John Philip, the father of Morris in NZ, died last night in Auckland.
I first met John at Wellington Folk Centre in the early 70s and he really was responsible for starting up the first Morris side in Wellington.

Dave Hart has posted a lovely obit on the NZ Folk site:


What a monumental figure was Jay Pee. An amazing mentor and a man who shared so much of his life with so many. A man of humble means, who always said: "I'm just a welder.", yet was so knowlegeable in his grasp of history and tradition. Never a "singer's singer", but he sure could deliver...he rejected the ideals of excess technology and was even known to hurl a stage mic over his shoulder, as he "didn't need this bloody thing".

He was a great raconteur, opinionated, as was his own right and didn't suffer fools (and many others) gladly. The only fool he ever suffered was himself, in the guise of the "Fool", or Jester figure in the Morris dance, along with his inflated rubber glove on a stick...his version of a pig's bladder. He sometimes danced opposite the "Man Woman" and occasionally with a "Maid" character, when the side had one. He would dance up between the lines of dancers during the hey, (or figure-of-eight) and when he could get away with it, he'd rain blows onto the heads of the dancers with his inflated glove, while his wife May would circle the dancers as the "Hobby Horse" character, doing the collect.

As the long time Squire of "The Pride Of holland Street', he was required to dance a solo jig. This was called "The Fool's Jig", to the tune of Roxborough Castle and involved the passing of a stick behind an uplifted leg, (fortunately his own) and the dance terminated when he'd throw his stick high into the air, as all the dancers ducked for cover...I think he was supposed to catch it...that never happened, to my knowledge.

John always said that he wanted two dances to be performed at his funeral: "Haste to the wedding" and "Getting upstairs", both from the village of Bampton In The Bush. Dance on, Jay Pee, wherever you may be...still a Lord Of The Dance, for me.

Dave