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.
News
Summer: ceilidh season
Weddings – birthdays – garden parties – community fairs – festivals
The warmth of summer, the bright skies and long days make for a joyous season, and it is the natural time for celebrating with dancing. Since becoming a ceilidh caller I’ve attended more parties and weddings than I’d ever done before, and seen such a variety of event styling and party vibes, from smart, formal weddings in grand hotels to relaxed events in family gardens and cowsheds. All have their own special appeal.
If you fancy something that will bring all your guests together, of all ages, then a ceilidh is for you. You need space (1m2 per dancer is a good guide, and space for a minimum of 8 people to dance), a couple of electrical sockets, a band with caller and some friends and/or family.
“Thank you SO much to your incredible band! We couldn’t have asked for a better band. Everyone commented on how fun it was… one of their favourite parts. And G said you had the best caller he’d ever experienced!”
“You and The Brim were brilliant!! I’ve heard lots of really lovely comments about the music and the dancing. I realise it was probably a pretty tough gig for you given the acoustics, heat and uncontrollable members of the party, but you coped with the demands magnificently!! We’re both so happy we decided to have a ceilidh, and that you were the chosen band!!“
Summer 2025 is fairly full (weddings, parties, village halls, and a cider festival!), especially the weekends, but do get in touch if you want to book a ceilidh for your event and we’ll do our best to fit you in and make your party one to remember. Having now experienced many wedding and party ceilidhs feel free also to ask for advice, I’m happy to share what could work best for your occasion and group to have the best time.
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!
Horse’s Mane – a new ceilidh dance
I enjoy inventing new dances, taking the best of other dances and combining them, or making dances that suit particular audiences. It is quite simple with ceilidh since most tunes are made up of blocks of 8 bars and subdivide into 8 beat sections fitting nicely with a wide range of dance figures, and there are a profusion of tunes that are 32, 40 or 48 bars long, 32 being the most common.
So, we have a new dance to add to our repertoire and it is great for sociable crowds, easy to dance and learn and fun for beginners as well as seasoned ceilidhers. It has been tested out at a wedding ceilidh and with our intermediate class, who agreed it was good fun. Sarelle from our class is to be thanked for the name, more romantic and imaginative than the alternatives of ‘Longways Pat a Cake Polka’ or ‘Pat a Cake Reel’. The figures reminded her of combing a horse’s mane.
This combines elements from some favourite ceilidh dances:
– Pat a Cake polka, an easy and popular Old Tyme dance
– Dhoon Jig, a slightly unusual longways set Scottish Country dance where the two lines dance on opposite directions to start and then partners meet again.
– Virginia Reel, a very common and popular, high-energy, Scottish ceilidh dance with a long history that involves various trips across the Atlantic.
Horse’s Mane
32 bar jig, reel or polka
Longways set for up to 8 couples. The longer the set the more energetic the dancers need to be. We’ve tested this with 4, 5 and 7 couples and all worked well. For less experienced dancers you might choose a shorter set length since they might quite keep up the music otherwise.
A1 (Bars 1 – 8):
Hold hands in lines. Using right feet, tap heel, toe, heel, toe, then take four side steps to the right. So 2 lines diverge since everyone goes to their own right. 8 beats.
Using left feet, tap heel, toe, heel, toe, then take four side steps to the left. This returns you to facing your partner. 8 beats.
A2 (Bars 9 – 16):
Release hands. With your partner play pat-a-cake. Pat-a-cake is a playground game, clap right hands together, left hands together, tap both your hands on your own knees, clap both hands together with your partner. This is 8 beats where you can essentially do any acceptable thing with your partner, so feel free to improvise. 8 beats.
Take your partner in a crossed arm hold (we liked the single forearm hold for a fast spin) and spin with your partner for 8 beats. For those who don’t like fast spinning you might prefer ballroom hold and to polka around (step hop x 4). 8 beats.
B1 (Bars 17 – 24):
Back into your lines. Top couple take both hands together and gallop to the bottom of the set for 8 beats and back for 8 beats. Other dancers clap enthusiastically. 16 beats.
B2 (Bars 24 – 32):
Top couple cast to the bottom of the set and make an arch with two hands. 8 beats.
All people in the lines follow the leader casting down to the bottom following the top dancers. Meet your partner at the bottom of the set below the arch, take inside hands with each other and together go through the arch, then up to the top of the set. Dancers stay in that same order so couple 2 is the new top couple and couple 1 is at the bottom of the set. 16 beats.
Have fun!
Note: If this dance has already been invented by someone else do please let me know it’s name and who first authored it. It is quite possible for multiple people to choreograph the same ceilidh dance, especially using a finite selection of common ceilidh dance figures.
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 Cornwall 