Formed in 1981, Home Service, the ground-breaking, vibrant and quintessentially English 8-piece Rock-Folk band, made a dramatic and award-winning return to prominence in 2011 with a best-selling live album and a string of major festival appearances. Last year after 5 years back on the road, their esteemed leader and front man John Tams announced he was leaving and many thought that would be the end of the band.  Last September Folk in the Barn were sad but honoured to host the last ever performance of this historic line-up, and an emotional and memorable evening it was.

But you can’t keep an extraordinary band down!  Now just 12 months later, a new line-up has been announced, featuring the great musician John Kirkpatrick as front man.

To herald this new era, a brilliant new album is now available - all new recordings of new material – set alight by their distinctively mighty brass sound.  We are thrilled to be presenting this legendary band with their new front man at the wonderful Playhouse Whitstable.

Mack the Knife is back in town.

A darkly comic new take on Brecht and Weill’s raucous musical broadcast live from the stage of the National Theatre.

London scrubs up for the coronation. The thieves are on the make, the whores on the pull, the police cutting deals to keep it all out of sight. Mr and Mrs Peachum are looking forward to a bumper day in the beggary business, but their daughter didn’t come home last night and it’s all about to kick off…

With Olivier Award-winner Rory Kinnear (Hamlet, Othello, James Bond), as Macheath alongside Rosalie Craig (As You Like It, My Family and other Animals) as Polly Peachum and Haydn Gwynne (The Windsors, Drop the Dead Donkey) as Mrs Peachum.

This bold, anarchic production is brought to you by a creative powerhouse; adapted by Simon Stephens, (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time), and directed by Rufus Norris, (Everyman, London Road).

Contains scenes of a sexual nature, violence and filthy language.