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When all the figures have been explained and "walked though", the dance will begin - with the band of course playing the music. But don't worry, you're still not on your own, as the caller will "call" each figure as the dance progresses. If you are a beginner, try get yourself into a set that contains some experienced dancers, as they will usually help you out.

Keep in mind that a caller will often begin the evening with a couple of easy dances in order to assess the expertise of those taking part - so that's the time to give it a try! If still in doubt, just ask the caller if the dance just announced is suitable for beginners.

You’ll need to book the band, the caller and the venue.  

If your event will include the provision of food, you may also need book a caterer. 

When booking a venue, you should check that it holds a premises licence which includes the provision of “regulated entertainment”. If it does not, you will need to submit (well in advance) a Temporary Events Notice (TEN) to your local authority for approval. If you wish to sell alcohol at your event, you can specify this in your TEN. 

Nearer the time (If your event is a private one) you’ll need to send out invitations. For public events, you will probably need to print tickets and posters, and perhaps arrange for some publicity.

Organisations who have booked us for their barn dances or ceilidhs include: school PTAs, Scouts and Guides, churches and church groups (C of E, RC, Baptist and Methodist), sports clubs, community and village associations, political associations, charitable societies, neighbourhood watch associations, medical practices and company social clubs.

Private events we have played at include birthdays (18th, 21st, 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th and 70th), weddings, wedding anniversaries (silver, golden, ruby & diamond), retirements and going-away parties.

A stage or other performance area with sufficient space for all members of the band and the PA system. Although a stage is ideal, it's not essential, as the band can set up on staging blocks - or even at floor level if necessary. If your event is to be held out-of-doors, the band will need to be under cover. A gazebo (with three side-walls) would be suitable.

Six chairs (without arms). The type of chair normally used in halls is ideal.

One small table. A surface size of about 1 metre by 0.5 metre is ideal.

One 13 amp power socket - sufficiently close to where the band will be playing to allow our equipment to be connected without causing a tripping hazard.

Sufficient lighting for the band members to read sheet music.

Please remember to include the band (and the caller) when calculating numbers for your catering arrangements.

When you book the band, we will book a caller on your behalf (we work with several good local callers).  If you have a favourite caller, just tell us. 

If you prefer, you can book the caller yourself. We’re happy to work with any caller – just let us know who it is!

Marquees can also be used, but like barns they are really only suitable for summer events - unless heated.

Some barn dances and ceilidhs are held out-of-doors: e.g. on a village green, in a field, or in a large garden. As with barns and marquees, such events need to be held in the summer. Most importantly of all, you need to have a pre-arranged alternative indoor venue close at hand in case of inclement weather. Also be aware that sound travels a long distance in the open air, which might cause problems with neighbours.

However, a separate room or other area is ideal for the food. The food can be set out on tables, then the tables (with the food) carried through at the beginning of the break. After the break, the tables can be quickly cleared away, allowing the dancing to recommence without any undue delay.

Assuming the hall or other area is rectangular in shape (with the band at one end) arrange chairs and tables along each side. Not everyone will be dancing at once, so the chairs will be needed by those not actually dancing. The tables can be used for drinks, and will also be required for the consumption of food during the mid-evening break.

When setting out chairs and tables, be sure not to obstruct any fire exits.

Halls, community centres etc. are often rather austere places, but can be greatly improved for an event with some festive decorations e.g. streamers, balloons, coloured lights etc.

It is customary to have a break around half-time for food. The break also provides a great opportunity for some general socialising.  

The standard offering at a barn dance or a ceilidh is a “ploughman’s supper” - (bread rolls, cheese & pickled onions – usually with a light salad). This can be supplemented with a pudding, if desired. 

Alternatives include a buffet, a curry, or a chilli. Some organisers opt for a fish supper – delivered to the venue at a prearranged time from the local fish-and-chip shop. For outdoor events, a barbeque, lamb roast or pig roast is usual. 

Special arrangements apply to Burns Nights, which always BEGIN with a “Burns Supper”. The traditional supper starts with “Cock-a-Leekie” soup (leek soup, made with a chicken stock). This is followed by “Haggis with Neeps & Tatties” (haggis with swedes and mashed potatoes) . Next comes “Typsy Laird” (sherry trifle) and the supper is rounded off with a “Tassie o' Coffee” (cup of coffee).  The dancing starts AFTER the supper is finished and the tables are cleared away. 

Whatever catering arrangements you make, you may wish to consider the requirements of vegetarians.

There are several options.  

You could employ a firm of caterers. They usually offer a number of menu alternatives, with the price per head varying according to which menu you choose.

You could make an arrangement with a fast-food outlet - e.g. a fish-&-chip shop or pizza outlet- to deliver the required number of portions to your venue at a prearranged time.

You could do the catering yourself. This is the cheapest option, but a lot of work. You will need a team of reliable volunteers (perhaps family, friends, or members of your organisation) to help you. Further savings can be made by purchasing your food and other supplies from wholesale outlets. You will also need to think about cutlery, crockery etc. If your venue has a kitchen, these things may be available - but your team of volunteers will need to wash up and put away afterwards. Alternatively, you could consider using disposable cutlery and crockery, and take away the waste at the end of the event.

If your event is to be held in a hotel function room (e.g. a wedding barn dance), you will probably required to use the establishment's own in-house catering services.

Generally speaking, yes. And if you are including food in the price, be sure to make this clear on your tickets, posters or other publicity. People need to see that you're offering good value.

Providing that you sell your tickets in advance, your revenue will be known - which makes  budgeting easier. By contrast, the revenue from the sale of food at an event is unpredictable -  you may have a lot of unsold food at the end.

A good compromise is to include food in the ticket price - then sell anything that's left over  at a knock-down price near the end of the event.

If you (a) plan to provide alcoholic drinks without charge (for example at a wedding barn dance) - or (b) plan to advise attendees to bring their own alcoholic drinks, that’s OK. 

However, if you plan to SELL alcoholic drinks (for example, at a public barn dance) you will need to consider the licensing arrangements. If your chosen venue has a staffed bar, the licensing arrangements should already be in place. 

If you plan on running your own bar, you will have to submit (in advance) a TEN (Temporary Event Notice) application to your local authority (a small fee is payable with your application). Be aware that the maximum number of TENs allowed for any particular premises is twelve in any one year. Furthermore, the total number of days covered by these TENs cannot exceed fifteen, and there must be a 24-hour gap between each TEN.  

Another option is to employ the services of a mobile bar. A mobile bar will arrive in a van about an hour before your event, then set up a bar – normally using tables or other facilities provided by your venue. A Temporary Event Notice is still required. The mobile bar will usually apply for this on your behalf - but do check. 

Although the response to this FAQ is believed to be correct at the time of writing, you are advised to check with your local authority.

The maximum number of tickets you can sell will always be limited by the capacity of your venue. In reality, you can usually oversell tickets by about 5%, as some people  (by reason of illness or other unforeseeable occurrence)  won't turn up on the day, even though they've bought a ticket.

It is strongly recommended that you sell tickets well in advance of your event. Selling tickets "on the door" is inadvisable, but is nevertheless useful as a fall-back if your advance ticket sales are under-subscribed.

If you are running a barn dance for your club or other association and find that you are unable to sell enough tickets within your membership, consider opening up the event to the friends and families of your members, and/or to members of other local organisations with similar aims to yourselves. 

It is useful to have some publicity posters, placed in strategic locations. An item in the local press and/or an announcement on local radio might also help. Do not however rely on advertising alone - it is important to have a few people who are capable of pro-actively selling tickets. 

As a general rule, it's best to include food in your ticket price. However, some outdoor or semi-outdoor events may provide opportunities for selling food items which carry a high profit margin - such as hot dogs or ice-cream. You will of course need additional facilities (cooking or refrigeration equipment) and careful management will required to avoid the wastage (and cost) of any unsold food. If your supplier is close to the venue (and open for business during your event) this would be ideal, as you could buy less then your estimated food requirement initially, then make a second trip to the supplier during the course of the event if a "top-up" were needed.

A raffle held during the mid-evening break is a useful way of generating additional revenue. You can keep the costs of a raffle to a minimum if you can persuade members of your organisation to donate the raffle prizes. If your event is in aid of a recognised charity, you will probably be able to get local traders to donate some good prizes. It's a good idea to ask the caller to announce the raffle early on in the evening. But don't just rely on an announcement - you will a lot sell more tickets if you have a couple of people going around the hall pro-actively selling them. Offer a discount for quantity purchase: e.g. "30p each, or £1 for a strip of five."

Another possible money-raising idea for your break is "rolling a pound coin for a bottle of whisky". The bottle of whisky (preferably donated) is placed upright on the floor of the hall. From a line, patrons take turns in rolling a marked pound coin. At the end of the coin rolling, the roller of the pound coin nearest to the bottle wins the bottle of whisky. 

Finally, if you have booked our band, we'll be pleased to promote your event here on this website at no extra cost - just send us the full details.

Band engagements are offered to full members in the first instance. If a full member is unavailable for a particular booking, an associate member is asked to stand-in for them.

Should a full member decide to leave the band, an associate member is given the opportunity to become a full member.

Currently, there are no vacancies for full members. There are always vacancies for associate members.

A button accordion (B/C or C#/D) could replace English concertina. A melodeon or Anglo concertina would also serve, providing that it could be played in the first three "sharp" keys.

Other instruments might be considered, but please note that we do not use brass instruments or electronic keyboards.

If you are a guitarist, you would need to be able follow the sheet music in order to to play the chords set out above the staff.

Similarly, If you are a bass guitarist/cellist, you would need to be able to play the bass notes relevant to the chords set out above the staff.

Playing into a microphone is a possibility, but is not ideal in a ceilidh situation. The band has a spare microphone and stand - available for emergency use, or for use on a temporary basis pending the purchase of a pickup.

As well as your instrument, you will need to remember to bring your pickup, lead and DI box (and a music stand, if you need one). If you play a stringed instrument, you should bring an electronic tuner (or a tuning fork) and a spare set of strings.

Our repertoire also inlcudes a selection of traditional tunes from other nations: America, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Israel, Mexico, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Wales.

If the set tunes you will need are not on our list, please let us know in advance of the event. If possible, please also email the music to us (.jpg, .gif, .pdf or .abc)

If the American reels you will need are not on our list, please let us know in advance of the event. If possible, please also email the music to us (.jpg, .gif, .pdf or .abc).

If the Playford tunes you will need are not on our list, please let us know in advance of the event. If possible, please also email the music to us (.jpg, .gif, .pdf or .abc).