I had guessed it was Hootenanny too.

One thing the book made clear to me was that The Critics group did various things; both providing a focus on how to sing folk songs and serving as the basis for organising theatrical enterprises which became almost annual events, the Theatre of Fools. Some members joined for the theatrical bit rather than the singing bit; I think Michael Rosen (another talented person whom I admire) was in this group. This is how come the Critics Group split when the last Theatre of Fools had been done. Is this where some of the confusion comes in (I know I was a bit muddled about this before reading the book; I had not been aware of the theatrical activities of the Critics Group.)

Harker seems to say that MacColl and a man called Nixon were important in setting up the Ballads and Blues. He also says that even in 1958 MacColl was trying to impose a rule about people should restrict themselves to songs from their own national heritage. Initially they used a big venue and then moved to a pub, The Princess Louise in High Holborn. MacColl was writing to Seeger at this time. He and Nixon used to argue about which acts to put on and MacColl would annoy Nixon (the book says) by not calling his acts. MacColl developed a reputation for ruthlessness. Harker quotes from a programme that features the term 'Hootenanny' which I thought when I saw it might be the origin of the user name on this forum. I also noted and thought of some Mudcat discussions when I noted it, that song sheets were handed out. It was so successful that they had an overflow evening; this, the book tells us, was the time when Pat Mackenzie got hooked. MacColl was not so keen on the use of the term 'hootenanny' as Nixon was. He did not like the raucous participatory aspect and wanted to improve standards partly to resist American cultural imperialism (presumably part to toe the party line??). You have to read the book, I cannot type it all out. Eventually MacColl left his wife and set up house with MacColl.They both headlined at the Ballads and Blues club. But relations between MacColl and Nixon went from bad to worse, Nixon lost interest in the Ballad and Blues club, and MacColl seems to have thought that Nixon had sold out and did parodies of him on stage. MacColl then palled up with Bruce Dunnett a Scottish communist and they set up what came to be called 'The Singers Club'. It had a manifesto style statement published in Melody Maker and Sing Magazine in (and I think this date is right) summer of 1961.It was supposed to be a bulwark against commodification and to maintain performance standards.

Hope this is helpful in answering questions that have been posed.