Belinda O’Hooley & Heidi Tidow launched their musical patnership in 2010 with Silent June, and have been hitting high notes ever since, one we’ve happily championed along the way. As one reviewer tried to sum up their magic when reviewing their 2014 album The Hum, “As much as anything it’s the depth and breadth and the detail, of their subject matter, but there’s also the melodic sensibility and the scintillating arrangements.” Another, on Summat’s Brewin’ (2015), focused on their “committed sense of fun, their consummate, enviable musicality, their serious ability to grab your attention and carry you through the experience.” While on their 2016 album, Shadows, Thomas Blake said “it’s an album that will hopefully see its creators heralded as one of the most vital – and indeed one of the most experimental – acts on the folk circuit and beyond.”
Now, after 15 years of performing together, eight studio albums, four BBC Folk Award nominations, composing Gentleman Jack as the BBC/HBO drama theme tune and hundreds of venues and festivals across the UK and Europe, the much-loved Yorkshire folk duo of Belinda O’Hooley & Heidi Tidow have made the momentous decision to say farewell for now in order to explore other adventures that are beckoning to them.
To help their loyal fans process this news, they are planning one final tour of their favourite venues.
Belinda says, “We have enjoyed a remarkable career together, beginning with supporting Chumbawamba many years ago, to joining and recording as part of the No Masters Co-operative. We were personally invited to perform at Glastonbury by Billy Bragg, recognized as the Best Band of the Cambridge Folk Festival by The Guardian, and have received critical acclaim for all of our albums.” Heidi says, “We are grateful to our fans, the press, radio, and all the venues that supported us. We cherish all the incredible memories from our career.”
Heidi adds “I am pleased to announce that I have been accepted into the Autism Studies Postgraduate program at Sheffield Hallam University. I will commence my studies in January, and I find this both nerve-wracking and very exciting. Our future plans are still unfolding. Follow us on social media for updates.”
Belinda stated, “We are eagerly anticipating this tour, which we believe will be our best ever. We can’t wait to start celebrating our career with everyone during this final series of shows.”
Belinda and Heidi’s boundless songwriting has been described by The Guardian as ‘exceptional’ and The Independent as ‘defiant, robust, northern, poetical, political folk music for the times we live in.’ Moving, melodic, dramatic and tender, from stories of parenthood, the call of a song thrush, to a portrait of the last days of a touching relationship between their neighbour Matthew and his beloved Alsatian, Ted, and even a collaboration with Gentleman Jack herself, Suranne Jones on ‘The Ballad of Anne and Ann’, they explore, consider and connect subjects and stories in a distinctive, inventive and memorable way.
Having the originality and skill to invite comparison with the most celebrated harmony duos, BBC 6 Music’s Tom Robinson says ‘They sing together in the way families do. Normally, you only get that closeness in the voices with family bands like The Coppers or The Watersons.’
This upcoming tour will be pretty magical as they celebrate what has been an exceptional duo career, so don’t miss out on seeing one of the loveliest, down to earth duos on the folk circuit and beyond.
We wish them well on their future adventures.
O’Hooley & Tidow So Long For Now Tour
MAY
18 CAMBRIDGE Junction
JUNE
06 HUDDERSFIELD Standedge
15 CARDIFF Acapela
JULY
04 REETH Memorial Hall
05 CONWY Neuadd Ni
OCTOBER
05 LIVERPOOL Philharmonic Music Room
09 BRISTOL St Georges
10 SOUTHAMPTON Turner Sims
21 MANCHESTER RNCM
29 BRIGHTON Komedia
30 LONDON Cecil Sharp House
NOVEMBER
06 NEWCASTLE Gosforth Civic Theatre
09 MILTON KEYNES Stables
12 SHEFFIELD Upper Chapel
14 LEEDS City Varieties
21 WORCESTER Huntingdon Hall
22 LEICESTER Guildhall
23 NORFOLK Sheringham Little Theatre
26 YORK NCEM
27 GLASGOW Cottiers Theatre
All tickets available at www.ohooleyandtidow.com/gigs