Traditional celebration to see in the New Year

Jan 2 2009 by Mark Cowan, Birmingham Mail

A MIDLAND village saw in the New Year with a taste of the traditional.

Scores braved the cold to gather at the Crown Inn, in Alvechurch, Worcestershire, drawn by the echoing clunk of sticks as the Morris men performed their time-honoured celebrations.

The popular group, their faces covered with black and white paint as a form of disguise, have danced in Worcestershire villages on New Year’s for more than 16 years. And they brought some seasonal cheer to the crowds facing a gloomy 2009.

Alvechurch Morris were formed in 1989 by a group of men from the village to put on a display at the local school fete and have been going strong since.

They dance in the style of the Welsh Border Morris, the local tradition in the county. The New Year’s Day mumming play is their main event of the year.