By Ciar Byrne
They say one should try everything in life at least once, except incest and Morris dancing. But the much-mocked men with sticks appear to be making a comeback, not just on village greens, but at some of the capital's leading cultural institutions.
At London's Southbank Centre earlier this month, the grande dame of English folk music, Shirley Collins, rounded off a brilliant series of talks on the traditional rural songs that would have been lost forever were it not for the likes of the English Folk Dance and Song Society, by welcoming on stage a small band of Morris dancers.
Also at the Southbank, as part of their Christmas revels, the current band in residence Bellowhead were joined by a much larger and surprisingly young group of Morris men.
Now, Morris dancers are to feature as part of the BBC Proms Folk Day on 20 July, strutting their stuff around the maypole at a mini folk festival in Kensington Gardens.
Anyone who doubts that Morris dancing is (almost) cool again, need only check out this inspired music video by electronica folksters Four Tet:
(Photo: Maeers/Fox Photos/Getty Images)
We must be about the only country in the world which mocks our national dance - there are morris-type dances all around the world, particularly Spain, and nobody takes the mickey out of them. I don't see why people feel so threatened by them. I was in a long sword dancing team for a while and had the same reaction. Brits should be proud of morris, not continually laughing at it.
Posted by: Robbo | Friday, 11 April 2008 at 03:19 PM
I cannot believe that Ciar Byrne has the sheer audacity to mock Morris dancing, perhaps the proudest cultural tradition in these sadly blighted isles of ours. Is she completely ignorant? What is so funny about men banging each other over the head with a pig's bladder? or incest come to that? Miss Byrne is obviously a southern metropolitan trendy with no knowledge of what she writes. Shame on you - oh yes!
Posted by: Old folkie | Friday, 11 April 2008 at 05:12 PM
I'm a closet Morris dancer but I'm thinking of coming out
Posted by: Paulo the Pixie | Friday, 11 April 2008 at 05:16 PM
You remember when Pavarotti was holding that hankerchief all the time? He was just waiting for someone to give him the other one, and then...
Posted by: Neil McGowan | Friday, 11 April 2008 at 10:34 PM
Most national dances involve men and women dancing together in a beautiful way and perhaps that is why Brits instinctively do not enjoy Morris Dancing because one usually sees groups of ugly middle aged men hopping around with hankies in a most unattractive fashion. This style of dancing somehow mirrors our national character when it comes to aesthetic sensual beauty or the ability to display ourselves in public in a beautiful way without it being crass or vulgar or on the other hand drenched with snobbery. Morris Dancing sums up our lack of wholesome sexuality and of course the Gutter Sniper mentioning incest in the same breath as dancing is also very much a British tendancy to make fun of anything that attempts to lift the lid off British inhibition and self consciousness.
Posted by: Lara | Saturday, 12 April 2008 at 10:30 AM
sorry not the Gutter Sniper...must have made that reference subconsciouly being British; apologies to Ciar Byrne
Posted by: Lara | Saturday, 12 April 2008 at 10:32 AM
'They say one should try everything in life at least once, except incest and Morris dancing'.
Actually said by Sir Arnold Bax. Credit where it is due.
Posted by: Clifford | Saturday, 12 April 2008 at 12:18 PM
I thought it was Sir Thomas Beecham?
Lara, I'm guessing you've never seen a Spanish Sardana dance? Morris is fun and jolly and there are plenty of female teams out there too.
Posted by: Hobgoblin | Saturday, 12 April 2008 at 11:35 PM
The writing on the wall has been there for some time that Morris/sword dancing is going to reduce in numbers in the next 10 years. There are some young sides from uni's but not enough to stop the decline. The average age of our side is 55, most other sides are around this age.
For all those who don't like us, you won't have to wait long and for all those who do like the traditions, quirkyness etc please join a side or start a side soon!!!!!! we need members!!
Posted by: CHRIS PEARCE (STEVENAGE SWORD) | Thursday, 15 May 2008 at 12:30 PM
What few seem to realise is that dancing the Morris is much more fun than watching it.
Older dancers, whilst not leaping as high nor moving as fast as the wonderful nubile younger sides, are still able to enjoy themselves and put on a bit of a show and they are probably a lot fitter than many of the scoffers that knock Morris dancing.
Besides, just imagine how much fatter we would be if we didn't dance off all that beer and cider.
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