Hi Crystal,

Yes! Yes! Yes! We do need a TV programme that reaches out to people who like folk music, but don't know it yet (because what they think of as folk music is only a diluted or distorted version of the real thing.)

As for a presenter – Stephen Fry would be witty and charming as always, but I'm not sure whether he could connect to a mass audience in the right way. Also, he's not (so far as I know) a singer or instrumentalist himself, and so wouldn't be able to get directly involved in the performances.   

Why not look around for a folk equivalent of Jools Holland ?   Billy Bragg would be good in this role, and so would Ralph McTell. Likewise June Tabor, or Northumbria's own Kathryn Tickell. Or perhaps what the show needs is a resident male-female duo - a folk Judy and Richard?   Martin and Norma would be an obvious choice, but there must be plenty of others who could make a good job of it.

There have been a number of previous attempts to put folk on British TV - some worth copying, others better avoided. My favourites so far have been the two "Transatlantic Sessions" series fronted by Aly Bain and Jay Ungar. Their combination of informal atmosphere, well-chosen repertoire, and high-quality musicianship was irresistable.   And whoever was in charge of the camera was pretty good at maintaining the visual interest – switching between head-on shots of musicians doing their thing and a roving eye that located the music in a wider environment.   

Another excellent demonstration of how to make folk music accessible on TV was a documentary made a few years ago, featuring Greg Stephens and The Boat Band. Greg is a regular contributor to Mudcat, and could give you the production details (or maybe even send you a video of it). And incidentally, Greg himself would also make a better-than-average presenter for a general folk show.

So, go for it Crystal! The massed Mudcatters will be with you all the way.

Wassail!