John Wild Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 (edited) Kettle Bridge Clogs are a North West style ladies dance side based in Maidstone, Kent. After 17 enjoyable years as one of their musicians, this has now come to an end. The side has been running for a total of 35 years. With falling membership over a number of years, and no new recruits coming in, despite tremendous efforts, the remaining dancers have regretably concluded that it is not feasible to continue. We had our final public outing in September as part of the Hop Hoodening service in Canterbury. Last night we rounded off the year with a fabulous Christmas dinner. We know we are not the only side to close in recent years in similar circumstances, but it is a sad day. Thanks to all the members who have encouraged me over the years, and to all those who have said kind words about us when seeing our peformances. - John Wild. Edited December 11, 2019 by John Wild edited for typing error. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Besser Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 Sorry to hear this. I played with two Northwest sides over the years, and both met the same fate. It's always sad when the dancing ends. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Tims Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 Oh John, that is really sad, unbelievable really. I am so sorry to hear. Robin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Thorne Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 Very sad to hear this. I have danced most of my life, but not for 5 or so years now. I hope to take it up again, probably as a musicain when I retire, so hopefiully my most recent team (Rose & Castle) will still be going when the time comes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maccannic Posted December 13, 2019 Share Posted December 13, 2019 Hopefully Kettle Bridge Concertinas are still going strong. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Wild Posted December 13, 2019 Author Share Posted December 13, 2019 1 hour ago, maccannic said: Hopefully Kettle Bridge Concertinas are still going strong. Yes. Kettle Bridge Concertinas began with several members of the dance side getting together, but has developed as a separate unit. More of the dancers have joined as beginners on the concertina. - John Wild. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Mellish Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 On 12/12/2019 at 1:55 PM, Jim Besser said: Sorry to hear this. I played with two Northwest sides over the years, and both met the same fate. It's always sad when the dancing ends. I too played for one women's (definitely not ladies') NW morris side, but that fizzled out many years ago, because not only the numbers but the enthusiasm and the quality of the dancing were declining. Sorry to say, nowadays I don't squeeze as much as I used to, but I haven't stopped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now