Like most of the Mirkmere dances, this one has a history to it. The dance and the tune were composed/devised around 1820(ish) by Jack Fuddle (1786-1837) who was the Foreman at the time as well as being the side's Fool. He named the dance in honour of Mary Gypwick, a contrary girl of considerable (free) spirit and positive character. She had a reputation in the Fens and was widely known as 'Fenland Mary'. The peak of her fame and notoriety was achieved when her relationship with the vicar of the church of St.Fenella the Fastidious became public knowledge. He moved away to another living and emerged without a stain on his character (well, he would, wouldn't he?) while she was forced to leave the area. Some five years later she turned up again living in Scotland, this time scandalously linked to the younger son of the Moderator of the Free Church and was known, to readers of the press, as Highland Mary.
Tune:
Fenland Mary - A(A2B2)4.A2
Sequence:
OY-FU/D-DF-CO-DF-HG-DF-Rds-DF-all up (no Hey)
Dance:
Normal six person set with sticks
Chorus(DF):
Sticking and half-hey repeated
Sticking sequence is:
- Bar 1: Odds face partner and hold stick horizontally at shoulder height - evens clash downwards twice on the beat.
- Bar 2: Ditto - odds clash with evens
- Bar 3: Odds hold stick at an angle above and in front pointing towards the partner - evens clash twice R-L/L-R
- Bar 4: As bar 3 but clash quickly three times from side to side in time with the music.
- Bars 5-8: Dance a half-hey, clashing across on the ftj
Then repeat the above with the odds doing most of the stick work and the evens receiving the clashes.