Created by John Barton in 2016, this annual event raises money for Appledore RNLI. It was getting too much for John to organize on his own, he was going to give it up, we agreed to help him out this year and together we nailed it!
Held at the Pier House thanks to the generosity of Robert Braddick, we set up two stages and lined up a great selection of varied, quality local acts, added the winner of Westward Ho!s Got Talent and several of the best acts found from this too.
We started just before 7pm as the nights proceedings were officially opened by Cllr John Himan who is the Mayor of Northam. We loved this as not only did John turn up in the official capacity but also had a great evening and took to the dance floor later on with the Mayoress. This event is all about bringing people together and having fun, it was off to a flying start.
Our first act of the night was Charlotte Pirrone who won Westward Ho!'s Got Talent 2019, she had teamed up with Westward Ho!'s Kevin "Beano" Green to form "Catica", this was their first gig as a duo. Right from the off Catica captivated the audience and played to the crowd, there was no way of telling if these two musicians would gel together, they did that alright. They were wonderful and got the audience used to clapping! Watch this space, once this duo have a few more gigs under the belt I can see these appearing everywhere.
https://www.facebook.com/CaticaNorthDevon/
2nd act of the night was Millie Bassett. She came 2nd in Westward Ho!'s Got Talent for conquering her fears in a very public way. She wouldn't get on the stage for her audition at the Sunset Festivals, after coaxing her for 5 minutes she eventually did after drying her eyes, she won the hearts of about 500 people that day! Just before her act at WHAAM she told us "I am so scared" but proceeded to take to the stage and perform the Cup Song once more, what a massive, well deserved cheer she received. Another heart warming moment showing anything is possible if you have the courage to go for it. Well done Millie, you were superb.
Millie was a hard act to follow, thank goodness it was Dave and Les doing the following! This pair sing songs from the 50's and 60's with ultimate style. They climb upon the stage and just have fun, such a pleasure to watch and listen too. They both wanted to be professional singers, they only achieved this dream when they met each other and sung in their 60's. Dave and Les always show it's never too late to catch your dream and the key to entertaining people is to have fun yourself.
The entertainment went to dancing now with the ladies from The Sarah Anne Westacott Dance Studios. OMG they were AMAZING...In capitals as they were that good! A selection of various dancing from ballet to tap dancing to The Can Can with a bit of glove dancing too. By now the audience was on their feet and loving every minute of it. Sarah Anne sat watching like a proud parent and rightly so. Amazing performance from the ladies.
https://www.facebook.com/Sarah-Anne-Westcott-Dance-Studios-102998189787505/
We were on a roll and the spirits were very high in the Pier House. Cherry Circus were next up and as ever they didn't disappoint. We have been working with Peter and Char on village events for several years, we have seen them go from two shy people with a talent to two confident performers owning the stage and capturing an crowd. Chars voice just gets better and better and their stage presence as a couple keeps going to the sky. They invited Shannon Amy Lewis on stage to do a duet with Char at one point, just stunning and shows the beautiful spirit of the North Devon musicians.
https://www.facebook.com/CherryCircusMusic/
Another of our Westward Ho!'s Got Talent finds, Libby Lamont. She turned up for auditions and left us stunned, her contortion act was well choreographed, exciting, great music choice and impressed all the judges. She did exactly the same at the Pier House! For one so young Libby has an amazing act that just left the audience amazed with a brimming heart. Such a great act, well executed and faultless. Well done Libby, awesome performance and we hope to see you again soon.
So how do you then keep the ball rolling after such acts? With Rough Justice of course! Greg and Noel are colorful, a little crazy, full of spirit and exciting to watch/listen too. Perfect song choice, they played to the crowd as only professional musicians can do. They kept the mood on a high then raised it some more! What legends, what gents, what entertainers...Thank you so much for being a part of this amazing night.
https://www.facebook.com/roughjusticeduo/
Again how do you follow that! We switched straight from Rough Justice to The Wyldwoods, a four piece with a lot of spirit! The Wyldwoods played one of the slots at the Sunset Festivals in the village, they were so good they closed it for us. They closed WHAAM 2019 too and did this in the style, with the grace and energy it deserved. Love their style, love the interaction within the band, love the energy and the fun they have playing. They were so good people couldn't sit down any longer and the dance floor started to fill, they even got the Mayor and Mayoress up dancing. If you missed this one give their page a like and make sure you go and see them-
https://www.facebook.com/Bakerwoodline/
Well done to Peter Sawyer, John Barton and Pat Hughes for organizing the whole event, Peter Sawyer and Merlin Cadogan for guiding the night, adding some sparkle and making sure it was seamless and Harvey Sawyer behind the scenes for technical help. Well done Alex Hall for the wonderful photos as ever.
All those involved with WHAAM worked brilliantly together to create on heck of a night that will be talked about for a long time, it worked, it really worked.
See you next year at The Pier House on Friday 13th November 2020.
As ever we got a lot of support and help from the Westward Ho! businesses in helping and financing this. Thank you to-
David and Julie from "Mops & Buckets"
John and Julie from "The Carousel Amusements"
Chris and Kate from "Atlantic Bay Fish And Chip Shop"
Peter Sawyer from "Kitemare-Surf & Kite Shop"
