Swanage Shanty Festival: 12 acts at The Mowlem

Swanage has a new addition to its autumn calendar, and it comes with a proper maritime heart. The first Swanage Shanty Festival is set for Saturday 21 November at The Mowlem, the old seafront landmark on Shore Road, and it is shaping up to be a full day of singing rather than a quick stop. Twelve maritime acts are on the bill, and the whole thing runs from 2pm right through to 11pm, with doors opening at 1.30pm if you want to be in early.

The line-up reads like a roll call of the South Coast's shanty scene. Expect the Southampton Salty Sea Dogs, Steam Town Shanty Crew, Sea Gels Shanty Band, Scrimshanker Shanty, Bridport Broadsides, Poole Me Hearties, Spinnaker Shanty, Wareham Whalers, Titchfield Whalers, Kittiwakes and Dorset Wrecks, all of whom bring their own take on the old working songs of the sea. Hosting the day is the local shanty band Kelp!, which Steve Williams and John Gilmore got going about fifteen years ago, so the festival is being steered by people who know the form.

What makes the setup work is how it uses the building. The Mowlem is running two stages under one roof, with acts split between the theatre and the showbar, so you can drift between the two rather than being tied to one room all afternoon. It is a smart way to keep things moving over nine hours, and it means the music carries across the whole venue rather than staying in one corner.

The Mowlem itself is a bit of Swanage history. The site has been a seafront landmark since 1863, when John Mowlem built the original Mowlem Institute; the building you will walk into is the one that replaced it, which opened in the mid-sixties, and it sits right at the junction of two of the town's main shopping streets. It is a fitting place for a shanty festival, given the building's long connection to the seafront.

On the practical side, tickets are £14 for adults and £7 for children and under-18s, and every penny of profit goes to the RNLI and the Swanage Lifeboat, so the money you spend ends up supporting the very people who keep the coast safe. It is a genuine cause to get behind, and it gives the whole day a bit more weight than your average gig.

If you have been following the local listings, you will have noticed the Christmas markets and food festivals that tend to take over this time of year. This is something different entirely, a proper maritime day that leans into the coast rather than the shopping. Whether you are into shanties or just fancy a day of live music for a good cause, it is worth marking the 21st in your diary. With twelve acts and two stages, there is plenty to keep you going from the first chord at 2pm right through to the close at 11pm, and with the profits going to the lifeboat, it is a day that does some good while it keeps you entertained.