Inter Varsity Folk Dance Festival

Dates| A weekend within February or the first 2 weeks of March
Location(s)| Changes every year
Years active| 1951–present
Organised by| Student folk societies

The Inter Varsity Folk Dance Festival (IVFDF) is the longest-running folk festival in the United Kingdom, running annually since 1951.[1]

The festival is organized and hosted by university folk societies, and is held in a different location each year. Former students and folk music enthusiasts gather at the host university for a weekend of music, dance, and song. The festival at Exeter University in 2009 was attended by around 1169 different ticket holders — the most of any IVFDF up to that time, as the previous record was just over 1000 attendees at the IVFDF in Manchester in 1986.[2]

The festival was held online in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, hosted by people based in Bristol. The most recent festival was held in Sheffield, in 2025.

## Mascots

[edit]

Society mascots are considered to be a large part of the festival. Mascot Ransoming is now banned at IVFDF after several people sustained injuries at one festival. While Mascot Ransoming has been banned, mascot intentional misplacement is prevalent at IVFDFs.[clarification needed]

List of Mascots  Name  | Species  | University  | Organization

|
|
|

As Yet & Unnames  | Penguins  | Sheffield  | N/A
Cuthbert  | Snake  | Cambridge  | The Round (Cambridge English and Contra dance society)
Don  | Elephant  | Warwick  | N/A
Duncan  | Highland Cow | Durham  | N/A
Floyd  | Pig  | Exeter  | N/A
Hamish  | Thistle  | Cambridge  | Strathspey & Reel Club
Nessie  | Loch Ness Monster | Edinburgh  | N/A
Rustle  | Ceilidh Monster  | N/A  | N/A
Ducky  | Duck  | Lancaster  | N/A
N/A  | Goose  | York  | N/A

## History

[edit]

The first festival was held in 1951 under the name "Universities' Folk Dancing Festival", hosted in the city of Leeds.[3] The festival was jointly organized by the Hull University College Folk Dance Society and the Leeds University Scottish Dance Society, however, Leeds was chosen over Hull as the location for the festival due to its accessibility and better facilities at the time.[4] The following two festivals were hosted under this name before the term Inter-Varsity was used for the 1954 festival hosted in Edinburgh.[5]

Initially, the primary activity at the festival was the "Display Ceilidh", during which the University groups in attendance would take turns to perform dances as a demonstration to the other groups. The dances presented could be newly choreographed or traditional and could be chosen to raise awareness of a particular folk style or show the group's skill.[6][7] In some early festivals, a dance was also held in the evening after the Display Ceilidh, and by the 1959 festival, this had been expanded to two evening dances.[8]

The festival has never been held in the same host city two years consecutively, with 22 different cities hosting thus far. The most frequent hosts have been Sheffield and Exeter, totaling 11 and 8 festivals, respectively.

Top 10 most frequent IVDF host cities  Host city  | Number of festivals hosted  | Last festival hosted

|
|

Sheffield  | 11  | 2025
Exeter  | 8  | 2023
Edinburgh  | 7  | 2019
Nottingham  | 6  | 2020
Manchester  | 5  | 1994
Cambridge  | 4  | 2017
Bristol  | 3  | 2021
Durham  | 3  | 2010
Glasgow  | 3  | 2000
Newcastle  | 3  | 1990

### All IVFDF events

[edit]

All IVDF events. Cities in bold are first-time hosts.  Year  | Host city  | Host university  | Dates  | Festival website  | Visitors  | Events/performers  | Notes

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1951  | Leeds | Leeds | 17 February[9] |  |  |  | It was known as the Universities' Folk Dancing Festival. The event was jointly organised by the Hull University College Folk Dance Society and the Leeds University Scottish Dance Society.
1952  | Newcastle |  |  |  |  |  |
1953  | Sheffield |  |  |  |  |  |
1954  | Edinburgh |  | 13 February [10] |  | 480 visitors[10] |  | First festival to use the IVFDF name.
1955  | Birmingham |  | 12 February[11] |  | 600[11] |  |
1956  | Manchester |  |  |  |  |  |
1957  | Bristol |  | 16 February[12] |  |  | Featured a Morris Tour  |
1958  | London |  |  |  |  |  |
1959  | Nottingham |  | 31 January[8] |  | 750[8] |  |
1960  | Glasgow |  | 13 February  |  |  |  |
1961  | Leeds  |  | 11 February  |  |  |  |
1962  | Manchester  |  | 17 February  |  |  |  |
1963  | London  |  | 2 February  |  |  |  |
1964  | Sheffield  |  | 8 February  |  |  |  |
1965  | Newcastle  |  | 20 February  |  |  |  |
1966  | Liverpool |  | 19 February[13] |  |  |  |
1967  | Exeter |  | 25 February  |  |  |  |
1968  | Hull |  | 2 March[14] |  | 800[14] |  |
1969  | Glasgow  | Strathclyde, a sub-university of Glasgow  | 8 February  |  |  |  |
1970  | Reading |  | 13–14 February[15] |  | 600[15] |  | Extended to a 2-day festival since a ceilidh was arranged for those who were staying overnight on Friday.
1971  | Nottingham  |  | 6 February  |  |  |  |
1972  | Durham |  | 12 February  |  |  |  |
1973  | Liverpool  |  | 3 February[16] |  |  |  |
1974  | Oxford |  |  |  |  |  |
1975  | London  |  | 22 February  |  |  |  |
1976  | Edinburgh  |  |  |  |  |  |
1977  | Manchester  |  |  |  |  |  |
1978  | Southampton |  |  |  |  |  |
1979  | Norwich | University of East Anglia |  |  |  |  |
1980  | Durham  |  |  |  |  |  |
1981  | Leeds  |  |  |  |  |  |
1982  | Reading  |  |  |  |  |  |
1983  | Nottingham  |  |  |  |  |  |
1984  | Sheffield  |  |  |  |  |  |
1985  | Southampton  |  |  |  |  |  |
1986  | Manchester  |  | 28 February[17] |  |  |  |
1987  | Reading  |  | 27 February – 1 March[18] |  | 200[18] |  |
1988  | Edinburgh  |  |  |  |  |  |
1989  | Exeter  |  |  |  |  |  |
1990  | Newcastle  |  |  |  |  |  |
1991  | Nottingham  |  |  |  |  |  |
1992  |  | University of East Anglia  |  |  |  |  |
1993  | Sheffield  |  |  |  |  |  |
1994  | Manchester  |  |  |  |  |  |
1995  | Exeter  |  |  |  |  |  |
1996  | Edinburgh  |  |  |  |  |  |
1997  | Cambridge | Anglia Polytechnic University | 28 February – 2 March[19] |  | 800[20] |  | Held in Anglia Polytechnic University and venues around the city.
1998  | Sheffield  |  |  |  |  |  |
1999  | Exeter  |  |  |  |  |  |
2000  | Glasgow  |  |  |  |  |  |
2001  | Cambridge  |  |  |  |  |  |
2002  | St. Andrews |  |  |  |  |  |
2003  | Sheffield  |  |  |  |  |  |
2004  | Exeter  |  |  |  |  |  |
2005  | Norwich  |  | 25–27 February[21] |  |  |  |
2006  | Cambridge  | Cambridge University  | 24–26 February  |  | 1000+  | Many dance teams, including Stone the Crows, Black Swan Rapper, and Pig Dyke Molly. The usual complement of university-based teams from all over the country.  | Organised by a committee made up of students and ex-students belonging to the universities' three folk orientated societies (Gog Magog Molly, The Round and The Strathspey, and Reel Society).

Because Cambridge does not have a single large students union building, they hired a local school to accommodate the attendees. Workshops were held in various rooms, including the gym and sports hall, sessions were held in the library and common room, and people slept in the maths classrooms.

2007  | Edinburgh  | Edinburgh University  | 2–4 March  |  |  | Bands included Peeping Tom and John Dipper. It has demonstration dances, including Scottish and a dance to the soundtrack of The Sound of Music.  |
2008  | Sheffield  |  | 29 February – 2 March  |  | 1000+[22] | Bands and artists that appeared were Glory Strokes (Pete Rees), Vertical Expression (Andrew Swaine), The Gloworms (Nick Walden), Janiver (formed from previous Jabadaw members), and Triple Scotch. There was also a concert with Crucible, Spiers & Boden.  |
2009  | Exeter  |  | 27 February-1 March  | Festival website (Archived 12 February 2009)  | 1169 (most of any IVFDF)  | The lineup included Kate Rusby, The Demon Barbers, and Jackie Oates, who also appeared with Jim Causley. Main ceilidhs were provided by The Committee Band and Stomp with over 40 workshops taking place over the weekend, as well as the Survivor's Ceilidh.  | All events were back on one site, including sleeping, food and all the late night sessions.
2010  | Durham  | Durham university  | 5–7 March  | Festival website (ivfdf.org archive) |  | The lineup included Eliza Carthy and Aidan Curran, Whapweasel and Martyn Harvey, Vertical Expression, Fidola, alongside workshops and a Morris Tour.  |
2011  | Bristol  |  | 25–27 February  | Festival website Archived 22 July 2011 |  |  |
2012  | Aberdeen |  | 2–4 March[23] | Festival website (Archived 11 October 2020)  |  |  |
2013  | Sheffield  |  | 1–3 March  | Festival website Archived 14 May 2013 |  |  |
2014  | Edinburgh  |  | 28 February - 2 March  | Festival website (Archived 23 December 2014)  |  |  |
2015  | Exeter  |  | 27 February – 1 March  | Festival website (Archived 1 March 2015)  |  |  | Held in the 'new buildings' of the University of Exeter and the Great Hall.
2016  | Coventry | University of Warwick | 26–28 March  | Festival website |  |  | Used Coventry Cathedral as a dance venue.
2017  | Cambridge  |  | 24-26 February  | Festival website (Archived 11 May 2017)  |  |  |
2018  | Sheffield  | Sheffield University  | 23–25 February[24] | Festival website |  | The lineup included Melrose Quintet, Buddy System, Steamchicken, Emily and the Simons, and Scottish Measure.  | First year the festival went completely gender free for all its calling and workshops.
2019  | Edinburgh  | Edinburgh University  | 1–3 March[25] | Festival website |  | The lineup included Hoik, The Night Before, Monkey Box, No&Mi, An Conasg, Hekety, Science Ceilidh, Matthew Maclennan Dance Band, Naragonia, and Point Five.  |
2020  | Nottingham  |  | 6–8 March  | Festival website |  | The lineup included Contrasaurus, Bearded Dragons, and several others.  |
2021  | Bristol (though online)  |  |  |  |  |  | Organised by Bristol people; held online via Minecraft, Zoom, and Discord due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2022  | Sheffield  |  | 25–27 February[26] | Festival website | 600[27] |  |
2023  | Exeter  |  | 3-5 February  | Festival website |  |
2024  | York |  | 16-18 February  | Festival website |  |
2025  | Sheffield  |  | 28 February-2 March  | Festival website |  |
2026  | York [28] |  | TBA  | TBA  |  |  |

## ICBINI

[edit]

I can't believe it's not IVFDF (ICBINI) is a smaller annual spin-off festival held in November. The first ICBINI was held at Exeter in 2002.[29] ICBINI is like the main festival in many respects, in that it is held at a different location each year and hosted by student folk societies; however, if a suitable host cannot be found, a festival is not held that year. The activities are similar to those at IVFDF.

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (February 2019)

|

ICBINI events  Year  | Location  | Festival?  | Additional

|
|
|

2002  | Exeter[29] |  | First ICBINI.
2003  | Bristol [30] |  |
2011  | Exeter  |  |
2012  | Warwick  |  |
2014  | Warwick  |  | Warwick Festival Announcement
2015  | Lancaster  |  |
2016  | Exeter  |  | Exeter Festival Announcement
2017  | Bristol  |  |
2018  | N/A  | None  |
2019  | York  |  |
2020  | N/A  | None  | Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "IVFDF". Ivfdf.org. Archived from the original on 25 October 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
2. ^ "The Inter Varsity Folk Dance Festival 2009 - eFestivals.co.uk". www.efestivals.co.uk. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
3. ^ Schofield, Derek (2016). "Norman Peacock (1925–2015)". Folklore. 127: 107–109. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
4. ^ "Hull idea". Hull Daily Mail. No. 20359\. 22 February 1951. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
5. ^ "Early IVFDF Involvement". The Round. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
6. ^ "Folk dancing". Hull Daily Mail. No. 20357\. 20 February 1951. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
7. ^ "Edinburgh will see new dance". Aberdeen Evening Express. No. 23664\. 11 February 1954. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
8. ^ a b c "750 at city dance festival". Nottingham Evening News. No. 22796\. 2 February 1959. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
9. ^ "Folk dance festival". Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer. No. 32282\. 19 February 1951. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
10. ^ a b "Student Folk-Dancers Gather in Edinburgh". Edinburgh Evening News. No. 25224\. 9 February 1954. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
11. ^ a b "Dancing down the festival line". Birmingham Weekly Mercury. No. 1884\. 13 February 1955. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
12. ^ "Sword team at Bristol folk dance festival". Bristol Evening Post. No. 7703\. 18 February 1957. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
13. ^ "What's on". Liverpool Daily Post. No. 34417\. 19 February 1966. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
14. ^ a b "Hull idea comes home at last". Hull Daily Mail. No. 25614\. 4 March 1968. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
15. ^ a b Linton, Mitchell (12 February 1970). "Folk dancers to step out in Reading". Reading Evening Post. No. 1370. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
16. ^ "Varsitites in dance festival". Liverpool Echo. No. 28950\. 5 February 1973. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
17. ^ "What's on today". Middleton Guardian. No. 5904\. 28 February 1986. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
18. ^ a b "Dancers descend on area". Reading Evening Post. No. 5803\. 2 March 1987. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
19. ^ "City in step for feast of folk dancing". Cambridge Daily News. 27 February 1997. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
20. ^ "Varsity Morris Men invade city streets". Cambridge Weekly News. 12 March 1997. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
21. ^ "Inter-Varsity Folk Dance Festival". Eastern Daily Press. 25 February 2005. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
22. ^ "BBC - Radio 2 - Folk and Acoustic". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
23. ^ "Dancers descend on Aberdeen". Aberdeen University. 1 March 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
24. ^ "PICTURES: Sheffield welcomes UK's longest running folk dance festival". The Star. 24 February 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
25. ^ Campbell, Fiona (23 February 2019). "UK's longest-running folk dance festival in Edinburgh for 2019". All Media Scotland. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
26. ^ "Folk dance festival celebrates ancient tradition". Sheffield Tribune. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
27. ^ "Supporting the return to dancing in person". English Folk Dance and Song Society. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
28. ^ "Facebook Post". facebook.com. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
29. ^ a b "University of Bristol Union : Folk Club : ICBINI". Archived from the original on 6 December 2003.
30. ^ "History 2010 - 2019 - IVFDF". Ivfdf.org. Retrieved 12 January 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Central IVFDF
* IVFDF 2012 (Aberdeen)
* IVFDF 2011 (Bristol)
* IVFDF 2010 (Durham)
* IVFDF 2009 (Exeter)
* IVFDF 2008 (Sheffield)
* IVFDF 2021 (online)