A HUGE crowd turned out in the centre of Cinderford to witness the unveiling of plaque honouring local band and worldwide phenonomen EMF. James Atkin and Ian Dench unveiled the plaque on the clock tower in The Triangle dedicated to the band’s contribution to music.
There was a surprise announcement for fans as it was revealed that the band will add a date to their world tour this year to headline CindyFest in July. Unveiling the plaque, James said: “We are blown away. “The Forest of Dean is our home and it's amazing to see so many beautiful old friends out there and familiar friends.” He said it was “emotional” to see the name of the late Zac Foley on the plaque alongside his, Ian’s and that of Mark Decloedt and Derry Brownson.
“We did love and adore Zac and miss him dearly.”.
Prior to the unveiling, James and Ian were presented with miniatures of the plaque, which was made by Ned Heywood of Chepstow, at Cinderford Town Council’s offices.
They also cut a cake specially designed by local cake maker Clare Milliner.
Following the unveiling James and Ian mingled with the crowd, chatting to fans and signing autographs.
Among them was Linda Black, a big fan who has a special reason to love the band .
She said: “We go to all the gigs, we travel with them all over the country watching the band,.
“They're from the Forest of Dean, they made the Forest famous for my generation,
“As a teenager, I grew up watching the band but in 2012, I went to see them at the Guildhall in Gloucester and I met my husband there at that gig.
“He had a spare ticket, I got the ticket, found him on Facebook and our son (George) is now born.
“Our son would not be here today if we hadn't have met at that EMF gig.
“If EMF didn't exist, our son would not exist.”
The idea for the plaque came from Town Crier Jer Holland and was developed by Cinderford Town Council. Cinderford Mayor Cllr Roger Sterry said: “Today, we celebrate their musical talent with a blue plaque, which is a tribute to EMF’s place in music and Cinderford’s history.
“Cinderford Town Council would also like to express their gratitude to the Town Crier, Jer Holland, for his dedication in initiating and assisting with the project.”
Jer said the plaque would remind “everyone that this is Cinderford and that it is, and always will be the home EMF, a band that rose from humble beginnings at the Bilson to the world stage.”
He said the idea for the plaque came when Unbelievable came on the radio in the car when he was driving his 11-year-old daughter, Molly. “Molly knew the song but not the fact they were from Cinderford, with an adopted son from Cheltenham.
“That’s when I thought: ‘We can do something here,’ and fortunately we in Cinderford are fortunate to have a council which always supports good ideas and so here we are today. “EMF proved that its OK to dream big and with hard work, dedication and a bit of luck along the way, your dreams can come true.
“For many, including myself, EMF, along with many other Indie Rock bands, provided the soundtrack to my youth.”
