Legendary folk-rockers Fairport Convention are ringing in the New Year with their all new Spring Tour and will be visiting Exeters’s Corn Exchange this March.

Following a packed 2025, including two acclaimed tours and a sold-out Cropredy Convention, the group will reunite with esteemed drummer, Dave Mattacks for 24 dates throughout the UK - cueing up celebrations for Fairport Convention’s diamond anniversary in 2027, marking an incredible 60 years in the business.

Formed in 1967, the band pioneered the blending of traditional and electric instruments, in turn becoming synonymous with the 'electric-folk' sound. Their annual music festival attracts up to 15,000 people to the fields of Oxfordshire each August, and unlike many of their peers, they continue to sell out venues across the country - delighting both existing fans and new converts alike.

With a career now spanning 59 years, the chaps continue carrying on the Fairport torch, with the 2026 tour marking 30 years of the band’s current lineup - featuring Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg, Ric Sanders and Chris Leslie, augmented by Dave Mattacks on the drummer’s stool.

With their most well-known track Who Knows Where The Time Goes reaching over 32 million Spotify streams this year, Fairport are true statesmen of British music - cherished by critics, musicians and fans alike. The band have also won a BBC Lifetime Achievement Award and Radio 2 listeners voted their ground-breaking album Liege & Lief 'The Most Influential Folk Album of All Time' in 2006.

The tour kicks off in Milton Keynes on March 17 - visiting the likes of Union Chapel in London and The Forum in Bath - before wrapping up on 12 in Leamington Spa on April 12. This year’s lineup features Simon Nicol on guitar and vocals, Dave Pegg on bass guitar, Ric Sanders on violin, Chris Leslie on fiddle, mandolin and vocals, whilst Dave Mattacks returns on percussion duties.

Mattacks featured as Fairport Convention's longstanding drummer throughout most of the 1970s, 80s and 90s. His skills have been in demand ever since, seeing him contribute to numerous studio recordings by the likes of Paul McCartney, Brian Eno, Elton John and Nick Drake.

Support for the band’s tour comes from the award-winning, folk powerhouse, Jenn Butterworth.

Widely recognised as one of the UK’s leading exponents of traditional folk guitar, Jenn has stormed the thriving Scottish-folk scene - winning Album of the Year with acclaimed folk supergroup, Songs of Separation at BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2017 and Musician of the Year at the Scottish Trad Music Awards in 2019.

Seamlessly adapting to any stage or project, Butterworth is renowned for her exceptional skills in collaboration, accompaniment and arrangement. Her versatility has seen her contribute to an impressive array of projects, including performances with Fiddlers’ Bid, Treacherous Orchestra, Ross Ainslie and Ali Hutton, Bella Hardy, Adam Sutherland, Sian, Malin Makes Music, Claire Hastings, and RURA’s Jack Smedley and David Foley.

Tickets for the 7.30pm gig on Thursday, March 26 can be booked at www.exetercornexchange.co.uk.