Hi Will. Love you too, sweetie. (Don't quote me on that - I'll deny all knowledge). I did say that there may be regional variations. The South East, for instance, has a lot more clubs than some regions, as has North Yorks/Northeast. My experience with bands has been largely in the North West, and the wedding dates have been pretty dire mostly. In he old days, bands were turning down dates where there was going to be a disco; the two things just don't mix. Nowadays, the disco seems to be a willy-nilly feature. It isn't just the discos - there are other reasons. I could go on at some length about why I don't miss them.
Dave: we won't be at Clogfest this year - missed the deadline. Some people aren't keen anyway. They (no names- no pack drill) think it's getting to be a ripoff. Given that the price seems to include the ceilidh, I'm not so sure. If we (7 Stars, for anybody who doesn't know what I'm talking about) don't go next year, I think I'll go myself - especially since the discovery that I can accompany myself on the moothie!
Les: regarding your question about getting people into other folk activity: I don't know. It puzzles me that there seems to be a degree of polarisation between song, music, dace and drama. I've always thought they were all part of the same culture, as I believe was traditionally the case. Maybe if organisers of folk clubs and ceilidhs booked a mixture of singers, dancers, mummers etc.....

John Kelly.