Why Cool Local?

Cool Local is ‘Here to cheer people up’ by sharing uplifting stories of individuals and independent and smaller organisations. We encourage people to be positive, to strive for better things and to help each other. We have cheered up the wonderful rugby and charity fundraising organisation the Welsh Charitables RFC, who are delighted to have been shared by Cool Local, and we’re proud that the Netherton Foundry sold product when we talked about them. Check out our Blog here; our Twitter here; our Facebook here; and our You Tube here.

What is the latest thing that cheers us up? Cockermouth in Cumbria and, to start with, its bookshop. See our new blog post, here.

The Cool Local website is dedicated to the memory of the late author David Nobbs, more on this in our About page.

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Cool Cumberland

We’re writing from Cumberland presently, and based for a while in Cockermouth. It is a cool place. Why? There is a spirit of independence and pride that stands out and also this is the Lake District, one of England’s places of greatest natural beauty, and it is a fine place to be. More in our ‘Cool Cockermouth’ blog post here.

Ice Cream Man hot in Ealing

Robert Hokum, musician, above, with photographer Wendy Auld, performs many songs very well, but one cover, Ice Cream Man, is particularly good, as you will learn if you see him live. He appears in our blog about the Ealing Blues Festival, which can be read here.

Music, new and old, raised up by Cool Locals

Two separate projects, both linked by sheer love of live music, have recently seen significant success.

Years of effort and commitment have gone into the new 1000-capacity Fiery Bird venue in Woking in Surrey which opened its doors this month (May 2018) and the also newly opened Eel Pie Island Museum in Twickenham.

The Fiery Bird venue is a major uplift for live music in Woking, and built on the long-term efforts of locals who have presented a range of music in smaller environments in the past.

The Eel Pie Island Museum captures the history of one of the more unusual settings and vibes for live music, a venue that was part of a vibrant musical culture. When we visited it, the very friendly staff were engaged with locals working on art for the museum, Long John Baldy was playing on vinyl, and the Director of the Ealing Blues Festival and the co-founder of the Ealing Club Community Interest Company were visiting. It is a mecca of musical memorabilia, including from the late Acker Bilk, Chris Barber, The Who, John Mayall, The Rolling Stones, and more. There was even a display on the history of the local boatyard, boats having at one time ferried musicians and music-goers onto the island. Such places are a magnet for the musically-minded and a vital part of our heritage.

Congratulations from Cool Local to those involved in both projects.