Dalgety Bay Folk Club
Chums will know that DBFC has proven to be an enormous source of fun and entertainment ever since we landed in Fife. The club's inaugural gig was with the Yard of Ale in Dec 1999, in the DB Sailing Club. We moved to the DB Sports and Social Club and then to the Woodside Hotel in Aberdour.
We've had various short holidays and evenings out, plus the regular gigs. Some of us who own musical instruments formed a band, called After 8 Mince, which is sometimes allowed out to play. Founder member Stewart Leitch passed away in 2005 but we continue under the leadership of Val Valiant who tempers our worst excesses!! Other members are or have been Alex Smart, Steve Touhey, Dave Yates, Ian Watson, Bill Ewing and Mike O'Flaherty. Chairman of the club, Colin Hay, is on loan from the band to his mandolin tutor.
The trip to Ireland in 2002 was a massive success - we went to Westport
in Co Mayo, ate in The
Helm and stayed in the the Harbour
Mill Apartments. In 2003 we repeated the experience, once again taking
the Yard
of Ale with us as prisoners resident band. One of the
places we visited was Ballintubber
Abbey - highly recommended if you're ever in Mayo. Demand to be taken round
by Angela.
Westport again in 2003, 40 Fifers on tour!! And now the antics in Blair Atholl in April 04 when After Eight Mince hit town and donned their glad rags, with the inimitable (who said inevitable?) Yard of Ale. Amazingly they had us back in 2005 - click here to see everyone. In February 2005 we were invited to dinner at the Scottish Parliament by our MSP Helen Eadie, and Tarneybackle played. 2006 saw a return to the venue for a tribute gig for Stewart, with new shirts for the YofA, whilst Tarneybackle came prepared for the worst, with their hard hats... (a beam had fallen out of the roof in the debating chamber the day before...) ..and now back to BA for the third time, when the Mincers played an aperitif session (no, I dunno either).
Into 2007 and after a February dinner with The Wherries and A8M in Aberdour, it was back off up the A9 to BA, to be entertained once again by Yard of Ale and Tandem, with Ken & Gillian Charleson in an heroic No Sleep 'til Breakfast marathon. The Mincers had the aperitif slot again, no neds in the car park this time, just Derek and Colin.
The Mincers have had a few ad hoc sessions at the Coal Edge pub in Fordell, Burntisland Golf Club and the Race for Life here in the Bay; plus the Aberdour play park and the Folk Club dinner, again in Burntisland, the one off at the Social club and hopefully so it goes on....
2008 - another great weekend at BA - props to La Val and Paul, who sat through rehearsals of Fear À Bhata more times than was legally required. We have just played in the pouring rain at Strathcarron Hospice and our next outing will be the Race for Life, in the playing fields of the Dalgety Bay sports centre.
2009 was busy, we played twice at the DB Bowling Club, at BA6 (minus me, since Paul & I were at Nikki and Robbie's wedding), at the South Queensferry Scout club, at DBFC and many times at CoalEdge tavern, thank you Alex.
2010 and with BA7 looming, here are some pictures of the Mincers in rehearsal.
Thanks to everyone - it's always a hoot!