Send us a text In this episode of The Parson and the Songmen we join Mike at Ashwater Church, in the far west of Devon, for a day of 'ringing and singing'. One Day In October are the first four words of a very special song that the Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould collected, telling of a bell ringing competition that took place at Ashwater church some two hundred years ago. For the last two years this event has been remembered in the form of a day centred around bell ringing, organised by J...

Send us a text The poet John Keats called Autumn the 'season of mists and mellow fruitfulness'. A time for reflection and also a time when 'all is safely gathered in' before the onset of winter. Those words, of course, come from the harvest hymn We Plough The Fields And Scatter, and in this episode of The Parson And The Songmen we discover the origins of what we know as The Harvest Festival church service and find out more about the man behind its creation - Robert Stephen Hawker, the Vicar o...

Send us a text 'Catch Me If You Can' is the title of a cassette tape, (originally released in 1978 and please search the interweb if you're too young to know what a cassette tape is) released by Pete Coe who spent a week in the company of a Cornish travelling family, recording songs and stories about their way of life in the early 1900s. Mike has known Pete since the 1960s in Birmingham where they both sang at The Black Diamond Folk Club, held in the Drovers Arms. Pete went on to become, as d...

Send us a text Hello and welcome back after our summer break! In this episode we focus on William Andrews, a shy farmer from Sheepstor, in a remote part of Dartmoor, Devon. Andrews was not only a farmer though, he was a skilled fiddle player, and was visited by The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould in order to note down some of his tunes that would become known in time as The William Andrews Collection. Support the show *PLEASE VISIT MY NEW WEBSITE mikebosworth.uk Lots of info about my connection ...

Send us a text Join Mike for a very special 'Parson and the Songmen' this time around! It's not every day that you happen to get to the chance to have a chat with one of the world's leading mandolinists, composers and all round wit, but this is just what Mike did recently when he met up with Simon Mayor. Taken from Simon Mayor's biog on his website mandolin.co.uk Please visit for info on all of his work, gigs, workshops, projects, CDs etc 'As well as being an incredible mandolin player, Simon...

Send us a text In this fifth episode of the third series of The Parson and the Songmen, Mike explores Sabine's second autobiography 'Further Reminiscences'. In the book he discovers a song that seems to have , astonishingly, escaped Baring-Gould's keen censorship in order to make his song collection, as he put it, 'fit for Christian ears to hear!' If the song had been through 'the cleansing process', then did the Reverend Gentleman think it was a fair reflection of society, or was it, i...

Send us a text Firstly, Many Happy Returns to The Parson And The Songmen as it celebrates its Second Birthday with its Fiftieth Episode! In this special episode Mike tells the story of how a song collected by The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould made it into the British pop charts and peaked at No.3 no less!! What the Reverend Gentleman would have thought of Elvis (No.1), The Drifters (No.2) and Cliff Richard (No.4) who surrounded him at the top of the chart we will never know, but I bet he would...

Send us a text The songs published in Songs From The West by the Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould were wholly collected, or particular to, Devon and Cornwall. But what to do with the songs sent to him from other parts of England and beyond? Sabine never discarded these songs, but put them to one side as they were of interest and too good to be lost and these resulted in a new publication Join Mike now as he tells the story of how this book came into being, which The Reverend Gentleman titled 'A G...

Send us a text The publication of folk songs collected by The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould in Devon and Cornwall made them accessible to the general public, but left Sabine wondering just how he could reach an even wider audience? His answer was to get on the road for a series of 'gigs' that were were probably the first ever traditional folk song tour of England! Phew! Rock and Roll.... Support the show *PLEASE VISIT MY NEW WEBSITE mikebosworth.uk Lots of info about my connection to folk musi...

Send us a text Spring has arrived here in North Devon, and it would seem to have had quite an effect on Mike who is full of vim and vigour ( or possibly something stronger...) In this first episode of the the third series of The Parson and the Songmen we are back in Devon to celebrate spring, and there is a distinctive feminine theme running through the podcast. Confused? Well let's find out where Mike will lead us now. Happy listening! Support the show *Please can you help by supporting the ...

Send us a text Hardly seems a year since the last compilation of music from the first series. But yer us be! Season Two is now complete and we'll finish off in viddy style with the now customary(!) selection of songs from the shows. Geddon Boy! Here is the track listing, or click on CHAPTERS (above) if you want to go to an individual track. The HighwaymanGlory Of The WestThe Village ShopTristan's LamentCome My LadsThe MerrymaidMedhel An GwinsI Rode My Little HorseBold Gambling BoyThe Legend O...

Send us a text Well, we've missed All Fool's Day by a day, but let's celebrate this custom anyway. In this podcast Mike takes a look into its origins and tells some stories about one of Cornwall's great historical pranksters, as recorded by The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould. Support the show *Please can you help by supporting the show. I have always kept the episodes commercial-free, but in order for the podcasts to continue I do need some support, due to ongoing running costs. So, pleas...

Send us a text Recently, Mike went to visit the force of nature that is Moe Keast at her home in Bodmin, Cornwall. Moe is a traditional singer and storyteller and has been a regular at Bodmin Folk Club, with a short break for bringing up children, almost since the first evening in 1968! Moe has been a Cornish Bard for 25 years under the name of 'Myrgh Cana Hengovek', translating as, 'Daughter of Traditional Singing', and is very proud of her Cornish Heritage. She has played ...

Send us a text Gool Peran Lowen! Or for those whose Cornish may be a little rusty, Happy St Piran's Day! St Piran is generally regarded as the patron saint of Cornwall and the 5th March is St Piran's Day which is celebrated in Cornwall in much the same way as St Patrick's Day is celebrated in Ireland. But who was St Piran, and why is he so special to the Cornish? Find out now in this twenty-second episode of the second series of 'The Parson and the Songmen'. Support the show *Please can...

Send us a text In this episode of The Parson and the Songmen, Mike investigates the possibility of missing Cornish folk songs. Is there a religious connection and will he solve the case? Support the show *Please can you help by supporting the show. I have always kept the episodes commercial-free, but in order for the podcasts to continue I do need some support, due to ongoing running costs. So, please support me (if you can) by donating. For details of how to make a donation click on support....

Send us a text Recently, Mike went to visit Barbara Griggs for a chat about the place of the harp in Cornish music. What you are about to listen to is a fascinating podcast, brought to life by the engaging, informative, and witty explanations from Barbara. "After many years playing Early Music on recorders and viols, I took up the harp when moving to Cornwall. This led naturally to an interest in the early music of Cornwall and historic harps. Playing the folk music of Cornwall introduced me ...

Send us a text In this episode of The Parson and the Songmen we join The Reverend Sabine Baring Gould and Freddie Bussell for two songs they collected from Samuel Gilbert, landlord of the Falcon Inn at St Mawgan (or Lanherne in the Cornish language). The two songs could well have origins far to the north, and to finish off Mike provides a theory as to why there may well have been so much footfall through Cornwall from 'up country'. Support the show *Please can you help by supporting the sho...

Send us a text A Happy New Year To You All! Join Mike in this first podcast of 2025 for the 18th episode of the second series of The Parson and the Songmen. This time around Mr Bosworth looks into the tradition of wassailing, which can involve drinking and making lots of noise... sounds a lot like Mike really! Support the show *Please can you help by supporting the show. I have always kept the episodes commercial-free, but in order for the podcasts to continue I do need some support, du...

Send us a text Happy Christmas! In this episode we join Mike on a road trip around Cornwall to look into the surprising history of carols and their place in the church. If that wasn't enough Mike also delves into the mysterious world of 'the little folk' or piskies, as they are known in Cornwall. Add a generous helping of Christmas song and you indeed have a bumper festive edition! Support the show *Please can you help by supporting the show. I have always kept the episodes commercial-free, b...

Send us a text As we near the end of the centenary year of the Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould's death, Mike ponders why the folksong collectors who came after him did not pursue the idea that many of the songs and tunes of Devon and Cornwall had celtic roots? We revisit the interview with Cornish-based musicologist Mike O'Connor from Series Two, Podcast 11 to reinforce Mike's view as to whether there was a positive link. Support the show *Please can you help by supporting the show. I have alway...