Highside Longsword Logbook 1999
FIFTY FOURTH PUBLIC PERFORMANCE 17th January 1999
PERFORMERS :-
Musician - Ray Waite
Captain -
1 Ted
Dodsworth
2 Roy Waite
3 Keith Worden
4 Geoff Hyde
5 Jim Coulson
6 Paul Freeman
Plough Blessing at Saint Andrews's Church in Kirkby Malzeard is the highlight of our year. We followed the plough down the aisle as usual but this year we sat in the left hand choir stalls. I think this was because the sun was very low and it was quite difficult to see! There was quite a collection of clergy at the service this year including the Bishop of Knaresborough who gave the address. The new Deacon was also there, he looks like a Doctor Who in his ordinary clothes. We danced very well, Ray was a touch nervous towards the end.
In the audience was Trevor Stone (and Maureen) and Renaat from Lange Wapper, a Belgian sword team. They both videoed us. During the photo call afterwards we ‘beheaded' the Bishop. Only an Archbishop to go!
We then danced at the Buttercross as we had missed it on Boxing Day as it had been raining. Quite a crowd, we ‘beheaded' Renaat this time. After a drink in the Queen's we moved on to the Golden Lion in Ripon.
FIFTY FIFTH PUBLIC PERFORMANCE 6th March 1999
PERFORMERS :-
Musician - Ray Waite
Captain -
1 Ted
Dodsworth
2 Roy Waite
3 Keith Worden
4 Geoff Hyde
5 Jim Coulson
6 Paul Freeman
Ray's 50th birthday party in Foxton's Court at the back of the Golden Lion. Other performers included the band (duo) Double Trouble and a strippergram. We danced after the young lady took her clothes off for Ray's benefit, these must have upped his heart rate because we have never danced so fast. Apart from a tiny mistake near the beginning we danced very well. There was a large appreciative audience all of them knew Ray but many of them didn't know of his involvement with us. They do now!
FIFTY SIXTH PUBLIC PERFORMANCE 1st May 1999
PERFORMERS :-
Musician - Ray Waite
Captain -
1 Ted
Dodsworth
2 Roy Waite
3 Keith Worden
4 Geoff Hyde
5 Jim Coulson
6 Paul Freeman
A cold day for the Moor and Coast Festival at Whitby. Our first spot was at the bandstand, following Jump Back Georgia, an Appalachian Team from Saltburn. They had boards laid out for a stage which we danced on. Our next spot was after lunch on the New Quay for a small audience, We then returned to the Bandstand for a chance to see the dozen or so other teams that were at the Festival. The audience had thinned out by the time we danced but were very appreciative.
We did a final spot at Captain Cook's Monument with a reasonable audience.
FIFTY SEVENTH PUBLIC PERFORMANCE 1st June 1999
PERFORMERS :-
Musician - Ray Waite
Captain -
1 Ted
Dodsworth
2 Roy Waite
3 Robert Thew
4 Geoff Hyde
5 Jim Coulson
6 Paul Freeman
In August of 1998, Bety Lupton's Ladle Laikers and Flag and Bone Gang from Harrogate visited Vancouver, Seattle & Victoria. Two of the teams they danced with, Misty City Morris from Seattle and Island Thyme from Victoria were visiting England for a few days and were dancing with the local teams. We should have been dancing on Ripon Market Square but for the annual May Fair so we performed in front of Ripon Travel on Kirkgate instead. Flag & Bone Gang, Misty City Morris and Knaresborough Mummers performed before the Hornblower at 9.00pm and we danced afterwards. The dance seemed to go very well, the lock went in quite quickly but as I held it up something clicked so I quickly threw it on the floor. Everyone thought it was part of the dance! We reformed the lock afterwards and ‘beheaded' Ashley from Misty City.
Misty City did a couple more dances and we all returned to the Golden Lion for a social. The visiting teams sang a lot of songs interspersed with Reg's (from Flag & Bone Gang) comic renditions.
FIFTY EIGHTH PUBLIC PERFORMANCE 26th December 1999
PERFORMERS :-
Musician - Ray Waite
Captain - Peter Meese
1 Ted
Dodsworth
2 Roy Waite
3 Jim Coulson
4 Geoff Hyde
5 Chas Marshall
6 Paul Freeman
Two new performers this year. Peter Meese and Chas Marshall, both members of Ripon City Morris Dancers were drafted in at two weeks notice as neither Keith nor Rob were available. Paul had been injured for 6 months before this event. Peter didn't really have chance of a practice and Chas only had two but all three performed well. We were short of a waistcoat, so Chas borrowed mine and I borrowed Ray's, unfortunately we were then unable to fasten them!
We met in Grantley at 1.00 pm as usual and after a short delay danced outside the pub. We walked on, Peter looking smart in his waistcoat and bow tie. Unfortunately he then dried but luckily had the words in his pocket, there was a long dramatic pause while he fished them out. The dance went well but during one figure Chas was hit on the side of his head with a sword, this is the first blood we have drawn. There was a reasonable crowd including a photographer from the Yorkshire Evening Post. We ‘beheaded' Ofelia Oliver, who is married to Ripon's Hornblower, Alan, watched by her family from Romania. Someone gave us £2.
We then travelled to Kirkby Malzeard to dance at the Buttercross. Here was the biggest crowd we've had in Kirkby, possibly due to a new web site advertising us. The dance went very well, the lock didn't! I couldn't hold it up so threw it on the floor which seemed quite spectacular. It also meant we couldn't ‘behead' anyone.
After a quick drink in the Queen's Head we went to the far end of the village and danced to only one person who wasn't family or friend. She put 10p in the collection! We then went back to dance near the Green but by this time it was raining so we retreated to the Henry Jenkins. After a musical session in the pub we danced in the lounge bar. Peter tried to remember the song and came up with some comical lines e.g. "You'd have been glad to come off with your wife"! A very appreciative crowd, the pub was very busy.
We finished off the day back at our house, unfortunately Jim had a crash on the way here so had to go home. The cake this year had sweet chiming bells on it, a reference to a carol that we have sung frequently recently.