Just over two years ago Bath Ladies Morris side was started by Betty Reynolds and some young ladies from Bath University. In a sense this side came of age when they were invited to dance at Bampton last Whitsun by the Countess , a singular honour. They are the first ladies side to dance at Bampton for 35 years - since Sam Bennett brought his girls from Ilmington. During the summer the Bath Ladies represented English Dancing, together with members of the Apley and Bath University, at the Letterkenny Festival.
Five sides met at Cheltenham for this instructional - the second in fact since the first was held at Timsbury in the spring. Represented were Bath, Cardiff, Cheltenham and Gloucester ('England's Glory Ladies Morris), Oxford and Essex. Considering that many of these sides have only been dancing for a very short time the standard was high. As a spectacle I find male morris superior - sometimes I do have some sympathy with the Bampton Man, who, on being asked what he thought of the Ilmington girls' footwork and steps is reported to have replied "who was watching the feet"! Apart from providing morris widows with something to do (part of the origin of the Bath Ladies side was this need.), then getting girls dancing morris can, I feel,do nothing but good to the present rather moribund and insular state of the morris. Why on earth morris ales should be stag events I can never see (see the reprint from Blount elsewhere!). As Tubby Reynolds pointed out at the instructional, the English morris and its associated trappings is as much the tradition of women as it is of men.
During the instructional the dancers concentrated on a number of dances and traditions which it was felt (in Tubby and Betty Reynolds' opinion that is) were most suitable to the ladies - they danced Wheatley, Ilmington, and some Brackley, then some North West Morris (Colne Royal) and a brief shot at the Wexford Mummer's dance. Of these Ilmington is probably the most interesting tradition, the most appropriate for women and also a tradition which is not danced a great deal by the men. In the 1930's Sam Bennett raised a side of girls from the village of Ilmington, largely I gather, because he could not persude any of the boys to dance. He used to take the girls to London, and they toured in the Cotswolds, taking a pipe and tabour player, and a fool or squire with them. Ilmington has a fairly well documented tradition of morris dancing dating back to the early 1800's, and quite a large number of different versions of the dances have been collected. Information on some of the dances came from the very few survivors of what is referred to as 'the old morris'.
Perhaps the last comment should go to Tubby, who at the end of today's dancing was heard to declare "I've done it ! Fifty women all dancing round me.
At the end of the afternoon the inaugural meeting of this organization was held. The idea is to provide a focus for ideas and information on women's morris; they will try to compile notes on the music and dances for distribution amongst interested parties, to run instructionals, hold names of organisers, answer queries and generally provide a focus for the women"s morris. The organisation is to be centred on Bath for the first year, with a Baglady to be sought from Bath Ladies. Cardiff Ladies are keeping a scrap-book for the first year. Information is to be had from Betty Reynolds, Apley House, The Square, Timsbury, Bath (Tel. 70736)
NOTE added 2009:
The above was transcribed from three 120min tapes which I made of the proceedings. To my eternal shame I recorded over them a couple of years later. A bit of history was lost.