History

Back in January 2010 a group of friends from Cambridge University went to see the recently released film "Morris: A Life with Bells On" in Ely. Unfortunately, due to technical issues they never got to see the second half of the film and so they wandered back to the train back to Cambridge. Now as often happens on train journeys the conversation drifted to the fact that, although there was lots of different folk dance sides in Cambridge, there was not a mixed Cotswold side that they could all dance together in which wasn't a bus journey out of the city. So having arrived back at Cambridge they resolved to set up a new mixed morris side as part of the university.

After roping in more friends from the Cambridge University Ceilidh Band and various local morris sides, the new side was formed and had their first practice on the evening of Sunday April 25th 2010 in the middle of the Sidgwick Site; the first dances we learnt were Lads a Bunchum (which has become a standard) and Step And Fetch Her (which we have rarely done since).

The side's colours were decided to be a combination of Cambridge Blue and Dark Blue, and so the name Granta Blue Morris was agreed on after a suggestion from a former member of "Granta Morris" a mixed Cotswold morris side that had been based in Cambridge during the 1980s and 90s. The emblem in the middle of the crest is the ermine spot taken from the University crest.

The very first public dance out, Cambridge City Centre 15/05/2011.

Granta Blue Morris 2011

(From L to R)

P. Martin - L. Sparrow, nee Atkinson - O. Woods (Squire) - O. King (Forman & Melodeon) - T. Sparrow (fiddle) - L. Osman

O.Woods and T.Sparrow gain great height

Bonny Green Garters

After two years as a university side, mostly practising in Benson Hall at Magdalene College, we unfortunately reached a point where we were down to a single active dancer from the university and so we had to stop being a university society in 2012.

Following a suggestion from one of the founding members we borrowed a set of Longswords and with a lot of help from a new recruit we spent the following year learning Longsword.

A change of squire, some new recruits and a return of some old faces saw us hand back the Longswords and return back to Cotswold in 2013 from where we continue.

Mill Rd Winter Fair 07/12/2013.

(From L to R) O. Woods (Melodeon) - L. Wilson - S. Martin, nee Oliver (Squire) - R. Mifsud - J. Charlesworth

It is left to the reader to ponder what would have happened if the showing of "Morris: A Life with Bells On" hadn't been interrupted part way through by the technical fault.