3 minute read
and a Club
Chiswick Scottish Country Dance Club
Mike Nolan with mike
“You could dance somewhere in London almost every night of the week” is an expression one hears around these parts. But when she founded Chiswick Scottish Country Dance Club, Kay Senior did so because she could find nowhere near her home of Chiswick. Not only did she bring Scottish country dancing to an otherwise bereft London W4 but she was bold enough to do so on a Sunday. “We were not sure whether it would work on a Sunday but with no other club filling that evening slot we decided to go ahead, found a hall and the rest is, as they say, history.” said Kay, now the President. And so it became true that you could dance every night…even on a Sunday. This happened in 2002 and in January this year Chiswick Scottish, as it is known locally, celebrated its 14th Birthday; in Scottish country dance club terms, a relatively new kid on the block. The club is lucky to have a bright and cheerful hall to meet in on a Sunday Night – and whenever anyone suggests a move to bigger premises there are concerned rumblings, rather as if you told the children that the family home was up for sale. It meets in St Michael Hall, the upper room of St Michael and All Angels Church, situated in an area known as Bedford Park. It helps too that it’s a two minute walk from Turnham Green London Underground station. The hundred strong membership of this RSCDS Affiliated club comprises dancers of all levels, which dictates a graded Sunday evening’s dancing with beginners starting at 6pm, joined by intermediate level at around 7pm ending with biscuits or cake and a cup of English tea just before 8pm. Beginners are welcome to stay and watch, but are expected to leave the last hour free for the more experienced dancers to enjoy more challenging dances. In practice the club is fortunate that many more experienced dancers come early to help the beginners. Having a pool of qualified dance teachers is an advantage and provides a good learning experience for beginners and experienced dancers alike. All this prepares us for our special termly Club Night dances when we have local bands as well as those who travel from Scotland. Our Flagship events are “Midsummer Magic” when we are lucky enough to be able to hold a picnic dance on the lawns of Chiswick House, and our December dance named by Kay in the early days as “Kilts and Posh Frocks” (maybe Kay’s way of telling us how we were to dress). Last December over eighty Scottish country dancers gathered at Chiswick School for the fourteenth “Kilts and Posh Frocks” event to Dave Hall’s Scottish Dance Band. This has become a Christmas tradition that we all look forward to. One of the Club’s aims is to ensure that they encourage a range of dancers both young and old and last April was special in that Chiswick Scottish co-hosted the launch dance of Spring Fling 2015 opened by our local Mayor. She was amazed that so many people had come from all over the world to dance. Above all, however, it is the members and hard-working committee which makes Chiswick Scottish a ‘reel’ success and we look forward to another year of Scottish country dancing which began last September. There’s more information about Chiswick Scottish at www.chiswickscottish.org.uk, Facebook, Twitter and You Tube.
St Michael Hall in St Michael and All Angels Church, Chiswick
