The early autumn weather was perfect for a festival as we set out for Swanage on Saturday 12 September. At last, a strong high pressure system had settled over the country and the sun had come out to celebrate with us. A blue sea and a cloudless sky welcomed us as we arrived at the car park above the bay at about ten in the morning. Groups of dancers could be seen assembling for the day and some earlier arrivals, including some Meddlars, were sitting around the cafe at the west end of town.
Our first dance session was at 11am by the clock tower on the promenade, so we had plenty of time to make our way along the seafront and meet up with all the others. We were paired for the session with Sarum Morris, who set up a little way along the prom. Because the sun had made its way round to the south and was now much lower in the sky than in mid summer, many dancers in both sides were wearing sunglasses. Connoisseurs of traditional dance should note from the picture how Pete, Sue and Lyn, wearing shades while Morris dancing, demonstrate to perfection the Joe Cool effect. Mmmm.
After this first dance slot, we had some time on our hands before our next performance at the Red Lion. This provided an opportunity to watch other sides perform, to relax with a coffee, to investigate the wares of the traders in Sandpit or simply to wander around the town. Having watched a slightly depleted Holt Morris dance at the Mowlem, we headed for the pub. Well, you have to get a seat outside, don't you?
The Red Lion is a key location at Swanage - the very first Swanage Folk Festival was centred upon it. Most of the daytime activity is outside, at the back of the pub. This is in contrast with the White Swan just down the road, where the main event, a never-ending Irish music session, takes place inside. On a day like this, who besides an Irish whistler would want to waste the beautiful weather by squeezing into a bar? So the Red Lion it had to be.
The pub is very popular with Morris sides and, although dancing is scheduled here throughout the day, two sides at a time, many more dancers are to be found here, watching the displays. We arrived at noon, just after Dr Turberville's Morris had finished their performance (Wayford tradition), and the next hour sped by with a drink and good company.
Our second dance slot for the day began at 1pm. Most the side had arrived at the pub long before then so we were able to start promptly. We were sharing the session with Bideford Pheonix, who dance Cotswold tradition and dress in red, white and blue. Well, they wear black breeks as well but you can overlook that. A shared half hour does not give you much time to dance but we squeezed in White Ladies Aston, Highland Mary and the Upton Stick Dance before stopping for lunch.
Many of us then stayed at the Red Lion enjoying the sunshine. Last year's Swanage Festival, when it rained for much of the morning, was not such a relaxed affair and was concluded with a final downpour just as the procession had finished! Bourne River Morris turned up well in advance of their next dance slot at the pub and we all watched the young dancers of the Summer Bees Morris perform. It is nice to see youngsters becoming involved in and enjoying this great tradition.
Our final dance session was at the Mowlem at 2:30pm and so we gathered there about ten minutes before we were due to perform. For this session we were paired with Wight Bells, whom we had last seen just a week earlier at their tenth anniversary day of dance. The dancing at the Mowlem was concluded with a joint East Acton, performed at breakneck speed. Despite the frantic tempo set by the Wight Bells' musicians, most kept time pretty well and, amazingly, we all finished together!
As always, the last scheduled event for the day was the 3:30pm procession, a long musical trek from the pier, along the shore road to the clock tower. We made our way to the start, with many hiking up to the car park to deposit bags and belongings in cars before assembling near the pier. Normally, there are so many sides in the procession that there is a huge time lag between the head of the queue setting off into the town and the last few sides beginning to move. This proved to be the case again and so, since we were nearly at the back of the procession, we did not start to process until about ten minutes to four. We set off to the tune of the Winster Processional, with the musicians walking/running alongside. The procession is a popular event for the spectators but for the dancers and musicians it is a very long way! By the time we reached the end, the shore road was filling up and earlier arrivals were shuffling back, forming an arch for the rest to dance through.
Then it was over - time for a drink.
