Mizzen Link is a South Hams sea shanty group which began earlier this year and grew out of a well-known group called the Old Gaffers.

Old Gaffers had started to lose members and finally disbanded.

Mizzen Link has five members as administrator Phil Blythe explained: “In alphabetical order there's myself Phil Blythe.

“I've been singing folk music for years and years and years but only really got into sea shanties because I couldn't find a folk band to join when I retired down to Dartmouth.

“Then we have one of the original members of the band, Tony Brooks.

Tony, lives here in Kingsbridge. He's the only member of the crew that's currently working at the moment. The rest of us are all retired.

“Tony was with the previous crew, the Old Gaffers, since its start, really.

“He's one of the mainstays of the old band and the new one.

“We also have Mark Pritchard who a lot of people would remember from Pritchard's Electrical Stores in Kingsbridge.

“So that's Mark's family.

“Mark's been singing in choirs, etc. for a long, long time. And he joined the Old Gaffers before me, probably about ten years ago.

“We have John Payne, who also lives here in Kingsbridge.

“He's been with the crew for a long time.

“He's got a background in lots of things really, but mainly with the Naval Dockyard.

“Last but by no means least, we have Martin Turner.

“Martin is another chap who lives in the Kingsbridge area.

“He was born and bred in Blackawton and has done a lot of work in his time on various things but now he's runs this little small holding out in the sticks.

“That's the five of us.”

How do they put together their repertoire I asked Tony Brooks?: “I listen to a lot of sea shanties online on YouTube and if I fancy a song and if think I like a song I'll try and learn it before I bring it into the crew.

“If they like it it's in and if they if they don't like it it's not and it's the same with any of them if any of them have got a song that they like and want to bring into the crew.

“We’ve got nearly 200 songs from the old gaffers so we're going back into the archives to pick songs from that.

“Mainly I mean I've been into folk music since I was 20 year old so I've just evolved into sea shanties now and I just I just listen to it all the time and like I say every now and again a song will come out and grab me and I just learn it.

“I can't read music or understand what notes I'm singing I just listen to it by ear and sing it by ear.”

You can see the group at Kingsbridge Show between 4pm and 7pm on Saturday September 7.

To find out more about Mizzen Link you can visit: https://mizzenlink.uk/