Hayley at Telford (St.Georges)

On 16th June, Hayley, accompanired by her violinist, Fiona Pears, held a concert at Telford. Here are the reports: http://hwi.proboards20.com/index.cgi?board=Concert&action=display&thread=1165107851&page=9

Here are some photos, click to enlarge.

For more, visit: http://hwi.proboards20.com/index.cgi?board=Concert&action=display&thread=1165107851&page=9

Here is Mark's report from HWI!

Hi everyoneThanks again to Grant and to Martin for your reports. Grant has already covered the content of the concert and major highlights and so, like Martin, I will fill in (a little further) around the edges.

Having seen Hayley perform at Telford last December, I was really looking forward to this concert. My personal view is that Hayley is at her most relaxed at this type of venue, where there is an intimate feel and everything is very informal. Therefore, this time, my wife Karen & youngest daughter Sophie wanted to come with me. I can assure you that we were not disappointed.

We arrived around 5.15pm, having eaten a cooked lunch before we set out ( bringing sandwiches for in the car after the performance – I,m never very hungry just before a concert). It was good to meet Thomas again and to meet his twin sister, Simone, for the first time. Thomas was much relieved to see me as I had his tickets ! I made my way to the Church porch to find Grant, Theresa, Martin and of course Tim, who I also met for the first time. After exchanging pleasantries, Tim gave me something that he had brought with him from the States (more about that later). Steve & Stuart arrived shortly afterwards to complete our group.

Once inside the church and deciding where we were going to sit, we eventually settled on the very front row, just a few feet from where Hayley was performing. Being on the front row, I was feeling just a little pleased with myself and was just starting to relax (the waiting over) when the vicar took to the stage with the usual safety notices – but that was not all – and what followed will perhaps go down as one of my most ever embarrassing moments !! A church full of expectant people, which I had to walk through the middle of, following the vicars announcement that my car alarm was going off. Somehow, for that moment, sitting on the front row didn't seem such a good idea !! Thanks for asking Stephany, yes the car was fine.

However, I can assure you, it was well worth the embarrassment, as we were treated to a fantastic performance. During the interval, some of us went off in search of toilets ( I told you I would fill in some of the details) which were in the community centre building next door, quite a trek through the churchyard is it happens ! Just as we arrived, who should we bump into but Hayley herself, followed closely by the vicar, who had obviously taken on the duty of escort ! “Hey Guys” she called out as we past each-other, much to the delight of some of the audience who were with us who I heard comment “ you don't expect to meet the star of the show in the toilets do you”.

After a fabulous second half and a stunning performance of Abide With Me, we waited for Hayley to reappear for the signing session as described by Grant. Sophie & I had a couple of things for Hayley to sign and thought we would wait until the non “HWI members” had finished. We stood to the side of where Hayley was signing which was close to an open door, as it was quite chilly, I put my arm around Sophie to keep her warm. Grant spotted us and aimed his camera for a photo. Suddenly, Hayley realised we were there and called “hello”. Despite not being in the official queue, Hayley beckoned us over and insisted on signing what we wanted signing. I explained that Sophie had been to a number of her concerts in the past but had not yet had her photo taken with her. We'll take care of that in a minute says Hayley. The results of which you will see when Steve posts his photos later.

After the photo, I had a few minutes to chat with Hayley, amongst other things, I asked her if she thought she would ever come back to perform at St Mary's Church, Banbury (my home town) as Steve Abbott had once mentioned that this was one of Hayley's favourite venues.In all, this concert for me rates amongst the top few Hayley performances that I have been too.