Golden return for folk singer

The line up for the golden anniversary of Towersey Festival later this month is pretty impressive.
Seth LakemanSeth Lakeman
Seth Lakeman

And the headline act in Venue 65 on the Saturday night (August 23) is English folk singer and multi instrumentalist Seth Lakeman, writes Heather Jan Brunt.

Hailing from the beautiful county of Devon Seth, 37, says his home is the inspiration for his work.

He said: “I gain inspiration from the place, the people, and the stories.”

His wife of two years, nurse Hannah, is also inspirational and he wrote Portrait of My Wife for her.

Now the couple have twins, Morley and Lowen, approaching their first birthday and Seth admits they are his audience when he is composing.

He said: “They are showing signs of being musical. I play to them every morning, and often do my writing in front of them, to see which tunes they might react to.”

Seth has been a musician from childhood and appeared on Saturday Superstore with his brothers Sam and Sean when he was just eight-years-old.

He said: “I think my old man was trying to push us as the family Von Trapp! It all started from there.”

Seth worked with his siblings as The Lakeman Brothers and then they joined with Kathryn Roberts and Kate Rusby in the band Equation.

Seth released his first solo album in 2002 and has just released his latest, Word of Mouth, which will feature in his Towersey set.

He’s excited about returning to the festival.

He said: “I’ve been a few times, it’s a great festival. I’ve played there in different line-ups, with Equation and The Lakeman Brothers. I’ve been going since I was 16, so I have very fond memories of Towersey.

The five day Towersey Festival starts on Thursday August 21. Ticket and full line up information can be found on www.towerseyfestival.com