The Plonkers Agricultural Orchestra from the New Forrest

TM 

 

Welcome to The Plonkers® official web site.
The New Forests very own Original Plonkers Agricultural Orchestra, The Plonkers
®
Celebrating their 30th Year in show biz.

The Plonkers Agricultural Orchestra are an ideal band for County Shows, Local Fetes, Carnivals and Pubs.
Combining the local 'yokel' Hampshur' wit of Gordon on banjo, with 'Scrumpy' Country songs and an inventive band of very accomplished mooosicians.

The ORIGINAL Plonkers Agricultural Orchestra started life in 1979 when Gordon entered the Lymington carnival with a cider-making machine 'float'. It was a two-wheeled cart pulled by Plonker the donkey with whistles, bells and various gizmos. The cart was followed by Gordon on banjo, Bob on squeeze box and a trombone and bass drum. They won first prize playing the chorus of Drink up thee zider (which is all they knew, but as they kept moving the crowd never realised this!) for the whole parade. They did this for a few years until the 'band' numbered 15. Then one year the band booked for the Lymington Steam fair couldn't make it and Gordon was asked to stand in - the first booking for The Plonker's Agricultural Orchestra.
They have been plaguing the New Forest and beyond ever since.
Last revised: August 30, 2010


The Plonkers next live public appearances are:

Saturday 4th Sept
The Great Dorset Steam Fair

We're back again
Lunchtime between 12.30 and 3.30, this time on Saturday!
You can see The Plonkers live in the New Outdoor Main Concert Stage Area
Link for online bookings and pre paid camping

The GDSF is situated on the A354 between Blandford and Salisbury in the village of Tarrant Hinton.
Postcode for Sat Nav equipment is DT11 8HX

Wednesday 1st to Saturday 4th Sept
The Great Dorset Steam Fair
Now also playing live on and off at:
Brian Jervis's Scrumpy Jack Cider Bar
You can find Brian's bar near the main outdoor concert stage
Many thanks to Brian for sponsoring us,
more details on Brian's bars at: TheCiderhouse


Scenes from the Swanage Railway's 2006 Steam Gala & Vintage Transport Rally

Friday 10th to Sunday 12th Sept 2010 at Haycrafts Lane,
Harmans Cross, Nr, Swanage. BH19 1HB.
SWANAGE RAILWAY STEAM GALA & VINTAGE TRANSPORT RALLY 

This event is run by:
Bournemouth and Poole Preservation Ltd

11th - 13th Sept 2010 at Haycrafts Lane, Harmans Cross, A351
The Plonkers are playing live on 11th and 12th September from 1 to 4 pm ish
Download the BPPC Swanage brochure 2010

Download and print the Band poster, includes the entertainment listed on all 3 days of this event.
Stepping Out, Black Sheep, and The Plonkers
This also coincides with The Swanage Folk Festival


How to book The Plonkers..

If you would like to book The Plonkers,

Please email:

Bookings@theplonkers.com


See The Plonkers Agricultural Orchestra live
For full details of up and coming bookings

Click here for the full updated Gig list
Many of The Plonkers gigs are only arranged with as little as a weeks notice
so please check here for the regular updates.


What's new:

New 2010 gig's, many confirmed bookings now live: Gig List.

The Plonkers online shop is now live. You can now purchase 2 of The Plonkers CD's. Proper Music and Second Eruption.
This is the first time 'Proper Music' has been available on CD via the internet!
The Third Eruption is in production, more news when we get it

  Postage and packing is included in the price
and for peace of mind, all CD's are posted recorded delivery
We normally post our CD's within 24 hours of receiving your order, but please allow up to 10 days for delivery.
Guaranteed to keep your mother-in-law and any other unwelcome relatives away
Remember these CD's always sound better with alcohol

Official Videos from The Plonkers

In conjunction with YouTube, we have embedded some brand new videos from The Plonkers®
To see these videos, click on the song titles below.

'You are my sunshine' and 'Zider Drinker' mudley!

Janette's Irish/Scottish Medley

Barley Mow

Janette's Folk Song Medley

The Blackbird Song

Buttercup Joe

Putting On The Style

A Plonkers Mudley!

And a vintage 2005 recording
You Can't Kill Cooch


Latest pictures from the Harman's Cross BPPC Rally
The Swanage Railway website
All pictures on this link are copyright Andrew P.M. Wright

A brand new January 2010 Jigsaw and A brand new December Jigsaw
Gary and Golly are in the first and Ray and his drum kit in the second


On January 14th, our Gary was involved in a very serious road accident.
We all wish Sludge a speedy recovery and are publishing messages from well-wishers on a special dedicated page.

Being a very flexible orchestra, all have expressed a wish to fill in for Sludge at gigs,
but everyone wants to see him well, back on stage, strumming his guitar and fine tuning the Plonkers sound once again.

Full report in conjunction with The Lymington Times and Daily Echo.
Click here for the Lymington Times and Daily Echo report.

If you want to send Sludge a get-well message, please email chris@theplonkers.com


Stop Press.
The Plonkers now have their own 24 track recording studio - The Dairy Recording studio.
And a new CD is in the making, with original artwork from Golly
Between milking sessions, The Plonkers have been finding time to work on many new songs:
Listed below are some of the up and coming tracks, these will also feature in the 2010 set.
We're Drunk Again Sample
Wash Another Udder, (The dairy man song), lyrics by Sarah Jane, Music Golly and Gary
Have you seen the cider man, lyrics by Sarah Jane, Music Gary
Fling it 'ere, Fling it There, words by the Yetties, (traditional but slightly Plonkerised version)
We are The Plonkers Farmers Band, The Plonkers, new 2010 version
The Tangle Foot Twitch, lyrics Adge Cutler (Plonkerised version)
Also some modern rock and roll
Rock Around the Barn Tonight
Short MP3 samples of new songs will appear on this site soon. (still in the mixing stage)
The new CD will be available soon via this site and at 2010 gigs

 The Plonkers also have a new Plonker Bus, and a second backup groupie bus.
At the moment its a short wheelbase but, by mid season, they are hoping to replace it with a groupie coach.
Look at for Golly in his new stretch limo, tell us if you spot him?


  The Plonkers 2009 picture gallery  
Latest pictures, Harman's Cross BPPC Rally, The Brockenhurst Carnival,
The Great Dorset Steam Fair, and also young Theo aged 3 at The Purbeck Vintage Rally and Auto Jumble

Brockenhurst Bournemouth The Plonkers HQ  Sark Coda Concert Harman's Cross


More new pages have been added:
Video links from You Tube
first 2 supplied by Carole Mathews from New Milton

 

More new pages have been added:
A New Fan Site run by Anna
Parnell-Brookes from Wiltshire
can be found on our Links Page


This page was last revised on: August 30, 2010


The Plonker's™ band line up

The main band members of The Plonkers Agricultural Orchestra™ are:
Gordon on Banjo, 'making noises what some people call singing'
Gary, the sludge tanker driver, on bass thingy,
Janette Beale on the squeezebox and keyboard
Rustic Ray on drums
Dave Robinson on Sexophone and liquorish stick
occasionally Gillybaby, on the catgut and scrapey , or violin.!!.
Jolly Roger on his humongous Sexophone
Jimbo on wind thing, we think it's a tuba.
(He's been known to notch a few points on the Richter scale when on form.)
On some gigs we have in addition:
Julian is our additional moosician from Somerset.
Whenever he can, (when he’s not filming or treading cider apples);
he plays keyboard, bass guitar, or mandolin.
Andy on washboard, idiot stick, kazookaphone and occasionally backup drummer.

Other people come and go depending on chicken-milking, cow-plucking and pumpkin-herding commitments.

More information on the band can be found by clicking the various links below or on the buttons at the side.

Email: Info@theplonkers.com


Last revised: August 30, 2010, 'Ampshire time

What is 'Ampshire time you ask?
according to Golly, 'Ampshire time is:
You eat when your hungry,
you go to bed when your tired,
and you get the job done when its finished.

The next update will be...................'Ampshire time
The clock on the right is set to 'Ampshire time


           'Ampshire time


For more details:
Email: info@theplonkers.com
Copyright © 2010 (The Plonkers® Agricultural Orchestra). All rights reserved
*TM Trade mark No. 2393125 registered at the UK Patent Office press release


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