Border Morris

Cawte quotes further accounts describing complaints to the local magistrates about disruptive morris dancers in Longdon, Worcestershire, disrupting the Sabbath day from 1614 to 1617 and another account of dancers in Much Wenlock in 1652, causing a disturbance in an ale house at Nordley.

Such detail as starting foot rules and phrase endings are notable for their apparent absence.

The tradition is characterised by black faces, tattered shirts or coats, much stick-clashing and a big band traditionally comprising melodeons, fiddles, concertinas, triangles and tambourines, although they now often also feature a tuba or sousaphone, and flute or oboe.

Under the guidance of Dave Jones and Keith Francis, Silurian Border Morris sought to interpret the collected dance material, preserving as much of the traditional styles and features as can be deduced.

With many of the newer sides, the dances have often become complex, involving many invented and evolved steps, figures and choruses.

Cawte, with reference to notes made in Leominster, his talking with former dancer, Tom Postons, and his recollections of the dancing of the time as having "lots of bowing, hat-raising, and clashing of sticks on the ground" led to the "revival" of Postons' stick dance.

Carreg-las translates from the Welsh as 'bluestone', a rock found in the Preseli Mountains, in Pembrokeshire, of which it is said Stonehenge was constructed.

Border morris dancers, White Ladies Aston
Silurian Border Morris Men, Church Lane, Ledbury , Boxing Day 1996
Widders with short sticks
Dancing at Monmouth , as part of the Olympic torch relay , 2012
Beltane Border Morris performing at Sidmouth Folk Festival 2022
The Shropshire Bedlams at Towersey Festival , 1980
Music for The Widders
Silurian Border Morris Men dancing Black Ladies Aston, at Saddleworth Rushcart, August 2013