It’s Friday and the Cerbyd ladies have that Friday feeling belting out a storming rendition of Aretha Franklin’s Respect as we travel behind a bin lorry on the winding B4366. The winding roads eventually lead us to the home of the Caernarfon Model Railway Club. The group welcome us and have on display a fantastic track for us to ‘play on’. The group tell us their tales of how they got involved in model railway. They are all afflicted with the model railway bug. They can’t shake it and it’s a commitment for life, just like art. Each of the group has an individual specialist knowledge and skill that they bring to the group. The Caernarfan Model Railway Club as a whole is truly greater than the sum of its parts.
On the way up to the North Wales Branch of the George Formby Appreciation Society we pop into the all new MOSTYN. We soak up the We are the mirrors, we have the plans show before having a special tour of the Jo Shapland exhibition before it opens that evening unfortunately Cerbyd has just enough time to mark their territory in the MOSTYN loo before heading in the direction of Formby.
Our thanks to Martin Barlow for his excellent hospitality dealing with us so well during our impromptu flying visit.
It’s Friday night and the Cerbyd girls get out, dust down and un-crease their glad rags to meet the North Wales Branch of the George Formby Appreciation Society and no one can say that Cerbyd doesn’t have heart as Paul’s fiancée, Rachel, comes along to celebrate their anniversary together. Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!
(Narrator changes to Briaan)
Once the raffle tickets are bought and introductions made we get a comforable seat to take in the evening’s mirth. We are joined by a lovely surprise Christine, our tour guide!
‘She wouldn’t have missed it for the world!’
I have looked forward to this night and a chance to let my hair/dreads down all week and the price of the drink brings a grin to my face.
I’m glad I’ve had a bit of Dutch courage as I am asked to explain our presence to the audience. I head onto the stage and nervously bumble my way though some of the objectives of the project. Job done I return to my seat and try to recruit some artists to perform on stage.
The group are decidedly nervous but when we establish that they don’t have to do a Formby tune they become more willing. During the interval Paul has an express Ukulele lesson and acting as ‘the band’s manager’ I’ve mustered together three acts to slot into the second half:
Kathryn Ashill singing “Calon Lân”
The Cerbydettes performing Tom Jones’s ‘It’s not unusual’ with Megan on vocals, Paul on ukulele, Ben on foot pump, Femke, Louise, Lucy & Charlotte on backing vocals and the musical instruments made at the National Eisteddfod.
Concluding with a Performance piece from Anti-Cool.
Tomoko’s performance was exceptional and despite the fact anti-cool herself saw it as a failure at the time, I, along with pretty much everyone else in the room found it mesmerising.
By the end of the night the Formby society had accepted us with open arms and many friends were made, we have to leave early because of a campsite curfew but there is just enough time for Gillian to scoop the Formby raffle before we leave. Everyone has had a great time. Charlotte even dubbed it ‘The best night of her life’
