Kate Locksley is a singer of folk songs, broadsides, and other historical music. She is the alto(ish) in The Teacups, a vibrant vocal quartet based in Newcastle upon Tyne, where she studied Folk and Traditional Music as an undergraduate, and has recently completed a Masters degree based around the study of social protest in broadside ballads. Kate has also performed with an all-female unaccompained trio, Wychwood, and was the voice amongst the fiddle and guitar of Kev Lees and Dave Wood, in Night Falluntil late 2018. She also occasionally performs solo, feeling that unaccompanied singing is both the ultimate vulnerability and a source of enormous strength.
Growing in confidence during her studies at Newcastle, Kate has sung at venues of all shapes and sizes, from a flooded basement, to a dimly lit underground tunnel, to folk clubs and festivals up and down the country, to Hall One at Sage Gateshead. She will usually sing anything you like, anywhere you like, if you ask her nicely.
NEWS
September 2020: If you've ever heard a Teacups track and wanted to know about it, these FREE events are for you. Premiering on YouTube on forthcoming Sundays, hear us listen to and talk about the songs, and although these sessions are pre-recorded broadcasts, we'll be on hand behind the scenes on YouTube to answer any questions you post in the comment. You'll also be able to listen back later, and if there are specific songs you'd like more insight into, there will be clickable timestamps so you can fast-forward to your favourites.
If you're not a YouTube user, or you're not sure how this works, just drop me a message and I'll try to help.
September 2020: It's arrived! The Teacups' third album, "In Which..." has been delivered, and has been sent out to all of our Kickstarter backers. Once again, thank you so much for helping us to get this CD made. There will also be an online launch event held by Folk Weekend Oxford on 4th October. You can get tickets by clicking here.
There have already been a few radio plays, including by Folk Roots & Branches, who played the opening track Agamemnon (listen here), and Music From The Glen, who played our original song, Celestial Tea (listen here) which was written by Alex. The album can be pre-ordered from Haystack Records by clicking here, and goes on general release on Friday 2nd October.
April 2020: It's finally getting closer... The Teacups' new album, 'In Which...' is almost here, and will be as soon as the global pandemic passes and we're able to get the thing manufactured! Check out the new trailer... be sure to watch right to the end, for an Alex classic moment:
March 2020: It's been a really quiet 2019 for me, as you can tell, given the gap since my last news post! But I'm back to tell you that, as if you couldn't work it out for yourselves(!) the vast majority of the gigs that were in the pipeline for this year have been cancelled. So far, it looks a bit depressing, but there's an updated list below for you, in the gigs section. Hope to see you somewhere down the road!
GIGS
This list will be updated as and when more bookings are confirmed. If you'd like to talk about a booking, please get in touch via the email address at the bottom of this page.
2021
3rd Oct - Bobiks - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes, support for Ma Polaine 9th Oct - TBC - Whalton Village - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes
2020
4th Jan - Marton-cum-Grafton Village Hall - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes 29th Feb - Bobiks - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes 28th Mar - The Plough, Mitford - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes - CANCELLED 3rd Apr - The Station East - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes - CANCELLED 21st Apr - Dartford Folk Club - The Teacups - CANCELLED 1st May - Black Diamond Folk Club - The Teacups - CANCELLED 2nd May - House Concert - The Teacups - CANCELLED 4th May - Glenfarg Folk Club - The Teacups - CANCELLED 14th May - House Concert - The Teacups - CANCELLED 15th May - Deal Folk Club - The Teacups - CANCELLED 16th May - The Cellar Upstairs - The Teacups - CANCELLED 13th - Jun Gower Folk Festival - The Teacups Trio - CANCELLED 4th Sep - Sedgefield Folk Festival - The Teacups Trio - CANCELLED 5th Sep - Sedgefield Folk Festival - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes - CANCELLED 4th Oct - Folk Weekend Oxford ONLINE CONCERT - The Teacups
23rd Oct - The Globe, Newcastle ONLINE CONCERT - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS
8th Nov - South Shields Folk Club - Kate Locksley & Rupert Hughes - CANCELLED
More sample tracks from The Teacups and Night Fall, as well as unaccompanied solo tracks are available to listen to for free at https://soundcloud.com/kate-locksley.
SHOP
Click on the item you're interested in, and you'll be taken to the right place to buy!