This film is part of Free

Morris Dancers invade Horsham

Gangs of bearded men in smocks vie with women in clogs as rival teams dance their way through the quiet streets of Horsham in this Morris Dancing extravaganza from 1989

Amateur film 1989 4 mins

From the collection of:

Logo for Screen Archive South East

Overview

We start with various teams, or sides, of Morris Dancing men and women getting off coaches, chatting amongst themselves and posing for photos. Then the dancing begins. Teams in various types of dress perform a variety of dances in streets around the Carfax - Horsham's large open square. Every team has its own musicians playing pipes, drums or accordions. We then see a procession of teams dancing their way along the Causeway in a grand finale to the day.

Reginald Charman lived his entire life in the same house in Horsham, West Sussex. He was an avid and prolific film maker, using both Standard 8mm and Super 8mm film. He and his fellow film maker, Cecil Cramp, made a special effort to record over the years a wide variety of events and locations in and around Horsham and the surrounding area. After Reginald's death, Cecil ensured that many of their films and photographs depicting life in Sussex were conserved at various local museums and libraries. Many of their films are now held at Screen Archive South East.