Mr Hemmings Abingdon Traditional Morris dancers, danced at many pubs round Abingdon, and even some ex-pubs like this one – which was once The Happy Dick Inn in Ock Street.
This annual day of dance was to celebrate Cecil Sharp who worked at the end of the 19th and the start of the 20th ecntury, collecting dances, and keeping the old morris dancing tradition alive. He visited Abingdon one hundred years ago.
The Mr Hemmings group were accompanied by 7 other groups. This colourful Oxfordshire group, called Armaleggan Morris, dance in the borders style with blacked faces and tattered clothes and energetic stick hitting. They are at the Kings Head and bell.
Belly dancing, by Hazzaz, in the Carpark of the Cross Keys pub.
Mayflower Morris clog dancing at the front of the Cross Keys.
Then at 2 pm all the groups got together to dance on the Market Place.
Les Badcock, the bagman of the Mr Hemmings group, led the dance.
Great too see you had a good day.Keep it up! Sorry i couldn’t be there .Best wishes to the team. Martin
Was a great day and good to see all teams enjoying it despite the weather. Shame you could’nt make it Martin. Maybe a soltice knees up down in your back yard is called for!? Tim B
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Well done Les and all the guys for continuing the tradition, in spite of the weather it seems like you all had a good day. sorry I was not able to make it but hopefully see you all sometime soon. And keep those lines straight!.
Andy Dab