FOR those of us still in a festival mood, there’s a splendid time guaranteed for all up in picturesque Bellingham this weekend, when popular duo Landermason will be hosting their annual BAAfest. Artists include Whapweasle, Brooks Williams, Hadrian’s Union and Anthony John Clark, and there’s a few tickets still available for late comers. This week also sees a tour of local folk clubs by the legendary singer and songwriter John Connolly, who’s song “Fiddler’s Green” has become a folk standard the whole world over. John was on fine form at the recent Whitby Festival, and you can catch him this week at Guisborough Rugby Club on Sunday, Darlington’s Britannia on Tuesday and on Monday he’ll be at The Duke of Wellington in Wolveston, which will be the temporary home for the Norton folk crowd who have to leave their regular George and Dragon venue for this week only. Meanwhile, tonight, guitar virtuoso Steve Tilston and myself will be at Darlington’s Copper Beech for another of our duo shows, and then on Sunday, local band Pipedream will be at The Customs House in South Shields. Finally, watch out for a new theatrical production that is on tour around the region this week. Entitled “The Great Joe Wilson”, and written by Ed Waugh, it centres around the life and songs of the celebrated Tyneside songwriter of the 19th Century, composer of such great ditties as “Keep your Feet Still Geordie Hinny,” and “Sally Wheatley”, many of which had music added to them by Alex Glasgow for the play “Joe Lives!” in the late 1960s, while others have been given the same treatment by top local songwriter Pete Scott for this new production. It opens for three nights at Darlington Hippodrome tonight, then moves on to Whitley Bay Playhouse on Tuesday and Gateshead’s Sage on Wednesday.