Festival focus

Golden age of piracy returns to Weymouth

hen the ancient port of Weymouth in Dorset was thrust back to the ‘golden age of piracy’ from 14-16 October, it far from kicked or screamed. Flags flew and drums beat the rhythms of a timeless heart as beribboned and rascally scallywags of every kind descended on this little sea-bound town for the promise of mischief and naughtiness, with only the scantiest smatterin’ of Redcoats.

Friday’s mayhem began with the traditional chaos of The Dolmen Pirate Quiz, held in The Pirates Keep at The Belvedere Inn. Rowdy crews assembled under dubious epithets, but soon quizmaster Rotten Ren Lawson was proven only good for the stocks, and there he stayed, with Budapest Nancy (Kayleigh Marchant of The Dolmen) sealing his fate and her fame as Quizmaster Extraordinaire.

In true buccaneer fashion, the games ended in a duel, with blackguard Silas Ruxley (Tim Gorringe) defeated by scoundrel El Magnifico (Mac McGrath), though any cheers (or boos!) were drowned in the packed pandemonium of a pub full of pirates!

A grand rabble of a thousand magnificent miscreants, young, old and in-between, gathered on Saturday for a parade so long that neither end could see the other. A fine succession of musical talents, among them Celtic Giants, Connach and The Boarding Crew, rocked the main arena, as well as venues throughout the town, explosively headlined that night by international band and Pirate Fest organisers The Dolmen, while the fine hostelries, The Boot and The Belvedere, kept everyone watered ‘till the small hours.

Saturday’s skulduggery also included exploits from a gang of hardy rapscallions, amongst them Jax Parrow (Simon Steadman), the tyrannical Black Preacher (Jon Dixon), The Devil’s Hangman (Gary Watson)

Many shipmates had dressed in their best to celebrate the event.

and the bloodthirsty Judge Richard Beach (Steve Piper), and it was heart-warming to see an overwhelming host of mini-pirates, bedecked and armed to the teeth, enjoying the parade, entering ‘Best Costume’ competition and earning numerous bundles of treasure.

On Sunday, the scallies left standing blinked in the sunshine and headed for the harbour, where members of The Dolmen and Connach offered acoustic entertainment from the decks of the beautiful sailing ship ‘Moonfleet’, especially present for Weymouth Pirate Fest. Then, these weekend’s survivors, suitably serenaded and warmed by the sun, were invited aboard by Skipper Jez Hallet before either hugging farewells or strolling back for a much-needed hair-o-thedog.

The weekend ended, but never, as ever, the stories to tell. News and updates are available by signing up for the Festival’s mailing list: www. weymouthpiratefest.com

Finally, credit must be paid to local organisations and traders, whose sponsorship of this year’s event helped to ensure its success. They include: We Are Weymouth Bid; The Belvedere; Tattoo Morningstar; The Boot; Fantastic Sausage Factory; Gazzini Hair Design and Beauty; Gazzini Coffee and Pizza; Fantasy Forest; Moonfleet Adventure Sail Training; West Dorset Aquatics; Duke of Albany; and Precision Engraving.

Pirate Fest organisers The Dolmen headlined on Saturday night.

Acoustic entertainment was offered from the decks of the beautiful sailing ship ‘Moonfleet’.

Festival focus Over 200 events at Harwich

From 7-9 October, Harwich rang out with music and song once more when the 16th Harwich International Shanty Festival came to town! There was a stupendous range of entertainment on offer at this musical celebration of Harwich’s rich maritime heritage. This year’s festival featured 43 acts with artists travelling to Harwich from France, Germany, Poland and The Netherlands, as well as all points of the UK, to take part in over 200 events, including concerts, sing-around sessions, workshops, illustrated talks, guided walks, maritime crafts, street theatre and enactments.

The Festival was chosen as the setting for the installation of Harwich Town’s Time and Tide Bell by the Low Lighthouse Maritime Museum and an especially composed

Southend-on-Sea’s Silver Darlings singing at Harwich Quay.

Privateer and Ships Surgeon 17th & 18th Century Medical Re-enactment

Jeff Lippman Tel: 07796 145911 Whitby pirates raise cash for the RNLI

In addition to enjoying a memorable weekend of fun and laughter (and not a little drink) from 4-6 September, the scoundrels and scallywags at Whitby Pirate Festival raised an awesome £2869.62 for the town’s RNLI lifeboat. The event was well-attended, with some crews travelling from distant counties, and children were thrilled to have their pictures taken with ‘real’ pirates.

The event was organised, albeit with limited crew and resources, by the WHitby International Pirate Society (WHips) and everyone involved gave their time for free in the worthy cause of saving lives at sea. Purple Polly of WHips would welcome more volunteers to make next year’s Whitby Pirate Festival an even greater success. She can be contacted at www. whitbypirates.co.uk by all

The Pot of Gold Shanty Crew posing by the RNLI lifeboat station.

shanty was sung at the event.

Acts included the welcome return of the well-loved Brasy from Poland, The Longest Johns, who have gained huge popularity over the last few years, and Nordet from Lorient in Brittany with their 20 years’ of world-wide experience. Crews from closer to home in Essex such as The Motley Crew and all female shanty singers, The Silver Darlings, also turned in their usual high standard of performance. The pirate world was well-represented by the marauding band of River Rogues, who presented a fearsome challenge to the Kings German Artillery’s attempts to protect the town. There were skirmishes, musket drill, cannon fire and sword fights taking place between the two groups, with the Redoubt Napoleonic Fort providing an excellent setting for the dramatic events. There was also a skirmish on the beach between smugglers and the local militiamen.

Shanty fans are invited to next year’s Festival, which will take place from 13-15 October. For up-to-date information visit the festival’s website (see listing on page 26) and follow the event on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Whitby pirates raise cash for the RNLI

those who fancy becoming a buccaneer in aid of the RNLI.

After returning to his home port in Essex, Commodore Clyde Jackdaw (Paul Dudley) of Blackwater Pirates, exclaimed: “HUZZAH what a weekend! We spent most of it with The Rum Soaked Pirate Crew and can’t wait to return next year”. He added, “If you’re in the South of England, it’s a long drive of four to five hours for us, but well worth it”.

A pirate’s drinking vessel of choice By Andy Clarke*

Pewter Tankards have been around for a very long time and were the most common drinking vessel used for beer in much of the world until technological changes heralded cheap glass. Sure, glass has a few advantages, such as being able to admire the clarity and colour of your brew. However, just like those who grieved the loss of tankards from pubs around the world, we think the beauty and sheer fun of a tankard should give it a place in any beer lover’s drink-ware collection.

Tankards have been made from many materials such as wood, stainless steel, glass, ceramics and even horn or leather. However, when we think of the word ‘tankard’, we usually think about pewter.

Pewter is a glossy metal alloy consisting mainly of tin. It’s been in use for tableware since at least the Roman period and it was to get access to the rich tin mines of Southern England that gave the Romans a commercial reason to invade Britain in the first century AD. Tin is still a very sought-after metal and is now the fourth most valuable metal in common use after platinum, gold, and silver.

Pewter was the ‘poor man’s silver’, as it was relatively available and could be used for many of the same purposes as silver. In fact, many of the pewter tankard designs we recognise today were originally copies of silver tankards in use by the aristocracy. Less scrupulous merchants even sold pewter as silver to the unwary! Not that that’s entirely fair to pewter, which has a lot of advantages over silver, unless you enjoy polishing.

Tin is a tough metal to work with as it’ll easily collapse at high temperatures, so it is mixed with other metals such as antimony and copper to provide rigidity. Historically, lead was used, but this is no longer the case because of the obvious and very real safety concerns. Be very careful of drinking from antique pewter of any kind… tankards are great, but lead poisoning is not. Modern pewter is safe to drink from and really livens up a cold beer on a hot day

There are three main methods of making a pewter tankard, all of which have been in use for many centuries. These are:

Casting. This method involves pouring molten pewter into a mould. The metal quickly cools and the mould can be removed. This method uses the most metal and, as a result, produces a heavier tankard. Unfortunately, it’s also a more expensive tankard for the same reason (remember what I said about it being the fourth most expensive metal). There are also some limits on the design of a cast tankard, although in most cases this

Ship’s tankard.

Love-skull tankard.

restriction isn’t a big problem.

Sheet-working. This involves carefully cutting sheets of cool pewter into shape before bending around a mould, or ‘former’. The join is hammered shut, sometimes with additional molten pewter, and then polished until the join is not only invisible, but is no longer physically present. This method uses the least pewter and is, therefore, more common for less expensive tankards, but is still a very good option. Few people can tell the difference. The top is worked by the craftsman to give a thick and comfortable rim, and the tankard is quite solid enough for most people. Several tankards of this type estimated to be several hundred years old were recently dug out of the mud of

the River Thames! Spinning. This very traditional method is undoubtedly the most fun to watch and produces the finest tankards. A thick pewter disc is put on a lathe and as the lathe turns the disc, a highly-skilled craftsman uses a range of much-specialised hand-tools to push the tankard into shape. This method produces solid tankards with elegant designs and, depending on the design, can lead to tankards where the bowl is a single piece of pewter. This makes cleaning even easier!

All these methods are often labour-intensive and need very skilled craftsmen, although some Far-Eastern pewter utilises casting on a more industrial scale.

Unlike silver, modern lead-free pewter will not tarnish or go dull over time if left unattended. It needs very little care to last a long time. After use, just hand-wash with your usual dish detergent… that’s all! However, remember to use a soft cloth and a soft towel afterwards, as anything abrasive can scuff pewter. This is also why pewter should not go in the dishwasher.

If your tankard is scratched or looks bad, you can easily regain your sparkle with a little polish. Soap and water will do just fine. Pewter tankards are an excellent addition to any collection and a sound investment to pass on to other pirates in the family.

*Sole proprietor of Pewter World in Hailsham, East Sussex (www. pewterworld.co.uk), where tankards are made from lead-free pewter using techniques that go back centuries.

King’s shilling tankard with glass base.

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