Your Stories In Song
During 2024 Milton Hide will be organising events, on behalf of Summer Trifle Group, across the Wealden area for people to share their stories, be they personal recollections, tales of local people, family history or legends associated with places. In true folk tradition, Milton Hide will be writing and performing songs inspired by the stories gathered and will be inviting audiences to participate. The aim is to encourage social engagement across the generations, especially for those feeling isolated and to help ensure your stories don’t disappear into the momentary ether of ‘social media’.
‘Your Stories In Song’ is funded by the National Lottery.
Roaming in the forest with my dog. Camping overnight without a tent. Walking until my dog is so tired I have to carry her but need to keep moving to keep sane. With the leaves on the trees whispering music to me. S – The Big Conversation, 7
I was a baby, I nearly died. My Dad lived away, my Mum was left to cope with us. My Mum had diabetes. She was happy though, she ate a lot of cake. My childhood was tough, I didn’t want much, I was a shy child, very quiet. Not
My grandmother came from a Scottish border town, aged 18, to work as a kitchen maid in St James Squre, London. I have always wondered why, what was her story? Anon The Golden hind, London, 2023
I’ve yet to hear a song about factory workers in a food factory – eg chicken. Lots of people used to work locally in the food factory for a localality [?]. Martin White Horsem Cromer, 2023
I’d love to hear a song about ornithologists / twitchers (there’s a big difference!). My dad was an avid ornithologist or ‘birder’ as he called them Malcolm The White Horse, Cromer 2023
William would like to tell you about playing hide and seek on the farm, looking for ancient artifacts. His favourite times are when exploring with groups of friends, taking walkie talkies whilst they explore age 10 Summer Trifle festival, 2023
Your Stories In Song events (more dates coming)
- 7 FEB FRONTIER BAR, EASTBOURNE – public event co-ordinated by Compass Community Arts. 7pm
- 15 FEB CROWBOROUGH U3A private event for U3A members – contact for details
- 13 MARCH – LIVESTREAM 8.30pm. Watch on Facebook or Youtube
- 15 JUNE PICKHAMS, Arlington 2.30pm. In the gardens. BYO: chair/drinks/nibbles. BOOK
- 18 JULY. Hailsham Library. 1pm
- 8 AUGUST. DUNN HALL, RUSHLAKE GREEN. Rushlake Green Little Arts Festival TICKETS
- 11 SEPT. GROVELANDS SCHOOL. HAILSHAM. 6pm. Hailsham Festival
- 25 SEPT. THE BEACON CENTRE, Eastbourne. Event for WayfinderWoman. BOOK
- 7 OCTOBER. HAMPDEN PARK LIBRARY. Time TBA
- 11 OCTOBER. BATTLE LIBRARY. 11am
Check back here for more dates as they are added.
Check out www.miltonhide.com for all Milton Hide performances
Book a Your Stories In Song event?
If you’d like an event somewhere in your community, get in touch by emailing info@miltonhide.com
Story Archive
If you can’t get to one of the events you can send your suggestions and stories using the form below to be added to the online archive.
We are adding more stories all of the time so check back for new entries.
Thanks go to everyone who has submitted a story. We hope you find inspiration here for your own creative project, be it songwriting, poetry, prose, visual art, dance or drama.
Please read our Ts & Cs HERE
Sort stories by clicking the buttons
Liquid Gold
Liquid gold - Claire and Jade’s Song Writing idea Possible Title of song “Liquid Gold” Due to extreme weather and disease, a severe blow has been dealt to communities in olive growing regions. In the UK we have seen the results this far down the line as increased...
A whole new word?
A whole new world is the story of what would have happened to Aladdin if he were not the one to lay his hands on the magical lamp and acquire the power of the genie Suggestion by Jade Ballard. IMAGE: Screen shot from 1917 film : Aladdin and the Wonderful...
Torn between 2 countries
I lived 20 years in New Zealand, was brought up in the UK. When i'm in one I long for the other. Always one foot on the land and one foot on a plane out to the other world. Both have reasons to stay, and also to leave. It's very disruptive and unsettling - where does...
The Great Storm of ’87
This story was contributed at our Your Stories In Song event at Pickhams in June 2024. The story inspired a lot of discussion between the audience members of our experiences of the storm and we created a quick chorus of a song using phrases shouted out by the...
Significant flights
There is a story in the news today about a man being charged after flying from London to New York without ticket or passport. This remnds me of 2 significant air flights in my life: In March 2020 an evacuation flight home from Quinto, Ecuadr because of Covid shut...
Will o the wisp
Will o the wisp - Marsh gas, strange lights over the marsh suggestion from audience at An Evening with Milton Hide, 13/9/23 part of Hailsham Festival Image: Public Domain File:Will-o-the-wisp and snake by Hermann Hendrich 1823.jpg Created: 1823 Uploaded:...
Walter Murray
Walter Murray - Naturalist, Horam headmaster, Radio presenter and journalist. READ MORE: Walter Murray - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_J._C._Murray Started a school in Horam. Lived alone in the woods at Copford for a year gathering wild herbs. Nature...
Lindisfarne
The Viking attack on Lindisfarne. JS - Crowborough U3A, 15/2/24 https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/lindisfarne-priory/History/viking-raid/ Quote: The devastating Viking attack on the church of St Cuthbert in 793 sent a shockwave through Europe. But a...
Trugs
Song Idea - Sussex trug making anon Summer Trifle Festival 2023 Further reading: https://heritagecrafts.org.uk/sussex-trug-making/ Quote: Trug baskets are mentioned in documentary sources from the 13th Century but were probably made earlier as agricultural...
View our Privacy Policy
Share your story here
Milton Hide are singer-songwriters Jim Tipler and Jo Church.
Their songs are story based and they have been touring the UK with their Audience Book to gather new song inspirations. They are now working on “Your Stories In Song” with the Summer Trifle group, gathering stories in Wealden – a project funded by the National Lottery.
Local legends, characters, landscape features – any story you have to share and that might be immortalised as a story in song is welcome.
Once the songs are written, the duo intend to do a return tour. The hope is that artists, musicians and writers will also create new works based on the stories stored in the archive below.
Join the Milton Hide mailing list
Be the first to find out news of where Milton Hide are playing and when they are releasing new music or videos, or what’s happening with the Your Stories In Song Project, by subscribing to their mailing list.
You won’t be bombarded with emails, we promise! And you can unsubscribe at any time.