Bookham Band Nights

Events planned for 2009 to 2010 are on the following dates:

All events are ticket entry only. To purchase tickets please call into the Youth Centre during the week of the event between 4.00 and 5.30pm Tuesday to Friday inclusive. Tickets can be purchased by post, send a stamped s.a.e. to the centre address clearly marked BBN Tickets during the week prior to the event. Maximum 5 tickets per postal application.

What is BBN?

It's short for Bookham Band Nights. These are live music events that take place regularly between September and May at Bookham Youth and Community Centre. They are for anyone aged 14 plus and most of the bands featured are local. There’s a big input from young people, they are the bands, the audience and manage the technical support as well (sound and lighting) Adult volunteers help to supervise the events and sell refreshments, and professional security is hired in, helping to maintain a safe environment (no drugs, no alcohol, no smoking, just a good time enjoying the music and the company!) We attract an audience of around 200 to each event. Every year we run a Bookham Battle of the Bands.

Can my band play at BBN?

We are always pleased to get new bands playing at BBN. If you are in a band, new or experienced, and you are local to Bookham or neighbouring areas, we want to hear from you. It is helpful if you can e-mail us a MySpace link so we can check out your music first hand. Contact Sue Lawrence for more information. If you are interested in getting involved in technical support we want to hear from you too.

What other facilities are there for bands?

Bookham Youth and Community Centre has a sound proofed band practice room which is available for hire (at £5 per hour).
A dedicated group of young people involved in BBN are currently working on a project to develop a recording studio facility. We hope this will be available for use from April 2009 – watch this space!

How did BBN start?

Bookham Band Nights have been taking place at the Youth Centre since 2004, the first Bookham band to play was The Trend.
This initiative is co-ordinated by a small steering group from St Nicolas Church. It began after the PCC (Parish Church Council) identified a gap in provision for young people of this age and wanted to develop some outreach from St Nicolas church to fill that gap. We were given some pump priming financial support from the Crime and Disorder Partnership (MVDC) and the Local Community Fund (SCC) as well as groups such as Bookham Resident’s Association and Churches Together. We are pleased to say that as they have grown and become more popular, the events are now self-funding. The local community police support the initiative as a positive social opportunity for young people in the area and usually pop in to hear the music and chat to some of the young people. If you want to join our volunteer supporters team please get in touch. All volunteers are subject to a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check.

For more details, see the Bookham Band Night page on MySpace.