Just Down the Road: Emily Maguire in concert

Singer, songwriter, composer, poet and multi-instrumentalist, Emily Maguire is back on the road.

With a remarkable story of recovery to tell, Emily has been interviewed many times on Radio 2 and Radio 4 including Midweek with Libby Purves.

Classically trained as a child on piano, cello, flute and recorder, Emily taught herself guitar aged 21 when she found herself stuck at home with fibromyalgia pain syndrome.

“I started writing songs and the illness suddenly became a complete blessing in disguise as I had all this time on my hands to write”, she said.

Back on her feet again and fed up with grey skies and concrete, Emily gave up her flat in London for a shack made out of recycled wood, tin and potato sacks on a goat farm in the Australian bush.

Together with Aussie bass player and producer Christian Dunham, she financed her first two albums by making and selling goats cheese.

“Living in the shack was one of the happiest times of my life. And despite being a terrible cook, I was actually a very good cheesemaker”, she said.

Emily and Christian returned from Australia in 2007 to tour with American Don McLean.

Her third album Believer, released in 2009, received regular airplay on Radio 2 and won rave reviews.

Emily hid her struggles with bipolar disorder until she published her first book Start Over Again.

Launched on Radio 2 on World Mental Health Day in 2010, it generated a huge response from listeners moved by Emily’s openness and willingness to share her experiences of psychosis and depression.

In 2014 an intensive tour of Germany triggered chronic tennis elbow in Emily’s arms, leaving her unable to play her instruments for 18 months.

Devastated, she suffered a deep depression that lasted a year.

“My fans were a life-saver”, she said. “I’d get these amazing messages telling me that there was a point to all this, that my songs werey appreciated and they wanted me to come back”.

In 2017, recovered again, Emily released her fifth album A Bit Of Blue.

Tickets: 01439 771700,