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Tuesday 10am - 5pm Wednesday 10am - 5pm Thursday 10am - 5pm Friday 10am - 5pm Saturday 10am - 5pm Sunday 11am - 5pm

Tolpuddle Martyrs' Festival & Museum

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Tolpuddle Martyrs' Festival & Museum

The official page for the Tolpuddle Martyrs' Festival and Museum. Save the dates: 18 - 20 July 2025 Farm workers could not bear yet more cuts to their pay.
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In the 1830s life in villages like Tolpuddle was hard and getting worse. Some fought back by smashing the new threshing machines but this brought harsh punishments. In 1834, farm workers in west Dorset formed a trade union. Unions were lawful and growing fast but six leaders of the union were arrested and sentenced to seven years’ transportation for taking an oath of secrecy. A massive protest swe

pt across the country. Thousands of people marched through London and many more organised petitions and protest meetings to demand their freedom.

03/06/2026

Tolpuddle Martyrs' Festival returns to the sloping Dorset fields in July 🏕️

Grab your tickets today: unsn.uk/Tolpuddle2026

03/06/2026

Keeping Tolpuddle's folk music roots alive and well on Sunday 19th July in the Martyrs Marquee will be the wonderful SUE CONROY🌞

https://sueconroymusic.co.uk/

Sue has recently emerged onto the folk scene predominantly in
and around Teesside. Her original songs engage audiences and
soon have them singing along. Sue’s impressive and prolific
songwriting, distinctive voice and strong stagecraft have already earned her a warm response and a growing following. Her act incorporates feisty protest songs, humorous ditties and dreamy, lyrical ballads capturing her love of the outdoors 🎸

Recent performances have included supporting the award-winning
North Riding and Robb Johnson, playing Joe Solo’s We Shall Overcome event and a guest slot at Saltburn Folk Club among many more.

Please fill the tent at Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2026!

30/05/2026

Our next performer made a big impact on last year's festival, coming from overseas to get stuck in with the crew as well as various pop up gigs! It's a pleasure to bring him back to Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2026 and put him on the main programme on Sunday 19th July! 🌞

Yahmo Ahqha is a trade unionist with the United Domestic Workers of America (UDW). He is a guitarist, singer and songwriter from Chico, California. His music blends blues, rock and funk together with messages of social and environmental justice, particularly in
regards to Indigenous rights. He is a member of the Pomo Nation in Northern California and a Central Committee member of the Peace and Freedom Party of California, the largest socialist party on the ballot in the state ✊

Welcome back Yahmo!

27/05/2026

Next up to the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2026 stage! 👏

Calum Baird is a Scottish folk, punk and story-telling singer-songwriter and musician featured on BBC Radio 2, BBC 6 Music, BBC Introducing, BBC Radio Scotland and Amazing Radio.

“Echoing early Billy Bragg with his dogged optimism” – Tom Robinson, BBC 6 Music

Calum’s music is characterised by its honesty and authenticity, with lyrics that are often introspective and personal. His songs explore social commentary, modern life, relationships, alienation and social change. Calum’s influences include Neil Young, Billy Bragg, The Pogues and Dick Gaughan.

Calum has been featured on radio stations across the UK and internationally, and he has performed at festivals and events throughout the UK, Europe and Cuba. He has been featured in
online media and the press, including in Scotland on Sunday as their Artist of the Week.

In addition to touring and writing his own music, Calum wrote and composed the musical score for the award-winning feature-film Exiles (2021) written by Glasgow poet and writer, Victoria McNulty.

Please give him a warm Tolpuddle welcome! ✊❤️

22/05/2026

Something ship-shape and hearty in the Martyrs Marquee on Sunday afternoon, 19th July ⚓️

The Silver Darlings are a 6 piece all-female shanty crew from Southend on Sea, Essex.

Combining heart-warming harmonies with passion, enthusiasm and a healthy dose of humour, these girls deliver a live performance that is both energetic and emotional.

The girls have performed at many UK shanty and folk festivals, crossed into the mainstream at Latitude Festival and are frequent visitors to European maritime festivals in France, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands ⛵️

Their second album ‘Whaling Women’ was released in 2025, following their critically acclaimed debut ‘Maiden Voyage'.

Come and join them for an uplifting singalong!

21/05/2026

Lock up yer badgers! Hide yer cider!

The Skimmity Hitchers are playing the Martyrs Marquee on Friday night 17th July 🤪

This band of West Country wrong'uns have become part of the Tolpuddle fabric over the last 15 years. They've played the Unite South West tent more times than we can remember, plus open mics, guerrilla gigs and even instigated a cider riot in the Workers Beer bar 🫣

Whatever we do we just can't shake 'em off, and now they're back on a big stage at Tolpuddle for only the second time ever! 🎪

Expect cider-tinged, badger-lovin', Tory-baiting tunes - a mix of sharp parodies and home pressed originals. Plus as raucous a stage show as you're ever likely to see this side of Dorchester...

🍎🦡🚜

20/05/2026

🔥✊🏾🔥✊🏾🔥✊🏾🔥✊🏾

We are beyond thrilled to announce that The Peoples Army will be returning to Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2026 on Saturday night 18th July!

One of the absolute highlights of last year's festival, the conscious hip-hop collective will bring more MCs, more tunes and more message to the Martyrs Marquee.

UK hip-hop legend logicarmy has curated an incredible crew, featuring:

Amy True - A British-born, Irish/Ugandan poet, rapper, and songwriter whose music fuses politically conscious hip-hop with jazz and soul and whose powerful lyricism has made her a standout in the UK scene since 2011 -

Malachi Army - A recording artist with releases like Killer Riddim and Jinn, whose work blends hip-hop and contemporary rhythms and has featured on collaborative tracks such as “Hip-Hop is a Feeling” -

Kayncee - A vocalist/rapper associated with The People’s Army collective, contributing to tracks like Grateful and Not Alone that showcase collaborative UK hip-hop creativity - Kayncee

Criba - A rapper featured in collective music projects with The People’s Army, known for his verses on tracks like Kingship and Warrior alongside other UK underground artists -

Yesha - A creative voice frequently credited within The People’s Army collective, contributing to the group’s rich mix of artists and styles - @444.yesha

L Skin - An artist who appears on releases by The People’s Army, bringing lyrical depth and collaborative energy to tracks like Kingship and Roots To The Leaves - .lskin

Lukky Punch - UK hip-hop/rap artist also associated with The People’s Army, contributing to the collective’s diverse creative output - Lukky Punch

Don't. Miss. This. 🎤

18/05/2026

Sunday 19th July at Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2026 we bring you the brilliant Generation Feral 😎

Generation Feral is an anti-establishment ukulele warrior. The DIY solo project of Izzy Liddamore is for fans of Kae Tempest and Fiona Apple: she serves up a strange soup of spoken word, raging art-punk, and vulnerable piano music - accompanied with a generous side of female rage. Opening for artists such as The Meffs and Getdown Services this past year, plus sharing a bill with Jeremy Corbyn, Feral's music spans the sincere to the silly.

https://linktr.ee/generationferal

Generation Feral's writing style is fascinated with lived experience and human emotion – sometimes aimed sharply at the government's failings of the people, sometimes pen-down in an act of helpless surrender and emotional overwhelm. Powered by her Essex ferocity, armed with her smaller than average instrument backed by Tom Robinson on 6music, she's one to watch this year.

14/05/2026

More brand new and exciting live music for Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2026 🤩

Trinidad-born and London-based, Ms. Mohammed makes music that moves like a diaspora in motion.

https://msmohammed.com

Island rhythms collide with her South Asian roots and the grit of art-rock. Threaded through it all are the politics of identity, migration and resistance. One third of the cult underground collective 'The S*x Patels' and a former member of the critically acclaimed feminist alt-choir 'Gaggle', she is now re-emerging fresh from opening for Nadine Shah’s Filthy Underneath tour, stepping into a new chapter with the release of her upcoming single: a stylish, smouldering cover of PJ Harvey’s “To Bring You My Love.”

Opening up the Martyrs Marquee programme on Friday evening, 17th July.

Don't miss it! 😎

12/05/2026

Liam Vincent & The Odd Foxes are a band that doesn’t just make music, they make a statement.

https://www.theoddfoxes.com/

Known for their emotive blend of protest folk, anthemic rock, and intricate violin-led melodies, the band’s songs weave together themes of social justice, personal reflection, and the deep-rooted desire for change. Their music delivers a powerful message: one of defiance, hope, and a call to action in a fractured world ✊💖

Their new material takes aim at modern life: two-faced politicians, self-help clichés, the puppet strings of capitalism, and the quiet yearning for something simpler.

They're sure to be a hit with the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival 2026 crowd when they kick off the Main Stage programme on Sunday morning, 19th July.

Be sure to be there 😎

Address

Dorchester Road
Tolpuddle
DT27EH

Opening Hours

Tuesday	10am - 5pm
Wednesday	10am - 5pm
Thursday	10am - 5pm
Friday	10am - 5pm
Saturday	10am - 5pm
Sunday	11am - 5pm

Telephone

+441305848237

Website

http://www.tolpuddlemartyrs.org.uk/

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