Our outgoing Squire Tim Durrant handed over the reins with the agreement of the side to myself in October. Tim has been the Squire for more years than he cares to remember at least 8 and probably 9. The side owe a great deal of gratitude for his leadership and enthusiasm during his tenure, I’m pleased to say he will continue to be our official Fool a role he has a natural talent for, as well as guiding us in the art form of Morris Dancing.

We very recently managed to show off some of those skills at Charles Wells Brewery at Brewpoint with two other Bedford morris sides Red Cuthbert and Hemlock Morris. Our antics were recorded and will hopefully be available on ITV X before the new year.

There have been some significant changes in the last year with Les Skinner our magician on the concertina, talented singer and all round top man left to join his family in France. He left some pretty big boots to fill. Simon Melvin has transitioned superbly from dancer to music-maker over the last couple of years and we have a new band recruit in Clinton, who is doing incredibly well.

We are always looking to recruit new dancers, actually just new… who we can teach to dance, sing or play. I personally never gave much thought to possibly learning to Morris dance, until someone said fancy giving it a go, which I did and 15 years later I’m still learning how to sing. What have you got to lose? Go on, give it a go!

We continue to practise at Ravensden Village Hall every Wednesday from 7.30pm followed by a pint in the Welly, pop in any time or join us at one of our dance outs, Wassail or Mummers Play over Christmas and January.

Our dancing season really starts at 6.30am on May Day at Ickwell Green joined by our friends Letchworth Morris, followed by Ickwell May Festival on the May Bank Holiday. After which we dance out at various pubs across North Bedfordshire almost every Wednesday evening through to August. The publicans and clientele are most welcoming, the Apre Morris always goes down well and continues into the late evening with renditions of both traditional and modern interpretations of folk songs. It gets even better if the audience join in or sing their own songs. In the autumn we celebrate all things apples, mainly the cider at Bromham Apple Day at the Mill and help ensure a good crop by Wassailing at Dunton and Harrold in January were we will be performing the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance.

The donations to the side through the collecting tin (we also have contactless) is very much appreciated, it is used to run the side, maintain equipment and instruments and this year’s charity donation will be to the British Heart Foundation. We like to support local organisations and have been able to dance out at several residential homes to bring a smile to the faces of residents and staff and support their valuable work.

This year we will miss and remember Angus and Richard both long standing members of the side who did such a lot to keep the Morris tradition alive.

We wish you peace and good health, and extend a warm welcome to join us on Boxing Day and throughout 2025.

Phil Nicholson

Squire
Bedford Morris Men