Threatening potential new members with a gun, restraining them with sticks and then tying them to a Maypole all seems a little desperate, as recruitment methods go.
I was made aware of this episode of Dr Who by someone at our practice this week. I hope we can agree that pretty much everything about it, from the woman dragging her child inside at the sight of the approaching procession to the sergeant pronouncing that Jon Pertwee being tied up “doesn’t look very traditional” and the aggressive use of sticking, is utterly excellent.
Compared to many of the early Dr Who monsters, a troupe of middle aged blokes in bells was probably pretty scary. Maybe this is the subliminal cause of some people finding morris dancers a bit creepy? They fear we’re secretly in league with The Master?
Anyway, if we’re talking about Dr Who and morris, I personally think Matt Smith would make a great morris dancer. Especially in that fez.
You can buy the full episode (in rather better quality than the above clip) here.
a muddle of morris 