John Maughan The Boscastle Busker |
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| Born in Mirfield,
Yorkshire, John Maughan spent most of his early years in Bewcastle in
the wilds of Cumbria, where his father was Headmaster of the local school.
He attended Keswick Grammar School as a boarder where he was told not
to sing, as he could not hold the tune. It was here that he met his future
wife - the lovely Cheryl, who was also a boarder(and was also told not to sing!)
John then went to Loughborough College
and became a craft teacher. Teaching brought him to Cornwall where he
discovered his voice! One beery night, John launched into song and Derek
Lloyd, the headmaster and excellent singer/guitarist immediately recognised
his talent, and encouraged him to sing. From that beginning John became the mainstay of The Tree Inn Folk Club in Stratton, near Bude, which he and Cheryl ran very successfully for twenty years. John learned from the great variety of guest performers. They also discovered Boscastle, on the North Cornish coast, a very special place with amazing singing that just happened in the pubs there and soon became regulars, performing with the likes of Charlie Jose. John was encouraged by and learned a lot from Charlie. Two of the songs on his CD, (Maggie May and Boscastle Fair), were learned directly from him. They had moved to North Petherwin where they later bought a big plot and moved into a caravan with their children - Ben,Anna and Emily. John built a superb bungalow while still teaching. After eighteen years teaching in Cornwall, he decided on a career change that would use his practical talents, becoming a self-employed builder, trading as 
property maintenance. By now, singing played a large part in his life.
In the late eighties and nineties, John, Cheryl and other well-known
musicians formed The Damn Buskers - see below. Some years later when the children had flown the nest, they sold up their much loved home and moved to Boscastle. The couple lived in a converted chicken shed on site and built their house...again! It felt like they were really coming home with the warm welcome from the locals, who said, "You took your time but we always knew you would end up here!" |
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The Damn Buskers, a good time band, got together in 1986 that became very
popular in the pubs. John was the lead singer with Cheryl and Julie belting
out harmonies. The musicians were a trio known as Da Bus - Ben Maughan on
funky accordion, Martin Frith on fiddle and Morgy, a powerhouse on rhythm
guitar! The band had a great local following and recorded a live tape,
entitled "A Legend In Their Own Heads". In the late nineties, Morgie, the band's guitarist became ill, and during a stay in a hospice, said that when he recovered, he wanted the band to help him raise funds for the hospice to help repay the wonderful care he had received. Sadly he did not recover and they lost a dear friend. John did not forget his promise to Morgie to raise funds. The following year, on Easter Sunday, John decided to honour that promise. With much trepidation he strolled down to Boscastle Harbour, put on his singing hat and began his open-air, unaccompanied, unamplified singing. Thus was The Boscastle Busker born! His aim was to raise £1000 but by the end of that summer, he presented a cheque for £3105 to Mount Edgcumbe Hospice. Cathartic and successful as the fund raising was, it also opened many doors to further his singing career. There was much demand for a CD and the following year saw the creation of The Boscastle Busker CD under the watchful eye of friend and singer-songwriter, Mike Silver. |
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“John has now raised over £12,250 for
Mount Edcumbe Hospice” |
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| The CD, Boscastle Busker was used by Tiger Aspects Productions for a series of eight BBC2 programmes, entitled "A Seaside Parish". The programmes began in 2004,following the fortunes of Reverend Christine Musser as she settled in to her new parish of Boscastle. It proved so popular that they made another two series! John featured greatly on the programmes, especially after the flood of 2004 - press button "His Music" | |
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| In the summer of 2002, retired surgeon, Dr David Halpin, heard John singing at the harbour and commented, "If people could listen to the way you sing songs from the heart, there would be peace in the world today!" Dr Halpin subsequently invited John to join his humanitarian expedition, The Dove and Dolphin, to take aid to the Gaza Strip. John sang to the boat crew and the Palestian refugees, including children in school. He was most moved by the plight of the refugees and gives talks and shows a professional video to groups about his experiences. | |
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| The creative director of the Eden Project, at St Austell heard John singing at the harbour and was inspired. He thought the sound would be perfect at Eden - a natural singer in a natural setting. Since then John has performed many times in the Biomes there. |