At the celebrations in Wortley it was great to catch the Mummers about
their playing. Having a mix of traditional and contemporary themes
and props the current performances seem to show the roots of much
humour that is still enacted for us today. There was St George
fighting another knight, with walk-ons for The Devil and Doctor Good,
there was something for everyone. Mummers performances are a great
part of feasts and fetes as they provide entertainment for all
seasons.
“I remember in a childish way being interested in the mummers, realising dimly that they came from an alien world, quite different to the ordered and staid mode of life in that staid and orderly household of Wortley Hall, and that they represented something historical, rough, and elemental.”
An extract from The Lilac and the Rose by Susan Tweedsmuir
Lady Tweedsmuir was an author herself and the wife of author John
Buchan who wrote The Thirtynine Steps.
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