Special event marks 100 years of Scottish Country Dance Society

On Saturday, September 30, Longtown Community Hall was alive with Scottish Music by Susan MacFadyen’s Band with almost 100 dancers celebrating the Centenary of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society.

Susan MacFadyen’s band (Image: Supplied)Three branches of the society in the Border area of South West Scotland and Cumbria– Carlisle and the Border, Dumfries and Lockerbie - joined forces to organise the Celebration Dance as part of “dance through the decades across the world”.

The programme featured all 10 dances of the decades, in order, along with some favourites chosen by the branches: two of which featured the Solway: Solway Reel and Sunset over Solway.

There were toasts to Scottish Dancing which has clubs in almost every country of the world, many of which were dancing on the same day.

Greetings by cards and emails have been exchanged and many were read out at Saturday’s celebration and those assembled heard messages from all over the UK, from America to Australia and from Europe to South Africa

Members of the three local branches (Image: Supplied)The food was provided by Sandra Braid and her team from Dumfries, and the group is “grateful” to their sponsors - Innovia of Wigton, Mackies, Tunnocks and Walkers.

A meeting held at the Athenaeum in Glasgow in 1923 marked the formation of the Scottish Country Dance Society. The society was started in that year by Ysobel Stewart and Jean Milligan.

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Mrs Stewart as the first secretary of the Society built a solid administrative foundation on which the Society grew, and Miss Milligan laid down the principles of teaching, technique and style for the dance which continue to the present day.

The tradition has continued and remains strong across the border region.

During the day there were groups dancing in the street in Carlisle and in Cockermouth and new members to the dancing groups are always welcome.