We are a dance group based in Bishopston, Bristol, UK. Our dances are lively
and energetic, designed to entertain and attract today's audiences, but
with their roots in traditional English Morris dancing. We dance
regularly in the Bristol area, but also perform at venues around the
country and further afield.
Morris dancing gives you a great opportunity to enjoy yourself while keeping
fit, meeting other people, touring the country and getting involved in community events, festivals, street entertainment, television - you name it, Morris dancers have been there! Lots of people are natural dancers,
but modern life may offer relatively few accessible dance opportunities - Morris is one. There are very few pastimes that combine a really good social life with a rewarding and challenging activity - the chance to
travel and the option of getting involved in local events in your home area. Besides, if everyone knew about the free beer and the cut-price festival tickets...
New dancers:
May 2023 Bradford-on-Avon Green Man Festival
If you enjoy ceilidhs, barndances or other forms of dance, then Morris dancing could be for you. We welcome new adult dancers with any amount of (including no) experience.
Best to wear loose or stretchy clothing and trainers.
We are all vaccinated for covid-19. Weekly sub £3
Next taster sessions: Friday 27-Sep-2024 and Friday 04-Oct-2024 7:30pm for 8pm start. £3 each. After that we practise almost all Fridays until the end of April. If you can't make it to a taster session, you can join at a later date. Let us know you are coming. At Kelvin Players Hall, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8NY (Gloucester Rd entrance). Details below.
Location: Kelvin Players Hall
which is at 'Pigsty Hill', Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8NY Map
Corner of Gloucester Road (A38) and Wesley Road,
numerous buses to 'Hatherley Road' stop from south or 'Nevil Road' stop
from north. Bikes can be left inside.
Dance events
Most of the events we perform at are in the Summer months (see our Programme
for 2024 below). There's no such thing as a typical dance event. Every
year, we dance at all or most of the following. People choose the ones
they like and you can do as many or as few as you want: Local pubs - generally a relaxing Friday evening at a pub near Bristol - we know a lot of landlords and they welcome us every year. Festivals - these can be big
events, where we are centre-stage, or smaller, community events where we
just dance around the town. They can be anywhere in Britain - or
further afield. Fetes - usually organised by schools or villages - a chance to get to know local groups and enjoy the events they have organised. Morris weekends - organised by other Morris groups in their area (or by us around
Bristol) - an opportunity to see somewhere new, and meet old friends.
Most dancing takes place in the summer - our programme shows you our dance schedule for 2025.
We're currently taking bookings for 2025. If you would like to book us for an event, see our booking details below
Apr 2023 Old Green Tree Pub Bath. Photo Marcus Good
Jan 2025
Sat 18-Jan-2025 Horfield Organic Community Orchard Wassail. Path by 22 Kings Drive BS7. 14:00-16:00hrs. Dance 15:00hrs.
Sun 19-Jan-2025 Hillfields Community Garden Wassail BS16 4EH. 14:30hrs (whole event 13:00 to 15:00hrs)
Feb 2025
Mar 2025
Thurs 1-May-2025 Brandon Hill at dawn
Sat 10_May-2025 Bradford on Avon Green Man all day
Apr 2025
May 2025
Jun 2025
Sun 8-Jun-2025 NYTFE day of dance Bristol
Jul 2025
Aug 2025
Sep 2025
Oct 2025
Nov 2025
Dec 2025
by Steve and Helen Jones 2015
Bookings
We are always interested in dancing at any event - however big or small, and
wherever it is located. Apart from events like fetes and festivals, we have performed at social and charity events, danced in schools and old folks' homes, danced in Trafalgar Square, Bath Abbey and street parties, just to name a selection! Please contact us at pigstymorrisBristol@gmail.com to see if we are available for your event, or ring 07508 216811 if you don't have e-mail access. We like as much notice as you can give us - so contact us now to avoid disappointment!
Horfield community orchard apple day Jan 2023( Photo John Mildenhall)
What is Morris dancing?
Morris dancing is a general term for any
of many sorts of traditional English ritual dance. The earliest records
of Morris dancing are only a few hundred years old, though some would
have you believe that it's definitely pagan. There are many theories
regarding its origin - generally tenuous in nature. Whatever the origins
of Morris are (and we may never know), the most important thing is that
it does not become preserved as a 'museum piece', but lives and
continues to evolve. Of the many forms of dance, Pigsty Morris dance
Cotswold Morris - which is characterised by vigorous movements,
accentuated by the waving of handkerchiefs, the clashing of sticks, and
the ringing of bells tied to the legs.
One of earliest paintings:Detail from 'Dixton Harvesters' 1720 Anon, Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum
Much of the Morris dancing you
see in Britain today has developed from the material collected about a
century ago, which itself had evolved over centuries before that. The
collected material made Morris widely accessible, and it spread from the
people and areas where it had traditionally been performed. Without
this revival, it is quite possible that English Morris would have died
out completely. As regards women dancing (as they do with Pigsty Morris
and in many other groups), there is evidence that women danced the
Morris during the 1800s (as they may have also done before that time),
and they were pivotal in its revival in the early 1900s. The widely held
stereotype of the Morris dancer as a middle-aged, beer-swilling man has
probably only developed since then, as Morris dancing between 1920 and
1970 was very much a male preserve. Hopefully the stereotype is fading;
nowadays, men and women of all ages and backgrounds and from all walks
of life take part in and enjoy Morris dancing. ps Most famous Morris
dancer was Joseph Needham (1900-1995) Author of 24 vols of 'Science and
Civilisation in China'.
Contact details
If you would like:
* information about Morris dancing in general
* to talk about joining us or other groups
* to enquire about booking us for any event
Password protected Pigsty Dancers' Resources (notation, videos and Caroline's rag-jacket making)
Enter password (Hint: foreman's first name, case specific):
login
(Brandon Hill 04:30 at dawn!! Tues 01 May 2018)
........
May 2023 Bradford-on-Avon Green Man Festival
which is at 'Pigsty Hill', Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8NY 
Apr 2023 Old Green Tree Pub Bath. Photo Marcus Good
by Steve and Helen Jones 2015
One of earliest paintings:Detail from 'Dixton Harvesters' 1720 Anon, Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum
2013