Thanet Stories

Listen to Jo Tuffs, the Broadstairs folk festival director, talking about this year's festival, starting in August 2024. This is Jo Tuffs last year as director, and she reflects on the last 20 years, as well as giving us a great update on what to expect from this year's offerings

Have a listen to a review of the 2022 Broadstairs Folkweek …. magic as ever, starting with Lindisfarne. Also Jo Tuffs, Creative Director & myself, stroll around & see ‘what's occurring' during the Wednesday of the festival. Enjoy

Listen to my interview podcast with Jo Tuffs Director of Broadstairs Folk Festival 2022. Hear about all the great acts coming this summer from Lindisfarne to African drumming & how you can get festival free tickets just by volunteering

Stone to Joss Bay   This is the 3rd podcast covering the 16 sandy bays of Thanet. Today I venture along Stone Bay & Joss Bay Listen to tales of smuggling battles, visitors from South Africa that come to this unique coast? Surfers that like January & much more. Use it as a companion to walk with or just snuggle up & listen to so avoiding the cold walk of Covid winter!   Thanet Stories

 This podcast is one of a series covering The 16 Bays of Thanet. All of the Bays are steeped in historic nature and geographical  stories. Join me as I embark on these podcasts & tell their tale.we start with Pegwell Bay. Once the site of the first hovercraft crossing port to France, now a wonderful nature reserve.  

Join me, Jez Hulme, as I interview Jo Tuffs,Folkweek Creative Director as we discuss how this years revamped festival is going. Hear about some of the creative acts & workshops on show this year. How did Saturday’s winds & Monday’s thunder impacted the festival & did the ‘Dunkirk spirits’ prevailed?

Listen to Jo Tuffs chat to Jez Hulme about the ‘new look’ Folk festival 2019 . Hear about all the different styles of folk & dance available to see this year along with the workshops that are happening.

Find out what happened when the ‘Grout Expectations’ team from Broadstairs get to take on the BBC 2  quiz team - ‘The Eggheads’. How were they selected, what’s behind the name, what's the inside story of how the programme is recorded & most importantly how well did our team do. Follow this fascinating story on their great quiz adventure

Thanet Man of the Sea Pete Stockwell. Hear the tales of the sea from Pete who’s family goes back to the 16th century in Broadstairs. Recorded at ‘The Shed’ - a voluntary organisation for older people using their metalwork & work working skills in support of the local community- where Pete was a founder member. Join us for this treat through Broadstairs’ history.

Hear Jane Wenham Jones - joint founder of BroadstairsLit- talk about the up & coming events for 2019. Find out which 2 great names from the world of diplomacy & entertainment will be gracing the Pavilion stage in Broadstairs over the next 3 months, definitely not to be missed.

Broadstairs’s Men of the Sea’- Richard Tremain   Follow the life of this ex Royal Navy man as he discusses his fascinating deployments over his career. Richard was born in Thanet & returned to Thanet in later life as many do, inspired by this beautiful coast hear how his life panned out & where he finally ended up at a well known delicatessen in Broadstairs.

Harry Tullett enlisted in 1915 & was stationed in Sicily. In 1918 he was transferred to the western front as a member of the Royal Army Medical Corp. His granddaughter Jenny (a Broadstairs resident) 100 years later transcribed the pencil written diary to a coherent story now told in this podcast. Hear his words as he describes; life in France, his pals, rescuing wounded soldiers from no-mans land, dressing stations, the terrible fear from machine guns & shrapnel, & the shear hard work & danger of his role. Throughout, his humour & those of his pals comes shining through. It’s an honour to be able to bring this brave soldier’s words back to life

Hear about the new Broadstairs Winter Folk Festival. Guaranteed to liven up your January with top acts from around the universe!..enjoy

Come with me around Broadstairs Folk Festival 2018 Hear about the top artist the festival attracts. Hear reaction from visitors & volunteers alike. Listen to Jo Tuffs, festival director, explain the the ethos, challenges & joys of making the festival work. This is a good overview to new & old visitors to this wonderful folk festival set in the beautiful seaside town of Broadstairs.

Listen to Broadstairs Folkweek Director Jo Tuffs review the upcoming festival. Hear who’s playing in the main concert tent, what changes are afoot at the Hobby Horse Club & find out how you can get involved in classes from kettle drums to belly dancing   Folkweek: August 10th to 17th

Jane Wenham-Jones is an author, journalist, presenter, interviewer and creative writing tutor. This is Jane’s eight book and tells the tale of ‘Tess’ a middle aged, recently divorced, lady looking for a new life in a new town. She finds herself  squeezed between the demands of her child at one end & her mother at the other end. As usual Jane picks on the zeitgeist of the moment where many will empathise with Tess’ situation. Jane in this podcast reveals how she constructs novels from the sources and characters that she builds during the writing process.  ‘Mum in the Middle’ is launched on Kindle for a special opening offer of 99p on June 15th 2018. Don’t miss this offer to read another fascinating tale from this highly regarded experienced author and one of Broadstairs’ own.

Hear Denise Martin Harker enthuse about this up& coming interview at the Pavillion Broadstairs May 11th when she interviews him about his new book ‘Above Head Height, where he explores men’s passion for football, their relationship with the beautiful game & each other. James fascinating background with TalkSport, Loaded, GQ & the NME has given him a bag full of stories to be heard on the night. At £10 each which includes a drink this has to be a steal! Book tickets through the  Broadlit website  happy listening

Find out how these massive offshore windmills that can be seen from the Thanet coast are making a huge difference to our electricity needs. At one stage the wind farm was the largest offshore wind farm in the word. Operated by Vattenfall the company base many of its functions here in Ramsgate. Hear how they work & what their future plans are

Hear about this most dangerous of sand banks that 'swallows' ships, aircraft & people if they fall foul of its quick sand. Listen to tales of the 'ghost ships' that reappear many years after they have been sucked into the sand. Pete Legg - retired mariner & historian gives 1st hand descriptions of his own ghostly experiences & the tragedies of those that have fallen victim to the dangers of the Godwin's that lay so near to the Thanet coast & can be seen lurking in the distance waiting for unsuspecting mariners.

Hear about this new exciting initiative that will run over 300 days. Go along to the first event on Sept 24th at the Pavilion in Broadstairs & hear who you will meet, this being the first of many literary occasions that you will enjoy over the next 300 days

A chance to join The Festival Director Jo Tuffs & myself as we journey around this year's folk festival hearing the stories of those people that make this unique event so special

Join me on my trip to the beautiful village & cliffs of Kingsdown. Hear my tales as I walk along the cliffs on a magic visit that's only 40 mins from Thanet

Take a trip with me to the Thanet Volunteers Fair as I interview organisations in Thanet looking for volunteers to support their aims. Hear descriptions of what they do. Hear about the roles they need filling. Use this podcast as a springboard to meeting new people, helping others & knowing you are making a valuable contribution to life in Thanet by volunteering

Listen to Kim Headley Programme Director reveal who & when this years top acts will be performing in the Concert Marquee at the Folk Festival from Aug 11th to Aug 18th. Hear how Kim gives you her unique & enthusiastic spin on the weeks events. A podcast not to be missed for new & old Folk Week lovers

Enjoy a great feast of fun history & entertainment as we celebrate Charles Dickens & his links with Broadstairs. Come to banquets, see magic, watch plays, drink gin! All are part of the 80th anniversary of this great festival. Be here for the parade at 1pm Saturday June 17th & stay for fun frivolity & history as we celebrate the great author & the world he lived in. June 17th - 23rd in the beautiful town of Broadstairs by the sea

Discover fascinating tales of the rich the poor the sad & the famous in amongst the amazing headstones & memorials of this classic beautiful Victorian cemetery right on our doorstep Find out how to visit this unique historical area of Thanet

Come & visit Petticoat La in Ramsgate. Hear the inside story of its success . Follow this with a tour around The Montifiore Synagogue & learn why there is an original roman pillar on site. Learn about the Famous Morellis ice cream gelato parlour in Broadstairs. Find out about the unique concept behind Broadstairs latest hotel The Yarrow. Interviews and inside stories with this latest Thanet Tour number 2

Join Kiki Case & myself as we walk & talk our way to Joss Bay, describing the scenery as we go & uncovering the story behind this highly informative & respected free magazine , the 'go to' publication for life in Thanet.

Take a tour across Thanet discovering great moments in history that happened on the Island. From bravery to kindness to creativity it's all here. This is the first of 3 tours to be undertaken covering the stories of remarkable people & fascinating places

Come & tour around one of the most unusual & intriguing museums in Kent, 'The Micro Museum' based in Ramsgate. See the history of computers originating back in the Victorian era! Play computer games from the 1970's right thru to 2000. Do quizzes, find hidden toys, compete with your friends on the computer games and participate in 'special' themed days'. Once visited you'll want to come back again & again to participate in the fun & learning of computers. This podcast brings it all to life

Hear about the 2 most famous aircraft from the Battle of Britain. The Spitfire & Hurricane Memorial Museum houses these two great planes for all to see & with entry being free all are welcome. This podcast will guide you around the museum and enlighten you to the personal stories that attach themselves to each of these world beating machines that saved these islands from invasion. Visit the cafe & take time out in the serene memorial garden.

A joyous trip around the festival with Jo Tuffs the Festival Director. Find out about music venues, musicians, dancing displays, the Hobby Horse club for kids and the workshops offered during this magic week. You'll want to visit after you've heard this podcast

Come aboard the largest vessel in Ramsgate Harbour, the Cervia Hear how this restored Thames tug has come back to life having been sunk by a terrible accident. Hear how our guide escaped death on the tugs by a matter of minutes. Share life on board and what role these vessels played in making London the busiest port in the world

Join us on a guided tour around the history of the seas surrounding Thanet. Discover the importance & major events that Ramsgate Harbour was the centre of. Learn what happened when a great storm occurred 6 miles off the Thanet coast on the Goodwin Sands, the most treacherous stretch of water for shipwrecking in the world

Walk along Botany Bay & hear the fascinating tales of Mike Ross Trevor who now lives in Thanet but spent 40 yrs recording some of Britain's best known artists particularly from the 60's. Many of the number 1's of that time were recorded by Mike. Hear the inside stories of actually what happen in the studio. Share the tales as we walk & talk along this beautiful coastline.

A guide around this impressive tribute to Manston. From early years through to the Battle of Britain & beyond in this the centenary year of this famous airbase

A tour around Crampton tower in Broadstairs. Find out how this legendary engineer was a pioneer and how his inventions help lay the foundations of British industrial development

Hear about why WW1 Zeppelins effected WW2 in Thanet. Hear about the 16 yr old captain of the Home guard & the German they captured. Also other stories about what part pigeons & balloons played in Thanet's war

Listen to personal stories of Ramsgate people in the blitz. Come along to the Hornby visitors centre & witness their tribute to the Battle of Britain

Take a fascinating trip along Ramsgate Tunnels and hear what life was like for those that took shelter in them during the war. This is a taster podcast to encourage you to visit this awe inspiring piece of history

A guided walk around The Defence of Britain museum highlighting the part that the people of Thanet played in the evacuation of Dunkirk during 1940

An atmospheric walk amongst the graves of this ancient site

A walking history tour around old Broadstairs covering smuggling, the link with Charles Dickens & many more history stories & tales of this picturesque town on the Kent coast.