Ukulele group raise funds for local causes

Frome’s popular ukulele group, The Frukes, recently raised £1,200 at a charity gig.

The sold-out performance at the Silk Mill raised the funds for local charities Time is Precious, which supports children and their families in hospitals and at home, and Songs for the Memory, a singing group for people with dementia.

“It was a great evening,” said group member Roger Southard. “We played a mix of old and new songs, we had a bar, and we played two one-hour sets. It was fantastic.”

The Frukes is the performing arm of Frome Ukulele Club, which formed 13 years ago.

“We started very small and have become quite popular,” said Roger. “None of us are paid, but we do charge people sometimes to come, and any money raised – some of it covers expenses – the rest we always give to one charity or another. Anything we have made across the year goes to charity.

“We started just as a ukulele club, and there was no thought at that time that we would ever perform; it was just something to do on a Thursday night. Then we did a tiny gig in a pub with about 10 of us. We liked it and it has grown from there. There is a Frome Ukulele Club, which anybody can join, and The Frukes is the performing arm of it that not everybody can join because there is a certain standard to be played at.”