Blackburn & Darwen Band

31/10/2026

🧙 PODIUM WITCHES 🧙

B&D have had another rewarding visit to Wychavon Festival of Brass. Our musical telling of the story of the Salmesbury Witches found favour with the judges and we awarded 🥉 in the 1st Section and 5th place in the Championship section. ✨ 🏆

Congratulations to Derwent Brass and Parc
and Dare on your podium finishes!

The band now turn their attention to Christmas with live performances of The Snowman, a Christmas spectacular at Manchester Cathedral raising much-needed funds for The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and many other performances! ❄️

28/10/2026

⛄️ THE SNOWMAN COMES TO BLACKBURN! ⛄️

📅 Saturday 12th December 2026
📍 St Bede’s High School, Blackburn
⏰ 13:00 and 14:30
🎟️ https://www.trybooking.com/uk/HBXS

Blackburn & Darwen Band are delighted to bring back this magical festive favourite for another year! ✨

Join us for a wonderful performance of The Snowman Live! Watch Raymond Briggs’ much-loved animated classic screened in full as Blackburn & Darwen Band perform Howard Blake’s beautiful and iconic musical score. A perfect festive treat for all the family! 🎄

🎟️ Tickets: £12 Adult | £8 Child (16 and under) | £35 Family Ticket (2 adult and 2 child tickets)

Use ‘BnD2026’ for Early Bird Offer: £9 Adult | £6 Child (16 and under)

Get into the Christmas spirit with this magical musical experience! ❄️

28/10/2026

⛄️ THE SNOWMAN COMES TO LYTHAM! ⛄️

📅 Saturday 5th December 2026
📍 AKS Lytham, Clifton Drive, Lytham St Annes, FY8 1DT
⏰ 13:00 and 14:30
🎟️ https://www.trybooking.com/uk/HBXI

Blackburn & Darwen Band are delighted to bring back this magical festive favourite for another year! ✨

Join us for a wonderful performance of The Snowman Live! Watch Raymond Briggs’ much-loved animated classic screened in full as Blackburn & Darwen Band perform Howard Blake’s beautiful and iconic musical score. A perfect festive treat for all the family! 🎄

🎟️ Tickets: £12 Adult | £8 Child (16 and under) | £35 Family Ticket (2 adult and 2 child tickets)

Use ‘BnD2026’ for Early Bird Offer: £9 Adult | £6 Child (16 and under)

Get into the Christmas spirit with this magical musical experience! ❄️

19/10/2026

⛄️ THE SNOWMAN IS BACK FOR 2026! ⛄️

Blackburn & Darwen Band are delighted to bring back this magical festive favourite for another year! ✨

Join us for a wonderful performance of The Snowman Live! Watch Raymond Briggs’ much-loved animated classic screened in full as Blackburn & Darwen Band perform Howard Blake’s beautiful and iconic musical score. A perfect festive treat for all the family! 🎄

📅 Saturday 5th December 2026�📍 AKS Lytham, Clifton Drive, Lytham St Annes, FY8 1DT�⏰ 13:00 and 14:30
🎟️ https://www.trybooking.com/uk/HBXI

📅 Saturday 12th December 2026�📍 St Bede’s High School, Blackburn�⏰ 13:00 and 14:30
🎟️ https://www.trybooking.com/uk/HBXS

🎟️ Tickets: £12 Adult | £8 Child (16 and under) | £35 Family Ticket (2 adult and 2 child tickets)

Use ‘BnD2026’ for Early Bird Offer: £9 Adult | £6 Child (16 and under)

Get into the Christmas spirit with this magical musical experience! ⛄️

Keep an eye out for a ‘sneak peek’ of what to expect coming very soon … 👀 ❄️

11/10/2026

🎺 SLOW MELODY SUCCESS 🎺

A fantastic result for our new back row cornet player, George, who came 3rd at Elland Silver Band’s Slow Melody Contest yesterday!

George has recently joined Blackburn & Darwen Band, and we’re looking forward to watching him grow and develop as we work towards an exciting autumn of contests and concerts.

Congratulations to ESB on another excellent contest! 👏🏻

Well done, George! 💙

22/09/2026

🥈 RUNNERS UP 🥈

Enjoy this short section of our performance at the First Section National Finals on Saturday featuring our Solo Euphonium player Danny Lowery 🎵

20/09/2026

🥈 NATIONAL FINALS SUCCESS 🥈

We’re absolutely delighted to have come 2nd at the 1st Section National Finals, bringing home a fantastic result after months of hard work and dedication from everyone in the band 🎉

We have really enjoyed working on ‘Beyond the Falls: The Smoke that Thunders’ by Andrew Wainwright. It’s been a piece that the whole band have loved getting to know, explore and shape together, and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to meet Andrew after the performance.

Even more special was hearing Andrew’s reaction to our performance and knowing that he enjoyed the musicality that the band and our conductor had shaped into his music. That meant a huge amount to us and made an already memorable day even more special.

A massive thank you to our conductor, everyone in the band, our supporters, and everyone who has helped us along the way. 💙

Next step … Wychavon Festival of Brass! 🧙

17/09/2026

🚨 NEW SIGNING 🚨

We are delighted to share that Elizabeth Hemingway has joined Blackburn and Darwen Band on Principal Cornet.

Since joining the band, Liz has impressed players across the band with her musicianship and beautiful tone. She is a top class cornet player who leads our cornet section so well!

Find out more about Liz below …

❓What are you most looking forward to about the year ahead with B&D?

🗣️ I was excited to join B&D at such an exciting stage as they prepare for the national finals and promotion back to the Championship Section! I am proud to have the opportunity to be part of a fantastic band filled with a great set of friendly people, experienced players and tremendous potential.

❓Which bands have you played with before?

🗣️ I was taught by Peter Read when I was growing up and played at Lancashire Youth Brass Band. I’ve played, and sat as PC, in many bands across the North West including Longridge, Skelmersdale, Freckleton, Poulton-le-Fylde and Besses o'th Barn.

❓What is your favourite banding memory?

🗣️ Winning the first section National finals many years ago … can we do it again this week?

We are looking forward to our first contest with Liz this weekend at York Barbican! 🎺

16/09/2026

🎵 CONTEST WEEK 🎵

Contest week is in full flow at our headquarters in Darwen!

The band are working hard to add the final touches to what is shaping up to be a fantastic performance of Andrew Wainwright’s ‘Beyond the Falls - The Smoke that Thunders’. The band have really enjoyed working on a piece of music that portrays the imagery of discovery, expedition and the majesty of the falls so vividly! 🌍

Thank you for all of our family, friends and supporters who have kindly donated to help us on our own journey to the national finals in York this weekend. Please consider donating to help us reach our goal. 🙏🏼

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/qr/1n72zB8W?utm_campaign=sharemodal&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=shortlink

13/09/2026

We would like to extend our congratulations to everyone at Foden's Band on their incredible winning performance at the British Open yesterday!

Special mention must go to our ex-principal cornet player Darcie Dewhurst on her first performance at the British Open! It is so wonderful to see her continuing to shine as a top-class cornet player! 🎺

🏆 BRITISH OPEN CHAMPIONS 2026!

A huge congratulations to Mark Wilkinson and Richard Poole on winning the Best Cornet and Best Soprano awards! 🎺

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