Ceilidhs – Your chance to dance!
Come and have a dance at a BunkFest Mega Ceilidh! If you’re tapping your feet after watching dance displays round town, you’re in luck! Our Mega Ceilidhs at the Sports Park will have you whirling and twirling and dancing the night away! All BunkFest ceilidhs will use non-gendered calling, and everyone is welcome!
This year we’d like to ask adult ceilidh-goers for a suggested donation of £5. Please give generously to ensure BunkFest can keep putting on our wonderful events!
Friday 8:00pm – 10:30pm
BunkFest Mega Ceilidh with The Cotteswold Country Dance Band and caller Tina Morris with a display from Catseye Morris. (Sports Park)
Cotteswold Country Dance Band brings lively foot-tapping tunes and jolly dances to your ceilidh or barn dance. Our super friendly caller leads you through the dances so beginners and seasoned dancers alike have lots of fun. At home in a public ceilidh, the CCDB play a resident dance night at the famously folky Fleece Inn, Bretforton. They also play for weddings, parties, and anyone who wants a dance. The band are Paul (melodeon), Glen (fiddle/mandolin/nyckelharpa), Graham
(fiddle), Marc (bass), and Dave (drums). Your caller is Tina (mic, of
course).
Catseye Morris hail from mid-Cornwall, taking influence from border morris, molly dancing, Cornish dance and folklore to create a unique style of dance that celebrates the breadth of the folk world. They are very proud to dance a repertoire of original dances written by their members, and dance to original tunes written by Catseye musicians.
Saturday 8:00pm –10:30pm
BunkFest Mega Ceilidh with 3sticks and caller Mary Panton with a display from Lancashire Wallopers (Sports Park)
3sticks are Jenny Newman (fiddle) Andy Glass (guitar & Bass pedals) Peter Hemsley (Drums) 3sticks have been described as “Never less than Stunning” “the best of traditional fiddling combined with some awesome contemporary grooves”. Despite their size they have a surprisingly big sound. Expect cracking tunes played beautifully with exciting irresistible rhythms guaranteed to make you want to dance. Having played major festivals and prestigious events at home and abroad, they are thrilled to be playing at BunkFest for the first time. WEBSITE
Caller Mary Panton has been at the forefront of folk dance for over 40 years and is a legend, beloved by all! She’s been a leader in inclusive practice in the ceilidh world for many years and has made countless people very happy, calling at all sorts of events, from regular classes, to education settings, to headline gigs at major festivals. With all the best dances at her fingertips, and a friendly and fun calling style, Mary will lead a dance to remember!
The Lancashire Wallopers were originally formed in 1981 by students of the legendary clog dancer and music hall entertainer Sam Sherry. They were formed to give a one-off performance at the National Gathering at Cecil Sharp House of the bargees’ social dance taught to them by retired Bargee Bill Gibbons. Their outfits are inspired by the clothing traditionally worn by canal bargees and the group includes Wallop, the dancing boat horse (who is rather a show-off). All four dancers have won the prestigious Lancashire & Cheshire Clog Dancing Championship for three consecutive years, which earns them a permanent Champion title and a replica Championship belt. The Wallopers perform a range of imaginative routines encompassing steps learned from all the known traditional dancers who were dancing in the 1970s & 80s as part of the clog dancing ‘revival’ and, following in the footsteps of Sam Sherry, they have a strong repertoire of music hall inspired routines. The skilled dancing and unique music hall routines are taken to another level through the creative skills of the team’s two accomplished musicians.
The entrance fee is a £5 suggested donation. Please donate if you can, it is much appreciated and will help to keep BunkFest going!
More detailed information can be found in the BunkFest Program, this can be purchased from the Festival Shop and various venues in Wallingford. (no postal option availble)