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HomeDorset EastCulture, the Arts & the History - Dorset EastRock icon PJ Harvey ‘honoured and very grateful’ for award

Rock icon PJ Harvey ‘honoured and very grateful’ for award

Music icon PJ Harvey has acknowledged the part played by Dorset’s music scene in shaping the artist she has become. 

Accepting a special award for her contribution to music in Dorset at the Original Music Awards at Lighthouse on Friday, the double Mercury Prize winner who grew up in West Dorset said she felt “honoured and very grateful” for the award. 

In a special video shown at the event, she added, “The local music scene was hugely important for myself when I was a teenager, and particularly Bridport, where I spent a lot of time playing with many musicians. I felt supported and encouraged by the whole artistic community there.” 

She also noted the teachers and arts department at her school, Beaminster Comprehensive. 

Polly Harvey cut her musical teeth playing pub back rooms and get-togethers in West Dorset before joining Bristol-based band Automatic Dlamini, then forming her own band in 1991 and moving to London, where their first demo tape attracted the attention of John Peel, the music press, and record labels. 

She has consistently drawn on her Dorset roots, from the gutsy songs of her 1992 debut album Dry through the Mercury Prize-winning Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (2000), and Let England Shake (2011) to her most recent album, I Inside the Old Year Dying. In 2022, she published her verse novel Orlam, the first substantial work written in the Dorset dialect for decades. 

“It’s wonderful to have this recognition,” she said. “Also, to highlight the importance of the arts in our region and everywhere and the contribution that we can make to society. I think art is hugely important on an emotional level and also on an intellectual level of understanding the world that we live in. 

“But I think also, because of the encouragement I had throughout my education and education through the artists around me, I was able to believe in my own voice, and I’ve maintained that belief my whole life and my whole career, always following my instinct. I can only encourage young artists to do the same. 

“You all have an individual voice; every single one of you is different, so keep looking for what your voice is.” 

The Original Music Awards saw artists and participants in the Dorset music scene recognised at the annual red carpet event that has become a highlight of the region’s music calendar. 

“The awards night is a hard-won opportunity to shine a light on the creativity and hard work that make Dorset’s original music scene so incredibly vibrant,” say organisers Matt Black and Mel Berkhauer of Hangover Hill, the team behind Live and Unheard, the monthly grass roots music night at Lighthouse. 

“It’s a community that works because it supports itself, and as a direct result of the OMAs, there are now more venues across Dorset that are willing to support and encourage original music, which can only be a good thing for creativity in this inspirational part of the world. 

“And of course, to have that endorsed by the heroic PJ Harvey only adds to the momentum.” 

The winners Original Music Awards 2025:

Best Band: Mikey Ball & The Company 

Best Live Act: Mischa & His Merry Men 

Best Small Band: Velour 

Best Breakthrough Act: Eli  

Best Solo: Shannon White 

Best Under 18: Phoebe Rose 

Best Recorded Work Video: Nick Capaldi (for Lovely People) 

Best Recorded Work Album: Traffic Cone Wizard (for We:Are) 

Best Recorded Work Single: Millie Watson (for Milk & Bread) 

Accessibility & Inclusivity: St Bartholomew’s Church, Shapwick 

Best Festival: Purbeck Valley Folk Festival 

Best Tech Support/Back Stage Crew: Steve RMV Sounds 

Best Original Music Venue: Bear Cave/Bears Bar & Venue 

Best Open To All: Acoustic Connection 

Best Promoter: Dan ‘Sully’ Sullivan 

Best Songwriter: Nia Nicholls 

Lifetime Achievement Award: Galahad 

Special Award Winners:  

Alex JT Award – Rainbow Lion Alex 

Inspirational Person – Calvin Billington Glen 

Contribution To Dorset Dance Music – DJ Pencil 

Services To Charity – Joe Musker 

Strength Of Character – Macko Grimmer 

Services To Music – Mark Baynes 

Spreading The Love – Mischa Weston-Green 

Contribution To The Local Music Scene – PJ Harvey 

Thom Belk Community Fund Award – Dixie Dix

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