When you think of the English tradition of Morris dancing, you might not imagine a group of young, gender-nonconforming drag kings who dress like “chimney sweeps” – but that will be because you don’t. haven’t seen Molly No-Mates.

Bristol’s team – or team – represents the changing face of Morris, a tradition in which men no longer make up the majority of participants for the first time in UK history.

For co-founder Scarlett Hutchin, it was a counter-protest outside a drag queen story hour in Bristol that sparked the idea of ​​a gay-friendly Morris side.

The events see a drag queen read a book to children in an effort to promote reading and diversity, but some have seen negative reactions from the public.

“I was texting with my team friend Morris and I was like, ‘What could really make this better? Morris is dancing,'” Scarlett said.

“One of Molly’s (a type of Morris) traditions is to just dance while singing and that’s what we do. And we can have these dances that we can take to the events that don’t require instruments and which do not require instruments of things which are offensive weapons.

“It gives us the opportunity to make our values ​​and our point of view very visible, because when you have songs, you have words.

“Almost all of our songs are feminist, queer or left-leaning in some way.”

Morris dancing is a form of traditional English folk dance that takes on a variety of styles depending on the origin of the group.

For example, Border Morris, originating from the Welsh border counties of Shropshire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, features performers who wear ragged coats and often paint their faces or use other forms of disguise.

In contrast, Clog Step is a dance style with percussive footwork and precise timing.

Scarlett believes Molly No-Mates is part of Morris’ “cultural moment” and points to last year’s Brit Awards where Stroud-based band Boss Morris danced on stage with Wet Legwho won Best New Artist and Group of the Year.

“One of the things that brings a lot of people back to folk…is that people want to have some sort of culture,” Scarlett says.

“And there’s this idea that England doesn’t have a culture, which is just not true. It’s just that it’s really neglected.”

According to the 2023 Morris Census, the proportion of female Morris members in the UK increased from 46% in 2014 to 50.6% in 2023.

In 2020, its questions were changed to include the number of “non-binary/other” members.

An estimated 0.8% of UK team members fell into this category in 2023, compared to 0.5% in 2020.

Molly No-Mates, who formed in May 2023 in north Bristol, had just two members when they started – hence the ‘no-mates’. There are now around ten of them and are around “80% non-binary or other”.

“It feels like we’re sort of introducing visible queerness into spaces that don’t always have as much of it,” Scarlett says.

She describes their outfits as looking like “19th century chimney sweeps”, wearing black shorts or pants, a white top, suspenders and a flat cap.

Colin Andrews is a director of Morris Dance and Team Database and began teaching Morris dancing in 1990.

The site, launched in early 2018, provides an easily searchable database of all Morris teams around the world.

“From his mid-20s until his early 70s, Morris was considered exclusively male,” he says.

“The (new) Squire Elect (leader) of the Morris Ring is a woman… he’s moving away from the genre.

“I would say over the last five years a lot of the Cotswold Morris all-male teams became co-ed, and basically it was either mix in or fold… (they) didn’t have just not enough new members.

Morris is an “evolving tradition,” says Colin, and he thinks it’s interesting to see teams develop their own interpretations of the dance.

“I think the question is whether these innovations will continue or whether they will last as long as this particular team lasts,” he says.

“But I think it’s a good thing that people are trying to experiment with different things.”

Since Molly No-Mates’ debut, Scarlett says the team has received a “really positive response” from a lot of traditional teams.

“In August we were dancing at the Northgate Folk Festival in Chester… and there was a lovely traditional team of white men and they said they had arrived several hours early to see us.”

One of the most distinctive elements of traditional Molly dancing is the use of cross-dressing, according to the English Folk Dance and Song Society.

At least one team member, but sometimes several, wears women’s clothing.

It is said that Molly groups of the 19th century took pride in the appearance of their cross-dressing “Moll”, competing among themselves to see who could produce the best dressed – and this is probably where the name Molly came from.

In the past, the term molly was an offensive word aimed at gay men or men who performed tasks considered women’s work, such as cooking or washing clothes.

In the 18th and early 19th centuries, molly houses were places where “mollies,” or homosexual men, gathered for companionship and sex.

They could be in pubs, taverns, inns or cafes.

Sam Murphy, who identifies as gender fluid, is Kittiwake, the Border Morris team based in Squire of Bristol.

They started Morris dancing even though they had no family background.

“The key things you need to enjoy are moving around a lot and looking a little funny,” Sam advises aspiring beginners.

“The people I met there were just the sweetest people.

“There’s no control, (there’s no) ‘You’re not committed enough, so you can’t do this.’ It’s very encouraging.

“And certainly in the circles I’ve been in… there’s more acceptance and openness, and people are more comfortable expressing themselves in areas that don’t fall into the binary genres.”

The three main organizations in the UK which support Morris and traditional dance teams are the Morris Federation, the Morris Ring and the Open Morris.

They meet under the name “Joint Morris Organizations” to discuss issues that affect all their members.

Nigel Strudwick, current squire of the Morris Ring, says the Morris world is changing and the Morris Ring is “delighted” to see the traditions moving forward.

“We welcome everyone who wants to try Morris dancing, whatever their background, and it’s great to see new teams forming to cater for those who otherwise might have thought there was nothing in Morris for them.

“Long may it continue.”