Following Stephanie’s excellent talk you may be interested in watching the new two part drama about the life of Mary Ann Cotton to be shown on ITV beginning next Monday, 31 October, at    9 p.m. and starring Joanne Froggatt (Downton Abbey).

SANDRA KERR

“Women’s Lives and Experiences”

Sandra has had a long and distinguished career in folk music since her days with Ewan MacColl’s Critics Group, and with Ewan and Peggy and the Critics, she performed all over the world, and recorded numerous albums.

Well known as the co- writer, with John Faulkner, of the music for “Bagpuss”, (voted ‘best-loved BBC TV children’s programme’ in 1999), she directs folk choirs (including the popular and award-winning Northumbrian Choir Werca’s Folk) and is greatly respected as a tutor of folk arts.  For the last 10 years Sandra has been a lecturer at Newcastle University, on the Degree Course in Folk & Traditional Music.

She plays guitar, dulcimer, autoharp and the English concertina. Her song- writing reflects her feminist and radical politics, and her songs are well-known on the Left  and amongst women activists, ‘We Were There’, ‘No Going Back’ and ‘Emily Davison’ to mention just a few.

A closer connection to us perhaps is that Sandra wrote a song, “Loving Hearts and Skilful Hands”, to mark the 100th anniversary of the Women’s Institute.

“Like a lot of women, especially ‘toonies’ like me, I didn’t know much about the WI and thought it was all about jam and Jerusalem and proggy mats.

“I looked online at the website and things they have been involved in some pretty amazing campaigns which is something to be proud of.”

COMPETITION – A poem about women