TRUE STORIES
All Bells & Whistles As May Day dawns, the Devil’s Dyke Morris Men come together to welcome the sun with a dance. We cast our eye over this curious folk tradition
Words PHOEBE HARPER
I t’s sunrise, 5.27am, and a lone he plays a short tune known to raise the hairs on the back of your neck, and the Morris Call rings out above the vibrant Wandlebury woodlands. What follows is a spectacle of dance performed by the Devil’s Dyke Morris Men (DDMM) as they herald the start of the 2024 dancing season, before rejoining the crowd for hot drinks and bacon rolls. Taking their name from the ancient earthwork that carves its course through Cambridgeshire and Suffolk, DDMM are presided over by squire Randall Scott. Originally formed out of the Cambridge Morris Men, via Staploe Hundred Morris Men and Staines Morris Men between 1975 melodeon player strides out to his designated spot with his back to a silent audience. Facing the sun, and 1981 – currently, the side numbers 21 active members of male dancers and musicians of both sexes. “Morris these days covers various styles of dance, from East Anglian molly dancing to north-west clog dancing, two types of sword dancing and the Cotswold morris dancing that we currently perform,” Randall explains. The latter consists of the classic hanky-waving, stick-clashing and hand-clapping associated with morris, danced by men dressed in white sporting a coloured baldric. Throughout the spring and summer months, it’s a common sight outside of pubs on a Thursday evening.
Why May Day? Nowadays perceived as a quintessentially English – and undeniably eccentric – folk tradition, the roots of morris dancing have become obscured by history. General theories suggest the phenomenon arrived on British shores from Europe in the 15th century, with its first mention recorded in 1448. Fast-forward from the medieval period, and the dances you’re likely to see today derive from the great revival of the 19th century championed by Cecil Sharp. This Edwardian folk enthusiast pioneered a personal mission to collect country songs and dances originating from rural populations across England to ensure their preservation. During this time, Cecil collected and recorded steps and dance patterns from various Cotswold villages, from which the routines now take their name; like Bledington and Ducklington. Although crucial to the preservation of these historic traditions, Cecil’s work perpetuated a largely unfounded link with paganism that still survives to this day. Indeed, despite May Day being bigger than Christmas for some morris dancers, none of the sides encountered by Cecil actually danced on 1 May. “At the risk of bursting a bubble or two, I’m afraid there’s no significance in dancing at dawn on May Day,” says Randall. Perhaps even more disappointing for local readers, the May Day tradition can actually be historically traced to ‘the Other Side’, when in 1923, members of Oxford University’s English Folk Song and Dance Society (EFSDS) first danced through the city streets at 6am after choristers finished singing from Magdalen Tower. Randall suggests that, during the next great morris dancing revival of the 1970s, the Morris Men would dance on dates that had ‘a whiff of paganism’ associated with them to widen their appeal, including at Wandlebury. “There are several reasons behind the existence of morris dancing, many of which are based around the practice of paganism, which are largely unfounded,” he expands. “That being said, until fairly recently we did have our own druid!”
Anything that can broaden our cultural horizons just has to be a positive thing A new dawn From the days of Cecil Sharp to the great 1970s revival, you might say that morris dancing is now undergoing a third wave of resurgence today, as an increasing number of people are turning to folk customs thanks to their elemental links to nature’s cycles and historic ties in the context of a post-pandemic, post-Brexit UK. For many practitioners of the art, such traditions can offer solace, with a strong sense of community, identity and authenticity beyond the isolation perpetuated by a commercially driven
RINGING IN SPRING As dawn breaks, a melodeon player signals the start of the dancing season
20 MAY 2024 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
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