons to some of the residents there and after our break, three ladies came up and played Skip to my Lou to rapturous applause. I'm sure we will be seeing them at the club soon. Well done to Trevor, Anne and whoever else is helping, great job. A big thank you to Geoff for his bass playing at both gigs and to Elaine for her percussion and sound effects this evening and to everyone else for playing with such gusto, brilliant, well done. We were given £50 for Stan's birthday and raised a total of £299.40 at Crookbarrow, giving us a tremendous £349.40 for the day. Well done Guys. See you soon, John

What an amazing amount, they are such a generous crowd at Crookbarrow. The other helpers are Joan and Yvonne. Anne T

That’s great. Enjoyed every minute and helped to raise a fantastic amount, Pete L

09/11/22 Crook Barrow View Residential Appartments

Another great gig! It's amazing what a uke can do!

09/11/22 Stan's Birthday Party, Worcester Amateur Rugby Club

This was a surprise birthday party for Stan who books us for the St Paul's Church Friendship Club. As well as Stan's birthday, the meeting was in aid of Worcester Warriors Foundation Dementia Cafe.

02/11/22 Rushwick WI, Rushwick Village Hall

A big, big thank you to everyone who turned out in the wind and the rain to entertain the members of Rushwick and surrounding WIs. A very appreciative audience who sang along, clapped and waved their arms in all the right places. We got £50.00 gig fee and there was £84.00 in the bucket. Worth getting wet for. Quote from a member:

“you all looked as though you were enjoying yourselves so we were too”

That’s why we do what we do. Thanks for your enthusiasm. ( Insane) Elaine.

31/10/22 Worcester Wheels, Alma Tavern Droitwich

A great gig for Worcester Wheels in Droitwich - hugely enjoyed by both the audience and the band, with lots of great feedback.

11/10/22 Welland House

Thanks to the small but beautifully formed band that played in Malvern this afternoon. We played 2 venues, the East lounge and then the West lounge. Same care home, different residents. The start didn’t look too promising but the crowd soon warmed up and joined in. Even 2 care workers joined the singing with the men in Happy Together! Then on to the second venue where a couple from the first audience asked if they could come too. Is that what they call a following? Geoff was offered the knee of Gill to sit in. She even offered to show him her scars. He made his excuses and left. (I think that’s what the News of the World used to write). Claire, the person in charge asked if we would go back again sometime so that I could prove to her that I can play the ukulele! Thanks again Elaine

28/9/22 Malvern Club for the Visually Impairedd

£111.83! That was the total from our gig today. That was gig fee and saucer collection. Well done everyone! A small but appreciative audience who played and sang along to every song. We’ve got a potential ship’s crew there, should we ever need one. Some good playing and singing from everyone and side-kicking from Trevor. Thanks to Yvonne for bringing instruments for the audience to play. Yvonne if you could arrange to get a drum next time as we had a keen, proficient player on the front row. Rob Phillips, watch out. Final words for Frank, check the song list and then decide if you want to wear your blue suede shoes next time. Thanks again, Elaine

24/9/22 St Stephen's Church Fete

What a lovely day and how wrong I was when I put on a winter vest under my club shirt this morning! A group of WUCCies basked in the September sunshine and put on an excellent show for those attending the Saint Stephens Church fete today. Starts and finishes were precise and the bits in the middle were just as good. We held a decent audience and probably had our youngest ever dancer (guessing 15 months?) and also a boy who knew and sang along to many of our songs. Kate wielded the charity bucket and collected £49.74p to add to the £75 gig fee. A thoroughly enjoyable gig and thanks to St Stephens for excellent organisation. Allan.

22/9/22 St Paul's Church, Friendship and lunch club

Hello St Paul’s players. Thank you for being a good band this afternoon. We managed to collect £65.61. Bet it didn’t take Trevor long to count, it was mostly paper! Thanks for playing the non-standard list too. We sang Sloop John B, our very own John B was offered the song as a solo but he modestly declined. Next time John. Apparently it’s quite normal for half the audience to leave before we’ve done. It seems that as soon as the last spoonful of pudding has been shovelled in, they’re on their feet and off home. Phew, nothing we did, didn’t do, said or didn’t say. Thanks again, Elaine

11/9/22 Bromyard Folk Festival

A very big thank you to all the players who turned out for the Bromyard Folk Festival. One of the songs I’m minded to add next year is that well known hit I should be so lucky (lucky lucky lucky). Very well attended gigs and great participation (singing/dancing) from the audience and some really good playing and singing from WUC and guest players. Also thanks to John and Elaine for leading the workshop and sorting out the tutorial material and in addition a big thanks to John on the bass also. And thanks to Elaine for pointing out the 21:00 gig was not advertised on the program (error on the copy writers check). It was noted that the Director of the festival dropped in to have a look and looked pretty pleased at the performance and took some photos. Thanks again, Tom

A big shout out to all of the Wuccies who played and sang so well at our late evening slot at Bromyard Folk Festival last Saturday night. A crowd of festival-goers and townspeople packed into the large bar marquee and the immediate area outside. We even invited two or three of the ukele-carrying folk musicians who were among them to come up front and play along with us, which they did. The whole audience were soon singing along with tremendous gusto and swaying and waving in perfect time to the music. Tom’s animated leadership, well chosen songs and enthusiastic introductions coupled with John’s bass playing moved us and the audience along very nicely at pace and the harmonies of our lady singers and Elaine’s special effects fun added an extra dimension to the event. The kazoo playing was the best yet. Both the audience and us players had a real blast and in spite of a late finish and playing extra numbers for them we left the whole crowd on their feet whooping raucously and yelling for still more! A great evening. Dave Su

7/9/22 Pershore Volunteer Lunch Club

Thank you so much to all the players at Pershore this morning, we played a sprightly 45 min set punctuated by lots of laughter which was very much enjoyed by our equally sprightly audience who sang along and clapped with us. During our last number, Barbara took her hat round for a collection and came back with a fantastic £116.67, thank you Barbara. A big thank you goes out to Rob for his harmonica accompaniment and to John He for playing bass. Well done John, we will have some more of that please. On speaking to Jo the organiser after the gig, it was suggested that some of us may like to stay for lunch the next time we play. When she books us again, she will let us know what the menu will be and how much it will cost (they can't afford to feed us for free). I have to say it smelled great when I went back in for the gear. See you soon, John

6/9/22 Bromyard Methodist Church

Dear Worcester Ukulele Club... Thanks so much for the Ukelele Club’s terrific performance yesterday at Bromyard Road. The choice of songs was spot on and the high energy delivery was a perfect way to start our autumn season. It was great to see people joining in and getting involved. Best wishes Andy (Bromyard Road Methodist Church)

4/9/22 Peopleton Festival

Many thanks to the marauding band of Wuccies who invaded Peopleton Show yesterday! We had a delayed start due to the logistics of changing over performers and their gear but when we got going it went extremely well and you sounded very professional.....not a note out of place! Thanks also to Kate `the Bucket` for making the effort to come along. She collected a total of £62.11 in a very short space of time so together with the £50 fee that I have just deposited we raised £112.11 for our charity. Another good show gig! Rob

28/8/22 Sunshine Festival, Upton Upon Severn

A huge Thank You to everyone who played today, we had a Ball. We soon had a size-able audience who were appreciative from the very start and clapped, danced and sang along throughout. Kate the Bucket did a fantastic job and collected £165, well done Kate. A special shout out to Geoff for the bass and photos and to Elaine for sorting things out while I was sick and for the sound effects today. Well Done All, John

Hi, I would just like to say that the Sunshine gig was thoroughly enjoyable and such fun. Thank you to Elaine, John and Geoff for leading such a well organised and well run gig it was great! Shirley

27/8/22 Berkeley Arms, St John's, Worcester

Many thanks to the dozen Wuccies who played at the Berkeley Arms, St John's, today. Although there wasn't a huge crowd, those who were there - and some had come just to see us!!! - seemed really to get into the spirit of the event and I'm sure a good time was had by all, judging by the applause and the shouts of "More! More!" at the end. With so few people there, we agreed that we would forego our charity bucket and focus the collection on the pub's charity for the year, St Richard's Hospice. At WUC, we are happy to support others in their fundraising activities, as and when we can. I believe there is an old show-biz adage about never working with animals and children, and it was certainly proved to be true when our show was well and truly stolen by Leo, a young lad (10 at a guess?) with a passion for Elvis Presley, who stood front and centre and gave his all in his rendition of Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear. The crowd went wild. Knowing we were onto a good thing, we deviated a little from our set list and called him back to show us just how Blue Suede Shoes should be performed. The crowd went wild again. Knowing that he was onto a good thing, he asked if we could play any Buddy Holly songs, so we strayed even further from our intended path and invited Peggy Sue back into the gig list for the day. You can probably guess by now what the crowd's reaction was. It was a great afternoon. I'm not sure how much the pub collected in their bucket during our performance - which went on 15 minutes longer than scheduled - but it was considerably more than zero, and every little helps! The sugar on the cherry on the icing on the cake was right at the end, when Leo came and shook my hand and thanked me and the rest of the group for giving him the opportunity to shine. A star is born! Who says the yoof of today is all wicked, innit? Cheers Trevor

20/8/22 Crowngate Food Quarter Worcester

More hot hot hot! - well done all.

13/8/22 Guildhall Worcester

Photo of the intrepid players today. I forgot to mention that we played on through the heat but at least 3 iPads said “ no, too hot, I’m not playing”, and switched off!

A heartfelt, hot and sweaty thank you to all the fireproof players who came to the Guildhall today. It was 33.5 degrees, but we played on regardless. An appreciative audience for the first set, standing in the shade outside Ann Summers. Well I think they were watching us! Less of a crowd for the second set but we still managed to collect about £160. ( rough count, Trevor will tell us for certain). Not bad for 2 half hour slots. Thank you all, hope you’ve cooled down. See some of you tomorrow to do it all again. What’s that phrase?

"Mad dogs and ukulele players go out in the mid day sun"

Elaine

9/8/22 Latimer Court Care Home

Thanks to the jolly band who sang and played well in the heat today. The audience was positioned at several points in a sweep of about 270 degrees but they enjoyed the show and sang along with a lot of the numbers. Well done everyone. Allan.

31/07/22 The Bridge Tibberton

Hi all, A massive "Thank You!" to everyone who contributed to a great gig at the Bridge, Tibberton, on the banks of the Birmingham-Worcester Canal this afternoon. The assembled splendour of a sizeable mixed group of Wuccies and Duccies ensured a rousing rendition of around 25 songs. The audience was small at first, but word must have spread quickly through Tibberton, and numbers rose steadily as the afternoon progressed. However, no matter how many or how few we were playing to, we were very well received and warmly applauded. Not only did we get a self-engineered encore at the end, we also got a completely spontaneous encore after that! Luckily, we had a spare song up our sleeves! The very generous clientele of the Bridge put a total of £89.56 into our PCUK buckets, which, along with a gig fee of £75.00, made the gig as successful as it was enjoyable. As the Two Ronnies may have put it in song to the tune of "A Policeman's Lot Is Not A Happy One", we had a real blast whilst "Playing ukes along that far canal! Fancy that!". Thanks to Jerry O'B for getting us the gig. I, for one, am really looking forward to the next one there! Cheers Trevor

18/07/22 Worcester Wheels

Yes it was hot! - but at least it was happening... and people still got up and danced!

17/07/22 St Peter's Festival, Worcester

Boy was it hot.....but the fully baked (not half baked) band did really well today. Thanks to the heat resistant ukulele players who sang and played so well. Only 2 shaky bits. At the hop had a little hop at the start and I probably joined the elite group of leaders who have stumbled over Dedicated Follower (teach me to stand up at clubnight). However, both songs then took off and like Lewis Hamilton starting from the back of the grid, we rapidly got into our stride and zoomed away up through the field. Funny how the counting sometimes goes a bit awry. Two of the greatest physicists of the 20th century (Neils Bohr and Albert Einstein) were pretty good musicians, Bohr on the piano and Einstein on violin and they often played stuff together. On one occasion, Einstein came in too early or too late, to which Bohr said "Einstein, can't you count?". Einstein probably retorted E=m(c squared). Sorry to digress, must be the heat. Well done again and thanks for being patient about the long delay to the second set. Not a huge audience but quite a few stayed and listened for a good while and sang along. We did not expect anyone to dance! A very well earned £100 gig fee! Thanks, Allan.

16/07/22 Broadheath

Looking good you happy strummers 👍🎼🎶🤠 Colin

Many thanks to the small group of Wuccies who took part in the joint handbell and ukulele concert on the evening of Saturday 16th July. The idea of the collaboration came from Richard Hartnell, the leader of the West Midlands Bell Ensemble. (It transpires that Richard and I taught at the same school many, many years ago, and last saw each other back in 1987. It's a small world!). Although it may seem to some to be a strange mixture of instruments, the evening was a great success. The ringers performed 4 or 5 pieces, followed by 5 songs from us, then a refreshment break, followed by 4 more pieces from the ringers, 5 more songs from us then a joint finale with bells and ukes in perfect (almost!) harmony for a medley of three songs. The audience was small, but very appreciative, and very willing to join in with the singing and the clapping along. The charity buckets were out and yielded the very tidy sum of £84.00. All in all, I thought it was a very enjoyable way to spend a Saturday evening, so - once again - a huge thank you to all who contributed to it.Cheers Trevor

09/07/22 Busy Gig Day Summary

Great weather on Saturday 9th July and the Wuccies were out in force playing to shoppers in the Crowngate, Worcester and through the crowded streets of Astwood Bank as part of their carnival procession. These two excellent fundraisers produced nearly £500 towards our charity for 2022, Pancreatic Cancer UK - Rob P

09/07/22 Crowngate Worcester

Thanks to everyone who played. Got some really good comments as we were packing up the chairs. Including can we do it every Saturday!!!! Bev

Hi Everyone, Thanks to the members of the WUC band that played in the Crowngate today. We played and sang well including some of the less frequently played songs in the Gig Pack. Special mentions to Geoff on bass, John He on noodling, Chris and Kate on buckets, Bev on ‘booking’ Bell Square, Rosemary and Anne for playing / singing, Rob P for equipment haulage. We collected £238.61 in the buckets - a good sum for a one hour session and probably in excess of National Minimum wage. Colin

Well done everyone 😁 John He

09/07/22 Astwood Bank Carnival

Hi all. Here's (a picture of) the jolly band before we set off down the road. Note John Hickinbotham's finely engineered bass chariot! This was a great gig at a big event. Crowds lining the streets joined in specially with the sea shanties. Thanks to everyone who played. It was great fun, Allan

It was a party! - Chrissie

02/07/22 Citizens Advice Funday - Malvern

Many thanks to the band who sang and played well at the Citizens Advice gig today. Although we gave a good performance, those attending the event were focussed on other areas, so there was very little in the way of audience. Having realised this, we concentrated on enjoying ourselves, which we did. Special thanks to Kate for her work with the charity buckets which yielded £15. Not a princely sum but £15 more than we started the day with! Thanks again to all the band. Allan.

02/07/22 Fladbury Walkabout

Hi all, There can be few things more British than sitting on a wet, plastic chair under a sodden umbrella in the pouring rain on the coldest, rainiest day of the Summer - so far - listening to a bunch of ukulele players perform a Lonnie Donegan song from back when the world was in black and white and powered by clockwork. Yet, surprisingly, that’s just what a number of Worcestershire folk decided to do today, as part of the Fladbury Walkabout. Many thanks to the twenty or so valiant Wuccies who turned out and gave it their all on our 28-song repertoire. Many thanks, also, to the generous audience who put an impressive £59.24 into our buckets. Special mentions to: the couple who danced in the pouring rain to Blue Suede Shoes; the young lad with the crab on his jumper who left nothing out there when it came to dancing and playing my kazoo (which is now his kazoo!); and to the Fladbury “Hoodie Gang” - four teenage lads in matching black hoodie jackets and tracksuit bottoms, who risked soggy bottoms by sitting down on puddlesome chairs and listening to the music, dancing and clapping - and putting a fair wedge of their pocket money into the charity buckets: who says the yoof of to day is all wicked, innit? All in all, I’m sure we all enjoyed the day… wotevvadawevva! Trevva

.......and apologies for messing up the start of DFF! Brain didn`t engage.... Other than that we played well and those that did come along really enjoyed the fun! So, to endorse Trev`s comments......"what a load of fun we `ad and fanks a lot to evry-one fur turnin` up on such a miserable day!!!" Cheers, Rob

18/06/22 Cripplegate Park Worcester

18/06/22 Three Counties Showground

Many thanks to the band who sang and played so well at the Church tent today. We were "mic'd up" nicely by David, the sound technician and he and Geoff Roswell who did a sound check and some bucket rattling, said we sounded good. We weren't on a busy thoroughfare so we never had a big audience but despite this we got some loud applause and collected £62.15p in the charity buckets. Special thanks to Mark WW who played bass at the last minute and also the last minute sign ups, Alan Nash and Veronica. Also thanks to Andrew Batty who was the last step in the chain in getting Alan N his wrist band. A sherpa was required to move Mark WW's bass and amp from the fairly distant car park but we wisely decided against raiding the cattle sheds for yaks. Thanks again to all those who played. Allan.

18/06/22 Bell Square Worcester

Hi Everyone, A big thank you and well done to today’s Xylophone Band and also to the Mayor for singing along to Bad Moon Rising and for returning Bev’s hat. The Pancreatic Cancer buckets were heavy and full. We collected £362.12. Thanks to Trevor for counting the donations from the lovely Worcester shoppers. Colin
P.S. I was able to test and prove my theory that if you play the wrong chord and you’re in a band of 20 then no one will notice.

18/06/22 Malvern Farmers Market

Massive thanks to all who turned up this morning in the pouring rain to play at Malvern. Although Muzodo said we were full, we weren’t! Thanks to Bob and Chrissie who came along and got our numbers back up to 10. As you might expect the crowds were sparse but several stall holders thanked us for turning what might have been a cold wet miserable day into a cold wet fun day. Thanks too to Steve (market organiser) who managed to find us a miss-matched but waterproof gazebo to play under. We managed to collect £58.28 and half a pint of rain water! Elaine

17/06/22 Three Counties Showground

HI all, A huge vote of thanks to those who braved the baking heat of the Malvern Plains to play at the Three Counties Show this afternoon. We were somewhat depleted in numbers, but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves singing and playing two sets of 45 minutes, with the Rock Choir on in between. How many times have we been the warm-up act for the Rock Choir? It must be time for a joint gig: they can hum it and we'll play it! This was another gig with a physically remote audience, so the charity buckets weren't particularly effective, and what little money there was I intend to put in the buckets at Crowngate tomorrow. As we were on a gig fee, I didn't push the buckets. We were playing in a bandstand that was obviously modelled on the wind tunnel in which Reginald Mitchell tested the aerodynamic properties of the Supermarine Spitfire back in the 1940's. Several music/tablet stands were blown over, and a couple of hats and sheets of music were sent on their way toward Eastnor by capricious gusts! We played through it all, though, like the true professionals that we are not, and the audience applauded the slap-stick element of the show! Thanks again, everyone. It was fun... but I think we all deserve a good rest and a nice glass of your favourite tipple this evening! Mine's a sauvignon blanc! Cheers Trevor

11/06/22 Christopher Whitehead Language College

Hi all, Many thanks to everyone who played at Chrissy Whitehead today. It was a touch strange to be playing to an initially small and remote audience, but from where I was standing we sounded good, and that was obviously an impression shared by others present, judging by the applause that reached us from afar. There was no gig fee, and the distant audience rendered our buckets largely redundant, but there was £22.00 in there, and, in the charity world, every little helps. The main thing, as far as I’m concerned, is that I really enjoyed the gig, and could have gone on for another 45 minutes. Cheers Trevor

5/06/22 Platinum Jubilee Long Weekend Ends - Well done all WUC giggers

(and thank you Ma'am!)

5/06/22 Welland Jubilee Picnic in the Park

5/06/22 Mello Festival

Thanks to those who turned up for Mello on a damp and rather cool Sunday after the rain. Good singing and playing and generally quite respectable starts and finishes to the songs. Special thanks to Geof on the bass. Not a huge crowd trying to break the barriers but at least we were playing to a select few at the beginning and quite a reasonable number at the end who joined in the last few numbers. Numbers at Mello very much reduced by the heavy overnight rain even so overall I’d say quite a small attendance through the weekend on the new Upton site.

4/06/22 Kempsey Church

Hi everyone who played at Kempsey Church. Just to say a BIG thank you. We played well. Great sound I have been told. They want us back and gave us £200. Many thanks all uke players and Mark on bass, Bev xx

4/06/22 Peopleton Picnic in the Park

We were honoured by the Presence this afternoon at Peopleton. I think Trevor has fallen in love... Geoff

4/06/22 Claines Jubilee Festival

Many thanks to the Claines giggers today. The crew gave a good performance despite a force 4 (gusting 6) beam wind. There was dancing from the kids and applause from the adults. A small boy (and his mother) were press ganged into taking the bucket around and Trev has subsequently found £30.59 in it. Long John Silver may have been disappointed with this but we are not greedy pirates, so I am pleased. Every doubloon (currently worth 4p, according to google) counts in my book. Well done (pirate) band. Allan.

3/06/22 Woodland View Care Home

The mixed WUC & DUC (Droitwich Ukulele Club) band were joined by a special guest player at Woodland View Care Home this morning. She was very good at playing C6, especially a capella!!). For the uninitiated, C6 is open chord - no strings held down, just strum! Trev

Her majesty's a very fine gal who turned up in powder blue
Her maj is a very nice gal who picks a chord or two
She sang a song and joined in well....
So, her maj is a very nice gal and we all wish her well!!👍👍👍😂
(Apologies to Paul McC)... Rob

3/06/22 Bringsty Common

Thanks to all who came to Bringsty and played yesterday. There were some surprises. Geoff tested one of the spectator's chairs to destruction but was fortunately not seriously hurt. Allan surprised the band by trying to start on the wrong song list (mea culpa). The band (or some of them), surprised Allan by claiming not to know some of the songs on the list (c'mon guys)! The weather surprised everyone by being absolutely perfect, though the gazebos got too hot! The band members who stayed on enjoyed the rest of the Jubilee party. Many thanks to Kate who came and rattled buckets for us. I was delighted to hear that her op. was a success. She collected £21.89 from the small audience that watched us to add to the £50 gig fee. In the evening, 5 of us played at the Live and Let Live Pub and had a really enjoyable min-gig. One of my neighbours kindly did a charity whip round with my uke. case which collected about £20 (exact amount to be determined). At the end of the day, a few of us joined a procession up the local hill with musical accompaniment from saxophone and ukulele, to watch a large bonfire and view the beacons and fireworks on surrounding hills. I think that the Queen would have been pleased with the day, so thanks to all. Allan.

2/06/22 Platinum Jubilee Long Weekend Begins - WUC gigs R'Us!

(by Royal decree!)

1/06/22 Meadow Court Retirement Village

Half time - phew... it looks hot!

21/05/22 Cathedral Square Worcester

The WUCs had fun and done good!

15/05/22 Hanley Swan Charity Tea Party

We went down very well today (as did the afternoon tea). Thank you to everyone who played with special thanks to Mark WW for playing bass - he really helped Dancing in the Dark move along. Colin

7/05/22 Woodland View

Well done WUCCIES and DUCCIES. A spirited performance at the Woodland care home from combined WUCCIES and DUCCIES today. We played to a small but highly appreciative audience who clapped, tapped and sang along. At the end of the gig, one of the residents made a small speech in which she thanked us for giving her lots of joy. I can't think of a nicer compliment, so well done everyone. Finally, thanks to Pattie for excellent co-leading and her part in setting up the gig. Allan.

7/05/22 Malvern Spring Festival

5/05/22 Crookbarrow View

We arrived at the gig tonight with a certain amount of trepidation, would anyone turn up? It was the first social evening that had been organised at the new Crookbarrow View Apartments and there are still quite a few, as yet, unoccupied. It is on the site of the old Tax Office and made me break out into a cold sweat as we drove in. I always hated having to go there, it gives me the shivers just thinking about it!!!! By the time we started, the audience was a little thin on the ground, but we needn't have worried as they sang along from the very beginning and were soon joined by many more. It wasn't too long before we managed to persuade some to get up and dance and as the evening progressed, we ended up with a floor full with lots of arm waiving with phone lights in lieu of cigarette lighters. We agreed a small fee as they had no budget for this type of event with the option to pass the bucket around which one of the ladies did during the break. When Trevor counted what had been collected and including the fee, we had a staggering £283.60, which must be one of the best collections we have made from around 40 folks. All in all, a great night, the band played and sang their heart out, a huge thank you to everyone who played, we had a ball. I'm sure we will be back there before too long. Cheers, John Hi

2/05/22 Cripplegate Park

Allan led a keen / mad group of 23 Wuccies yesterday-
"Many thanks to the all terrain, all weather band who turned out to give an excellent performance at Cripplegate Park this afternoon. Great to have Mark WW back playing bass. The audience was very sparse due to unpromising weather, but we sang and played with spirit. As well as the £100 gig fee, we collected £17.58 in the buckets from the few passers by out for a bracing bank holiday walk. Thanks again to all for an enjoyable gig".

Well got a tad wet yesterday afternoon but we sang and strummed and enjoyed the event what brave souls we are 🎼🎶🤠Colin the Elder

27/04/22 Claines Royal British Legion Senior Citizens' Club

This afternoon a gang of 14 Wuccies, led by John Hi, played & sang with great gusto at Claines Royal British Legion Senior Citizens' Club. We had an enthusiastic audience, who even got up to dance a couple of times, when we were singing Elvis songs! We think John was very happy with our performance - "Great gig, thank you all, a cracking gig"

14/03/22 The Talbot Kempsey

Last Monday a small band of Worcester ukulele pilgrims played in the Talbot to the 'Come on in' group. This was an extremely successful gig, well played, sung and led by Trevor who's introduction to 'I'll Never Find Another Ewe'! has now taken on Tolkien like proportions. The really good news was that the collection and gig fee added up to £180 for Pancreatic Cancer UK so well done all. John He

04/02/22 St Paul's Church Worcester

A big thank you to the enthusiastic bunch of Wuccies who turned up for today`s gig! There was a rumour that it was the free lunch that attracted them all but I don`t believe such nonsense!!
The lunch did look very good though!! We played very well for most of the time with just one slight hiccup on Chanson d`Amour when it seemed half the band were at one speed and singing in French while the other half played the national Anthem!!! Well, we got it sorted and the audience took it very well indeed which they always do at this very welcoming venue where we were told we had top billing. Thank you to John for his excellent bass and t`other John for filling in some lead uke and telling the audience about our current charity collection. To cap it all we collected £61.55 on top of our Gig fee making a total of £111.55 towards our charity - a good day`s playing and very enjoyable to boot!! Thank you all again.... Rob