Pass through any English village on May Day and during the summer and you could well come across a group of morris dancers.

There is recorded evidence of morris dancing as far back as 1448 and although we tend to think of it as uniquely English, other countries have similar dances specific to their customs.

Perhaps one of the most original morris dancing events recorded was in 1600, when Shakespearean actor William Kemp morris-danced all the way from London to Norwich. He named the journey his "Nine Days Wonder".

The stamp below was issued as part of the British Cultural Traditions set of stamps in August 1976.

Illustration

Morris Dancing stamp, August 1976