Join The Brim Ceilidh Band and I for a night of merriment and music at Devoran Village Hall on 10th October.
Wonderful, upbeat Celtic music and varied, fun dances. A bar provided by the hall committee.
Doors open 19:30. Dancing from 20:00.
Category: community
Dance to The Brim Ceilidh Band – 16th May, Devoran Village Hall
We are excited about our upcoming ceilidh with The Brim Ceilidh Band on 16th May in the lovely Devoran Village Hall. Do come and join us. Everyone welcome!
What people said last time:
“The music was outstanding. The caller was super clear. Loved it!”
“Great crowd, great music and dance choices”
“Really friendly people. Great musicians, clear instructions. The whole event was fun and inclusive”
Doors open 19:30. Dancing from 20:00.
A bar will be run by volunteers from the Devoran Village Hall Committee and will support the village hall.
The hall has a car park and the village is served by public buses 36, 36A and U1.
A hybrid of Cornwall’s top folk musicians, The Brim Ceilidh Band specialise in providing an upbeat ceilidh / barn dance with an exciting and energetic mix of both new and traditional dances combined with an upbeat and full sound from the band. Check them out at www.brimceilidh.co.uk – accordion, fiddle and bouzouki.
No need to have any idea what ceilidh dancing is, just an enthusiasm to have some fun. Ceilidh dancing is very inclusive, suitable for everyone even those with two left feet. No experience or partner required. Kate Smith will be the caller for the evening and will show you how to do all the dances.
We want to keep our public ceilidhs affordable for everyone so you will see there are different adult tickets prices for those booking in advance. The regular price (£8.50) will cover our costs. The supporter price (£12) allows us to pay the band a modest fee. The budget price (£5) is because we don’t want you to be excluded from dancing if you would struggle to afford the regular price. Please pay as you feel you can afford. Accompanied children age 8 – 16 £3. Under 8s free, but please still book a ticket.
Do book in advance if you can to ensure you can come – there are limited tickets numbers due to venue capacity. Last time, in October, we sold out before the doors opened. If any tickets are left then we’ll have some available on the door at the set price of £12.
We very much look forward to seeing your smiling faces on the dancefloor!
Let’s Dance for free with Ceilidh Cornwall!
We are joining the national Let’s Dance campaign – all our classes next week (3rd – 7th March) are free!
To book please send a message stating:
- the class you want to attend,
- the number in your group, and
- if children are joining in please let me know their ages (note, under 12s are most suited to the Friday class, but teens will manage well at all classes).
What is Let’s Dance?
This is what the Let’s Dance campaign says itself:
Let’s Dance was born out of a simple idea: Dance has the power to transform lives.
When Angela Rippon CBE reconnected with dance on Strictly Come Dancing, she saw firsthand the physical, mental, and social benefits of dancing regularly. Inspired by her journey and the conversations it sparked across the UK – particularly among older adults – Angela partnered with national organisations to launch a campaign that brings dance to everyone.
Whether you’re 8 or 80, a complete beginner, or a lifelong dancer, Let’s Dance is here to make movement joyful, accessible, and inclusive.
Ceilidh is good for you!
Is is very well recognised that dance, and folk dance and ceilidh is fabulous for physical and mental wellbeing. The Sport and Recreation Alliance have produced a thorough report all about this. “The report … provides robust evidence that movement and dance can facilitate equivalent physical and mental health benefits to any other form of physical activity.”
As Angela Rippon CBE, Let’s Dance founder, puts it, “Dance is the perfect exercise to improve the health and wellbeing of mind and body, regardless of age or physical condition.. And a great way to meet new people and beat isolation and loneliness.”
What ceilidh class dancers say
Ceilidh Cornwall class attendees tell me the same thing:
“after the class I felt so uplifted for the whole week” (Penryn class attendee, February 2025)
“Had a great time and felt really enlivened for the rest of the day. Exercise and laughter. Can’t get better than that.” (St Erth class attendee, January 2025)
“It was a good mental workout tonight” (Ladock/Grampound class attendee, February 2025)
“I feel like this was as much of a workout as my exercise classes” (Ladock/Grampound class attendee, February 2025)
Come and give ceilidh dancing a try and see if it might suit you too. Here is where to find us for these free classes – just mention your preferred class when you get in touch to book.
Regular classes (adults and teens):
- Monday 3rd March: ZedShed, Penryn. 13:15 – 14:45
- Tuesday, 4th March: St Erth Church Hall. 11:00 – 12:30
- Tuesday, 4th March: Carharrack Social Club. 19:30 – 21:00
- Wednesday, 5th March: Grampound Road Village Hall (Sir Robert Harvey Memorial Hall). 18:30 – 20:00
All-ages, family-friendly class:
- Friday, 7th March: Devoran Village Hall, 16:15 – 17:45.
Ceilidh class news: lovely friendly groups, new venues from February and a new dance, Woodland Valley Romp!
I’m sat in a patch of sunlight filtering in through the winter realising that the day has a real spring feel to it. We’ve now had a month of new ceilidh classes around Cornwall already and I’m delighted to say that time has flown by.
Our regular ceilidh classes in Penryn, St Erth, Carharrack and Ladock/Grampound Road are doing well and each group has a positive, friendly atmosphere. Our all-ages class on a Friday has also been fun and I’m happy to say we are achieving our aim of creating a multi-generational class with people from under 10 to over 80.
Thanks Kate! Had a great time and felt really enlivened for the rest of the day,. Exercise and laughter. Can’t get better than that. See you next week. 🙂
Class attendee at St Erth regular ceilidh class, January 2025.
Fancy joining us? We have spaces in all classes and welcome everyone. No experience and partner required. ‘Regular’ classes are for adults and teens welcome too (age 12+ is the recommended age but please get in touch to ask about suitability if not sure). All-ages classes are just that, suitable for all ages.
Ladock and Grampound Road Wednesday regular classes – new venues
In fact, our Ladock class has grown beyond the capacity of the space we were using so we have new venues from next week (12th February 2025) and we will be dancing some weeks at Ladock Community Hall and Grampound Road Village Hall (also called Sir Robert Harvey Memorial Hall). Both of these halls have plentiful space and good floors for dancing, so we will be able to twirl and spin to our hearts’ content.
Check the venue schedule here to be sure you go to the correct hall each week.
On this note, I would like to heartily thank Woodland Valley Farm near Ladock for supporting the development of these classes throughout January and for providing us with a beautiful converted barn to dance in. If anyone wants a good venue for a party or a special event, including with accommodation we’d recommend Woodland Valley Farm, and we look forward to popping back for a visit later in the year to learn about the exciting Beaver Project and maybe even to dance in the bigger barn once the weather warms up.
The Woodland Valley Romp
To honour our time at Woodland Valley Farm we have created a new dance and our Ladock class have tried and tested it, and given it a name: The Woodland Valley Romp. Our set of 16 people fit beautifully in the space!
8 couple longways set (line facing a line, standing opposite your partner). 32 bar jig or reel.
A part:
First corners (those with nobody standing to their right in each line) meet in the middle of the set (this takes 4 beats), turn each other with both hands (8 beats), and return to place (another 4 beats).
Second corners (those with nobody standing to their left in each line) meeting in the middle of the set (4 beats), turn each other with both bands (8 beats), and return to place (4 beats).
B part:
Stars: Couples 2 and 3, 4 and 5, 6 and 7 make right stars (turn for 8 beats), then left hand stars (8 beats).
Over their heads: The top two couples then stand in a line across the top of the set all facing down the set. Others make sure they are in their original places, lines, standing opposite their partners. The two top couples join hands in their line and raise them into a row of arches, then run over everyone’s heads to the bottom of the set (2 people down the middle, one person either side of the set) – as in Riverside Jig. (8 beats*)
All swing: Everyone swings or spins their partners (8 beats*)
*If you need more time for the ‘over the head’ part then you can use a 40 bar tune and adjust the time for the B part accordingly, or remove the ‘all swing’.
Explore Fun Ceilidh Classes for Kids and Adults
Class booking for 2025 now open.
Ceilidh Cornwall is growing and we are starting new classes around Cornwall. We have three types of classes for you, aimed at different age groups. Pre-booking is advised because some classes are already filling up fast. It also helps us get started dancing straight away in each session.
Ceilidh Tots is for preschool aged children and their adults. Dances are simplified ceilidh dances and will involve circles, lines, and counting up to 8. They include movements to the right and left. We have fun games too with varied types of ceilidh and folk music. These are morning classes running 09:30 – 10:15 on Tuesdays in St Erth and Wednesdays near Ladock. You are welcome to stay afterwards for a cup of tea or coffee. It is good to have time to catch up with your ceilidh friends.
All ages ceilidh class sessions occur in the late afternoon. They are after-school classes suitable for everyone. Families, teens, and adults of any age can join in. These focus on multi-generational folk dancing, including everyone in the dance. These classes are great if you’ve got energy to use up after school or if you want some exercise and socialising but an evening class is too late for you, or if the energy of an all ages class appeals to you. One of the joys of ceilidh dancing is how everyone can get involved from 3 to 103. Under 3s and over 103s are also most welcome! These run on Wednesdays near Ladock (16:30-18:00) and on Fridays in Devoran (16:15-17:45).
Adult classes (also suitable for teens age 12+) are held during the daytime in Penryn (13:15-14:45) and St. Erth (11:00-12:30) and evening in Carharrack (19:30-21:00) and near Ladock (18:30-20:00). These classes will be good for you if fancy learning the steps a little more, prefer a group with fewer small children or you’d like to try out a greater variety of dances. These classes will ultimately get into more complex dances than the other classes, but they are still suitable for beginners – we won’t leave anyone behind.
All classes focus on having fun, joining in and making everyone feel welcome. In all the classes you’ll get a good workout too and leave feeling uplifted (we hope). No experience or partner is required, though experienced dancers and partners are invited too and they also tell us they have fun!
Free Newquay ceilidh series!
Join us for a free ceilidh with The Brim every second Tuesday throughout the winter!
We are very excited to announce a new series of ceilidhs at Project 83, Wesley Yard in Newquay – do come along and have a dance, have some tasty street food and say hello!
Project Eighty Three, along with The Brim, are holding public ceilidhs with FREE entry in Newquay on the second Tuesday of every month from November to March. Here are the dates:
- 12th November
- 10th December
- 14th January
- 11th February
- 11th March
Project Eight Three is a multi-purpose event space with a café bar, so you can get hot and cold drinks and there will be Latin American street food available from 5 – 9pm. It is a friendly, welcoming venue with space for dancing and comfy sofas for sitting listening to the music.
Parking is available at St George’s Road car park, free from November to March, and just 5 minutes from the ceilidh.
A hybrid of Cornwall’s top folk musicians, The Brim Ceilidh Band specialise in providing an upbeat ceilidh / barn dance with an exciting and energetic mix of both new and traditional dances combined with an upbeat and full sound from the band. Check them out at www.brimceilidh.co.uk. At Project 83 we’ll be dancing to The Brim duo – accordion and guitar.
No need to have any idea what ceilidh dancing is, just an enthusiasm to have some fun. Ceilidh dancing is very inclusive, suitable for everyone even those with two left feet. No experience or partner required. Kate Smith (Ceilidh Cornwall) will be the caller for the evening and will show you how to do all the dances.
We look forward to dancing with you to live music very soon.
Dance to The Brim Ceilidh Band – 11th October, Devoran Village Hall
We are excited about our upcoming ceilidh with The Brim Ceilidh Band on 11th October in the lovely Devoran Village Hall. Do come and join us.
Doors open 19:30. Dancing from 20:00.
A bar will be run by volunteers from the Devoran Village Hall Committee and will support the village hall.
The hall has a car park and the village is served by public buses 36, 36A and U1.
A hybrid of Cornwall’s top folk musicians, The Brim Ceilidh Band specialise in providing an upbeat ceilidh / barn dance with an exciting and energetic mix of both new and traditional dances combined with an upbeat and full sound from the band. Check them out at www.brimceilidh.co.uk – accordion, fiddle and bouzouki.
No need to have any idea what ceilidh dancing is, just an enthusiasm to have some fun. Ceilidh dancing is very inclusive, suitable for everyone even those with two left feet. No experience or partner required. Kate Smith will be the caller for the evening and will show you how to do all the dances.
We want to keep our public ceilidhs affordable for everyone so you will see there are different adult tickets prices for those booking in advance. The regular price (£8.50) will cover our costs. The supporter price (£12) allows us to pay the band a modest fee. The budget price (£5) is because we don’t want you to be excluded from dancing if you would struggle to afford the regular price. Please pay as you feel you can afford. Accompanied children age 8 – 16 £3. Under 8s free, but please still book a ticket.
Do book in advance if you can to ensure you can come – there are limited tickets numbers due to venue capacity. If any tickets are left then we’ll have some available on the door at the set price of £12.
We very much look forward to seeing your smiling faces on the dancefloor!
Ceilidh classes – let’s dance our way into summer
Isn’t it lovely that we are seeing the sun, after what must be six months of rain! I’m so happy I could dance…
Perfect timing really – ceilidh classes start again on Tuesday 23rd April and we’ve got the venue booked fortnightly right through until mid December, with a teeny break in August.
Despite being rather quiet on the website front (dratted illness, but much better now, and joyful busyness with ceilidhs and day-job work), we’ve been having fun with ceilidh classes over the winter-spring term, and have welcomed a lot of new dancers into our community. It has been lovely to see familiar and new faces enjoying themselves on a Tuesday evening.
If you fancy joining us, or tried it out during the winter but were put off because of the chilly weather, then please do feel very welcome to come back and join us. All our classes can be stand-alone, so there’s no problem if you’ve missed any or not been before. We still meet at Carharrack Social Club and classes are 19:30 – 21:00 fortnightly on Tuesdays.
So, what have classes been like during the dark and rainy winter (and spring too)?
Would you enjoy them?
Firstly, they’ve been good for getting the blood circulating and warming up chilly fingers and toes, and everything in between! We’ve had classes in storms and I was so grateful and delighted that people ventured out through the rain and wind to have a dance – thank you!
As with the first term in the autumn, our first couple of classes were very full in January, with people keen to try out this ceilidh thing, over 40 people each time. Then, as things settled down a bit we’ve had around 24 people at most classes since then (not always the same people, but there are some regulars and often a few people who are just trying it out).
We’ve learned a few ceilidh classics and some less well know dances, as well as few from beyond our shores.
Here are some dances from our classes before Easter. I’d love to know which ones people liked best.
Goathland Square Eight
A square dance, where each couple forms the side of the square, often mixed up with Holmfirth Square or other similar square dances, but quite easily interchangeable and that’s not necessarily bad. This version in the video above is fun – crossing the set with arches like this and grand chains around the circle are fun (alternating right and left hands with other dancers as you move around the set – you go one way, your partner goes the other way, you meet half way and then again where you started out – potentially very civilised, like shaking hands with everyone in the group in turn (haha, maybe not, this is ceilidh, potential for chaos). There are several dances with ‘Square Eight’ in the name, prefixed by different locations, e.g. Cumberland Square Eight, Yorkshire Square Eight. They are usually fun, and square eight just tells you how many people are needed and what shape to start out in. We sometimes like to play around with numbers and shapes though, so everyone can join in.
Country Bumpkin
A relatively modern dance with an interesting variation of a grand chain, the horseshoe grand chain (‘trousers’ – up one leg and down the other!) rather than a circle, written by Mike Barraclough in 1982.
Old Swan Gallop
Any dance where you can gallop and infiltrate other sets is a hit! Here you start in a Sicilian Circle formation – one couple facing another couple in a minor set of 4 dancers within the wider big circle shape. This dance has evolved, as described by Lisa Heywood, but in this form was written by Dave Hunt, adapted from a dance by Roger Watson.
Circle Waltz
Beautiful, graceful and reminiscent of the elegant dances in historical dramas, I love the Circle Waltz. Also, an excellent dance to have a change of tempo and a wee bit of breather between all the jigs and reels.
Riverside Jig
Here’s one where you’ll need a breather afterwards! The Riverside Jig is a popular and easy ceilidh dance, and also fast and furious as the top two couples at the end of each time through the dance rush over the heads of all the other dancers right to the bottom of the hall. The dance is named after the famous Riverside Club in Glasgow which used to hold regular ceilidhs.
Canadian Barndance – to Salsa Celtica
My favourite! Here’s us dancing this spring at our regular Tuesday class in Carharrack. It’s fun to play around with musical genres!
Look good?
Feel most welcome to join us on a Tuesday evening at Carharrack Social Club – more details about classes can be found here.
Ceilidh class notes (5/12/23)
Our final class before Christmas! How lovely to have met so many friendly people this term, thanks so much for coming along to our ceilidh classes. It has been a real pleasure to see you develop your ceilidh skills and to see all your smiling faces!
So, in our final class we went over a few dances we had done before, and then we learned a couple of new ones:
Nina’s Double Troika
Nina Fenner is also a ceilidh caller with The Rosevilles Ceilidh Band and she will be calling a few dances at our Christmas-ish Ceilidh on Friday 8th December so we learned a dance that she created.
Danced in groups of 3, it is a bit unusual in that each figure takes 4 beats rather than the more common 8. So, at times you might have to move fast. It can be danced to jigs and reels. Here are the instructions:
3 people in a circle. Circle left for 4. Then right for 4.
Break the circle into a line with joined hands. You’ll do this a few times in the dance and it is easiest if you keep in the same order in your three, but if you wish to have more of a challenge then you can vary who takes each place in the line by breaking the circle at different point each time through.
The middle person raises their hands. The person on the right hand end of the line dances first, turning anticlockwise towards the middle person and under the nearest arch to them. This takes 4 beats.
The person on the left hand end of the line now does the same through the arch nearest to them. Again, 4 beats.
Reform the circle. Circle left for 4 and right for 4.
Break the circle into a line again as before with joined hands.
The middle person raises their arms again into arches. The person on the right hand end of the line dances first, passing in front of the middle person and through the arch further away from them. The middle person will also need to turn on the spot. Hold hands loosely so you don’t get into a tangle. This move also takes 4 beats and you need to be faster than before.
The person on the left hand end of the line now does the same, passing in front of the middle person and through the arch farthest from them. The middle person turns on the spot. 4 beats.
Back to the start of the dance.
Clopton Bridge (ceilidh style)
Longways set for 4 couples (though we also managed with five couples and an extra pointy star). 32 bar hornpipe or jig as we did. This English ceilidh dance was written by John Chapman and published in 1987.
This was fun, and a gentler introduction to ‘corners’ than our previous attempt at the Reel of the 51st Division! I do like the unusual figure of first corners turning each other in the middle of the dance and then second corners doing this next.
Generally this dance is done to a hornpipe with step-hop footwork (see any video of Clopton Bridge, and below). To be more ceilidh-ish and suitable for events where there are ceilidh beginners we danced this with simple travelling steps and to a jig.
Lisa Heywood describes a variation for advanced dancers where the end couples do rights and lefts around the outside of the set while the middle couples dance right and left hand stars. It is fun, but requires fast movement and for everyone to know what they are doing! Lots more here from Webfeet about extra variations!
Next stop ceilidh! Join us on 8th December!
And new classes start on 9th January – block book in advance here!
Ceilidh class notes (21/11/23)
Somewhat international this time, with a Danish dance mocking the Swedes and danced in Scotland, two American dances and an English barn dance, as well as one of my own.
Jonny’s Birthday Reel
We started the class with an easy longways set for as many as want to join in, one devised at a birthday party earlier this year for Jonny who liked dances with arches. Still not caught it one video, but you can read about it here.
Swedish Masquerade
This dance was a request at our last Rosevilles public ceilidh – so the band have learned the tune and ready to dance it on December 8th.
The Swedish Masquerade is a fairly common ceilidh dance in Scotland. It isn’t Scottish and it isn’t Swedish. It is purported to be Danish. A similar dance is danced across Scandinavia and in Germany.
The distinguishing characteristics of the Swedish Masquerade are the three sections – a 4/4/ march, a waltz and a polka (or hopsa). The walking section allows for some pantomime as the Danes make fun of the Swedes, with exaggerated proper dancing.
This next video breaks the dance down into sections and has a fun variations with hands together as you balance (or pas de basque) away and together in the middle waltz section, and with a kick in the polka section. Despite what the presenter says the waltz section is not in 4/4 but is in 3/4 as a waltz should be!
Snowball
Since the winter has started to reach Cornwall I thought we’d do this wintery sounding English style barndance written by Martin Hodges. Snowball refers to the gradual increase in the number of the dancers with each 16 beats of the music. It’s a good one for early in a ceilidh to teach a few basic moves. With 5 couples in the dance it is a bit longer than many dances – you’ll need a 48 bar jig for this one.
Polka Dots
I enjoy dances that are a bit different. This one is excellent for not needing to have a partner at all – you dance as a group of 5 and you dance with everyone in the group. It is also great practice for a reel of three figure, or if you prefer you can do si do.
I found it in a book called ‘Barn Dance Hoedown’ by the Ring O’Bells band and haven’t found any videos of it yet. So, here is a summary of the dance:
Arrange yourselves like the dots on the 5 side of a dice: 4 people each standing in the corner of a square, one person standing in the middle.
First half of the dance:
A1: The person in the middle initially faces the person nearest the band (with their back to the band), and then next with the person directly opposite (facing the band) – these three dancers form a line aligned up and down the dance hall from the band to the end of the room. The original dance involves these three dancing a reel of three together (see notes from the last class), but to make it simpler for beginners or dancers at a ceilidh, I suggest dancing a do si do with the first person, then turning and dancing do si do with the second person in this line. This takes 16 beats.
A2: After this, repeat this figure with the other two dancers (aligned across the dance hall). This takes another 16 beats.
Second half of the dance:
B1: The same dancer is still in the middle, and they again face the person who has their back to the band. With this person, set (jump right, jump left), then turn that person by a half turn using the right arm, so that they are in the middle and you take their place. This takes 8 beats.
This person then does the same with the next person around the formation – set then half turn to swap places. Another 8 beats.
B2: The third dancer now dances sets and half turns to swap places with the next person in the formation. 8 beats. And that fourth person does the same with the final fifth person. Final 8 beats.
The fifth person is now in the middle ready to start the dance again.
Sashay the Donut
This is one of my favourite first dances for a wedding, starting with the newly wed couple leading the dance. It is very similar to the first half of a Virginia Reel bent around in a circle formation – personally I think it is a dough ring rather than a doughnut. See what I mean here:
The dance is from this book of the same name, and is Anglo-American in origin.
What’s next? Some dates for your diaries
Our last class on the autumn term of ceilidh classes is tomorrow, Tuesday 5th December. Do join us – we’ll have a couple of new dances and some refreshers! Feel free to make requests.
Then, we have our Christmas-ish ceilidh on Friday 8th December with The Rosevilles Ceilidh Band. If you get your ticket at the class tomorrow, that is the cheapest way, otherwise, £5+fees on eventbrite or £7.50 on the door – whichever way it is excellent value for an evening of happy, upbeat music, fun dancing that everyone can join in with and an evening in a gathering of friendly folk. Hope to see you there.
We’re then taking a wee break over the holiday time, but back on Thursday 28th December for a free ceilidh workshop (19:30 – 21:00) at Carharrack Social Club, with some guest contributions of Cornish dancing alongside our other ceilidh-ish plans.
And, how fast time has flown, our next term will start on 9th January, and run fortnightly until the end of March. All welcome. No experience or partner needed! £5 per class or a bit cheaper if you block book.
Do pop these all in your diaries please – booking coming soon!
Ceilidh Cornwall 