The Event
A weekend of English Country Dance to suit all tastes, with dances from the period c1650 to the present day including New England Contras and Squares.The Leaders - John & Hilary Turner
The series is organised and led by John & Hilary Turner. It is aimed at enthusiasts who enjoy their dancing and aspire to improve their skills, knowledge and understanding of English Country Dance, but not at the expense of courtesy and cordiality.On this occasion the calling was shared between John and our 'Guest' Caller Ivan Aitken with music provided by John & Mary Brock (Weston Country Dance Band).
John, a Yorkshireman, calls dances in a variety of styles
from 'Playford' to 'New England' Contras & Running Set. He has called at several major UK
festivals, and at dance camps in the USA in recent years.
John's 'Calling CV'.
Hilary, originally from the North-East,
is Booking Secretary and Hostess.
The weekend commenced with dinner on the Friday evening and ended with a farewell dance on the Sunday afternoon. There was a mixture of dances & workshops, and some free time to explore Bournemouth & the beautiful environs.
Ivan Aitken
Ivan came into folk dancing by accident, a local newspaper was
advertising a disco so he
went along, but the paper had got it wrong, it was in fact a folk dance. He stayed for the
evening, got hooked, joined the club and was soon roped on to the committee to help.
He started calling at club nights and has been calling for the past 29 years.
Ivan enjoys calling all types of dances including Playford, Pat Shaw, American Squares
and Contras and some Scottish.
More recently he has been calling at some of the major festivals including Chippenham,
Eastbourne and Sidmouth and numerous dance weekends around the country.
When not calling he enjoys dancing, cooking, walking, playing recorder and listening to
all types of folk music.
The Weston Country Dance Band (John & Mary Brock).
The Weston Country Dance Band is long established as one of the
leading folk dance bands
in the country, providing foot-tapping dance music and original arrangements in a wide
variety of styles all aimed at supporting the dancers and enhancing their enjoyment of the
dance.
The band travels widely from Cornwall to Kent & many stops in between! It has also played in
Europe and the USA on many occasions.
For this weekend Mary plays keyboard & John is on accordion. Together they are most effective
in music for contra
dances as well as the whole range of social dance styles.
THE HOTEL PICCADILLY
The hotel is an AA 3 star establishment in
Bournemouth, Dorset. The accommodation is
comfortable and stylish, and the spacious ballroom has a magnificent
maple floor, sparkling chandeliers, delightful period paintings and
dramatic drapes. The restaurant regularly earns awards for its fine
cuisine. All accommodation is en-suite and is available in Double, Twin
(shared) and Single rooms (very limited in number). A small number of
guests are housed in an adjacent hotel.
Hotel Piccadilly is situated in
Bath Road close to the centre of Bournemouth, approx 10 mins walk from
the pier, and only a short distance from the coach & rail stations with
regular services from London and other regional centres.
Try their Website: Hotel Piccadilly