Morris Men turn out for Boxing Day tradition

Dec 27 2007 by Aaron Boland, Liverpool Daily Post

The Mersey Morris Men dance the Old Women Tossed Up at Willaston Green on Boxing Day.

A SONG, a dance and a pint has become a Boxing Day tradition in the Wirral village of Willaston when the Mersey Morris Men pay their annual visit.

Every year, their “Boxing Day Revels” on the village green attract hundreds of people, and this year was no exception.

They performed their traditional dances interspersed with a performance using rappers – flexible swords with a handle on each end – and a Mummers Play, which is customarily a short, costumed folk drama based around old tales of death and resurrection.

This was followed by a pint or three at the nearby Pollards Inn.

“Side” secretary Tony Foard, 55, said: “Although we perform locally in the open air more regularly when the weather gets warmer, we’ve been out at Willaston on Boxing Day morning for about three or four years and its proving to be extremely popular.”

The current Mersey Morris Men originated in 1960 when the Liverpool Men and the Wirral Men merged, although there has been a local “side” on Merseyside since 1928 and their 20 or so members will be out performing in earnest during their 80th birthday in 2008, Liverpool’s Capital of Culture Year.

“We get a mixture of all sorts of different people who want to join us,” said Mr Foard. “Some people are attracted by the oddness and the strangeness of it all, while others like myself are interested in folk dance and music, plus, of course, we invariably perform outside pubs and as most of us like a good quality beer we pop in there for a pint to cool down afterwards.”

The Mersey Morris Men’s costume consists of white shirts and black breeches with flower decked hats. Over their shoulders are worn blue and black baldricks, with a central badge showing the Liver Bird carrying the Wirral Horn.

“The Liverpool Morris Men have a great tradition because they were one of the first of the revived Morris, so called because a lot of ‘sides’ were wiped out in World War I when so many of this country’s young men didn’t come back,” added Mr Foard.

Many consider Morris dancing as having its roots in ancient pagan fertility rituals, although Mr Foard say its origins may be far more modern, relating to 15th-century courtiers mimicking the way the peasants danced.

Morris is not exclusive to men either – there are many women’s “sides” and on Boxing Day the Merseys were joined by the Mock Beggar Morris of Wirral ladies.

“It’s good fun, good exercise and an alternative form of aerobics,” said Mr Foard, who said they were constantly on the look-out for new recruits.

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