Hello to all previous Straw Bear Dance Teams,
It’s such a shame we can’t all be together dancing in the cold again this year. I would like to thank those of you who have provided video and photo contributions over the last few months.
Straw Bear Online is only a week away! Have a look at strawbear.org.uk for more information and to reserve your tickets. We have FREE live Zoom music sessions on both Saturday and Sunday, a Zoom ceilidh on Saturday night at only £6 per household, a FREE historical talk about the Straw Bear on Zoom and plenty of videos that will be released on our new YouTube channel over the weekend which you may see the bear and yourselves appearing over the last 40 years!
I hope to see you ‘virtually’ there!!
Rebecca
Whittlesea Straw Bear will be online in 2021
The 42nd Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival will take place in an online-only format on 15 – 17 January 2021.
Viewers are invited to follow the Festival on YouTube or Facebook (search for Whittlesea Straw Bear) where most of the events will take place. The online broadcasts will include highlights from the festival, archive footage from its early days in the 1980s, Morris dancing, interviews with the organisers and 41 years of the Bear.
Events start with an online concert on Friday 15 January, with contributions from major folk artists Granny’s Attic, Jackie Oates and Brown Boots, plus popular local artists Brian Kell, Ady Bull, Frog on a Bike and Barry Goodman.
Musicians will be able to play along to live sessions via Zoom on the Saturday and Sunday; and Saturday evening brings the chance to dance at a home-based barn dance with popular ceilidh duo Doug Eunson and Sarah Matthews, with caller Martyn Harvey.
The festival concludes with a folk club style concert and dance footage on the Sunday lunchtime, before a showing of the traditional burning of the Bear.
All events are free except the Zoom Ceilidh, which costs £6 per household.
Full details of all Straw Bear Online events, and how to buy ceilidh tickets and your exclusive Straw Bear merchandise, can be found at www.strawbear.org.uk