Organisers of the Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival are hosting the first fundraising concert of 2017 at the Falmouth Watersports Centre on Saturday, January 28.

Last year's fundraisers were a great triumph, with money raised enabling the festival to include a range of shanty groups from overseas. It is hoped that the 2017 event will build on this success.

This year's Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival will see groups from Brittany and wider France, Norway, The Netherlands, Ireland and, for the first time, Bounding Main from America. Bounding Main is a mixed, five part acapella group with a growing international following.

The festival organisers have secured the services of The Oggymen who will once again sing at the fundraiser and are also pleased to welcome Falmouth’s female answer to Fisherman’s Friends in the delightful guise of the 12-strong, all lady shanty group, Femmes de la Mer.

Also in the line-up is an up and coming, mixed group of singers from St Ives called the Bamaluz Bootleggers. Their unique name derives from a small beach between the two large ones in St Ives: they bring an energetic and fresh approach to the shanty and Cornish song tradition.

The usual refreshments will be available as well as authentic paella. A raffle will be run throughout the evening with generous prizes.

Tickets are £8, and are available through the Cornish Store in Arwenack Street and the Watersports Centre near the Grove Place car park, both in Falmouth.

Readers can keep up to date with the festival on the Sea Shanty website, Twitter or Facebook:

falmouthseashanty.co.uk; @FalSeaShanty and Facebook.com/falmouthinternationalseashantyfestival.