Dancing
Owermoigne Sequence Dance Club
The Owermoigne Sequence Dance Club began in 1998, the first dance being held in Broadmayne Village Hall on 4th January 1998, attended by twenty nine persons. Dances are held every two weeks, on alternate Mondays. The club was started as a result of requests from members of the existing Preston Fifty to Sixty Sequence Dance Club, which also meets fortnightly on a Monday afternoon; certain members wished to dance on Monday afternoons when this club was not operating.
The club’s activities comprise popular sequence dancing, both modern and old-time, and the present attendance averages around fifty members. The highlight of the year is the annual Christmas lunch, subsidised from club funds. Proceeds from some of our events are donated to local charities. Occasionally the club entertains other dance clubs when visiting this area. The aim of the club is to provide entertainment and enjoyment on a social basis to any person who may be interested in dancing, both beginners and able dancers. Everybody is welcome to attend, of whatever age, for a very modest entrance fee which includes interval refreshments.
Mrs M W Old
The Ballroom Dancers Club
The happy dancers who enjoy the facilities of the spacious Broadmayne Village Hall are a splinter group from the Dorchester Dance Centre which thrived in the seventies to eighties era. At Broadmayne, an instruction class takes place every week on a Tuesday from eight to ten in the evening with new steps in waltz, cha-cha, quick-step, rumba, foxtrot, samba, tango and jive. On a Sunday between 7.30 pm and 9.30 pm, the dancers let their hair down for a social and practice evening, embracing ballroom, Latin American and sequence dancing. All adult age groups are welcome and it is a valued asset for the local community of Broadmayne and the surrounding areas.
Ron and Doreen Stone, the hosts, are themselves experienced competitive dancers, having won ten Area Championships and danced for the area on the ‘Come Dancing’ Series on television. Their career culminated in being placed runners-up twice in the coveted British final, the ‘Open-to-the-World’ Latin American Championships at Blackpool. Dancing, as well as being a social pleasure, is a form of sport and the top dancing societies have recently been successful in their bid to have it included in the year 2000 Olympic Games.
Egdon Folk Dance
The Egdon Folk Dance Club started back in the 1970s by going around various village halls in the area. There was no live music at the time. Once a year, a barbecue and barn dance was held at Lady Neill’s home at Blackdown House, Briantspuddle.
In the late 1980s, we transferred to Broadmayne Village Hall where we have had some very successful dances. At about that time we also started to have ‘live’ music run by a family calling themselves ‘Orion’s Ring’ which greatly enhanced the club’s success. Over the years we had a very good ‘caller’ by the name of Ray Rolfe who has unfortunately gone on to other things. We still have ‘Onions Ring’ providing ‘live’ music, but going into the Millennium our numbers are falling; it would be a great pity if Folk Dancing died in this area.
Joan Ayles – October 1999
