| Back in 1600, a Shakespearean actor and clown called Will Kemp entered into a bet which wagered that he could not dance from London to Norwich in nine days. He then went and proved that it was possible, even if his dancing for nine days was spread over four weeks. The event was recreated in 1977, with different morris teams each doing a relay for a different section of the route. For 2000, it was decided within all three morris organisations that there should be a hard core of keen (or totally mad, depending on your point of view) dancers who would do the whole route, and that local sides would dance at various points of the route. See the web page http://www.ukppg.co.uk/9daiesmorris2000.html
DDMM offered to do the stretch from Clare to Wickhambrook in mid-Suffolk on Wednesday 19 April. We arrived on time at 8:45, to find that the long-distance dancers hadn't arrived. So we did a show... |
Outside the Globe in Clare
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| When the dancers finally arrived, we joined them in a northerly direction for about seven miles |
Outside the Plumbers' Arms in Wickhambrook
While everyone else had their lunch, we danced outside. |
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Bagman and past bagman trying out a two-man Sherbourne jig when virtually no-one was watching
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The hard-line dancers ready for the off.
And on that note DDMM went their own way... |
Norwich
The climax of the week was to come on Saturday, when the dancers reached Norwich. We went back, and joined in the dancing and procession to the Guildhall. |
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| Dancing just before the procession. |
The best view of DDMM, processing to the Guildhall |
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Those who danced and played all the way from London, on the steps of the Guildhall, listening to the Town Crier read out the scroll from the Mayor of London to the Mayor of Norwich |
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Text © Nigel Strudwick 2000
Photos © Martin Tooley, Nigel Strudwick 2000
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