Designed to give local artists an essential platform to showcase their talents, The Black Country Folk Festival is making a return this summer and is promising to be the biggest yet.

Taking place in the grounds of Himley Hall on Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 July, the festival will have 17  acts perform on the two stages, with 90% of them based in the region.

Jess Silk and Alex Ohm will swap performing at Glastonbury for a hometown gig and will be joined by the Empty Can, The Emma Linney Band and Matt Johnson and the Reprobates.

Headlining will be ‘Man The Lifeboats’ and ‘Attila The Stockbroker’, whereas festival goers will be able to enjoy a host of local food and drink, including real ale and craft beer from Fixed Wheel Brewery in Blackheath.

Early bird tickets for the weekend are just £25 and, for the first time, there is the rare option for people and families to camp in the grounds of Himley Hall.

“We have some amazing talent in the Black Country, yet with a lot of pubs and music venues closing down, there is not the same opportunity for them to get their music out there as there once was,” explained James Stevens, who is organising the event with Steve Edwards.

“This Folk Festival is trying to reverse the trend and is the perfect place for families and individuals to come together to enjoy lots of great music, food and the unique location that is Himley Hall. We sold 400 tickets last year but are already on course to double that figure in 2023 with a further 100 due to camp over.”

He continued: “Attila the Stockbroker is a legend on the festival scene, so to have him headlining on the Sunday and Man The Lifeboats on the Saturday is a real coup, alongside the wealth of Black Country artists due to perform.

“To have acts, who in recent years have performed at Glastonbury, now performing at the Black Country Folk Festival is a bit surreal - they have literally performed at the biggest festival in the world and are now playing at Himley Hall.”

Organisers behind the festival are appealing to local businesses to get behind the event by taking advantage of one of the sponsorship deals available.

This includes the main stage, the second stage (run in partnership with Stourbridge-based Katie Fitzgerald’s), festival literature and the artist’s tent where several Q&As will be held.

Company branding, social media mentions and introduction to the acts is all available for any firm looking to support local music and build their brand in the process.

Steve Edwards concluded: “The response from singers and bands has been outstanding. There’s a real appetite for live music in the Black Country and this is reflected in level of ticket sales to date. It’s going to be bostin!”

For further information to buy tickets, visit blackcountryfolk.co.uk.