This is a strange confession, but I have been a closet Appalachian clogging groupie for over 18 years. I am one no longer, it seems….

Our friend Yvonne has danced with the Bromsgrove-based group One Step Beyond for those many years. The group has been in existence for a little longer, some 24 years, and took its final bow on Saturday in Redditch at a ceilidh, where they took centre stage in the interval and performed with their usual energy and aplomb.

We have enjoyed this slightly unusual activity (as spectators only!) on many occasions over the years, and One Step Beyond took on the cultural mantle in the best of ways, both perpetuating the traditional and adding their own take on the dance form to ensure its continuation and ‘refresh’.