There’s a seasonal flavour to some of the features in this issue. Plus, a full list of Folk Festivals in 2010, which is also available on the website.

The Singer, Song and Source feature is Bella Hardy, whose song is ‘All in the Morning’ from her latest CD, In the Shadow of Mountains. The song is from Derbyshire’s Castleton Carol Tradition, which Ian Russell writes about in The Source.

Continuing the seasonal theme, there’s a feature on The Drayton Wassail song custom from Somerset, which Cecil Sharp visited a hundred years ago. And news of the re-publication of Percy Maylam’s book about The Hooden Horse of Kent.

In Never on Sunday in Widecombe, Rollo Woods examines a unique manuscript collection of tunes from the famous village in Dartmoor, Devon.

There’s a feature on the remarkable dance and music group, The Fosbrooks, from Stockport in Cheshire: The Fosbrooks Phenomenon.

Fellside Recordings are the latest in our series on independent record labels.

There’s a feature on the EFDSS’s latest publication, The Fallibroome Collection, a new edition, by Nic Broadbridge, of Bernard Bentley’s classic collection of English country dances.

An article focuses on the Take 6 Education Project, written by Education Director, Rachel Elliott.

EFDSS Matters celebrates Library Director, Malcolm Taylor’s 30 years at the EFDSS, and the continuing party for Cecil Sharp’s 150th birthday.

Plus all the regular features – festive round-up, news, reviews and dance events.

This issue celebrates the 70th anniversary of Topic Records, with an article, featuring an interview with Topic’s managing director, Tony Engle.

The Singer, Song and Source feature is Brass Monkey, one of Topic’s artists, and their song, ‘Bold Archer’ as sung by John Kirkpatrick of Brass Monkey, and based on the version of the song sung by Harry Cox, whose double CD is on the Topic label.

There’s a brace of features on Cornwall – one on Dance Tunes, and the other on Folk Dances to be found in the Duchy.

An article focuses on the six manuscript collections that have formed the focus of the EFDSS’s Take 6 Project and which are now available on the internet.

The youth activities at Cambridge Folk Festival come under the spotlight.

There’s a feature on The Ballad of Britain – the title of a new book and forthcoming concert at Cecil Sharp House amd nd an article on one of Cecil Sharp’s singers, John Short, the Watchet Sailor.

There’s also a report on a new campaign, Folk against Fascism.

Award-winning Bellowhead is the subject of the Singer, Song and Source feature, with the song ‘The Rigs of the Time’– dating from Napoleonic times, the song has a contemporary relevance.

Leaders of the three morris organisations reflect on morris dancing in the twenty-first century, and there’s a feature on the rapper sword competition, DERT.

There’s a double feature on walking and singing – Oysterband’s John Jones’s Feet Don’t Fail Me tour, and Ed, Will and Ginger’s Walk Around Britain.

There’s a selection of dances and tunes from a 1745 manuscript, now known as Kitty Bridges, in the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library; a feature on WildGoose Records; and the EFDSSGold Badge citations for Beryl Marriott and John Heydon.

There are features on the Flash Company exhibition at Cecil Sharp House and the Singing Histories books, plus future EFDSS initiatives, Cecil Sharp House events, and reports on the recent St George’s Day events.

Jim Moray is the subject of the Singer, Song and Source. The song is ‘I’ll Go and List for a Sailor’ with an unusual source – John Kirkpatrick and Morris On. Morris dancing features in several articles. There’s a resume of the recent media interest – Morris Media Frenzy – and an item on the new film, Morris: A Life with Bells On!

There’s a two page feature on The Mary Neal Project, features on three Tynesiders, Louis Killen, Ray Fisher and Colin Ross, who all received EFDSS Gold Badges recently. And Jane Harland writes about Newcastle's Bridge Folk Club, to celebrate its 50th anniversary.

Steve Jordan writes about Paul Hutchinson and his musical influences.

Chris Pitt writes about his school dance group, Essex Longsword Girls, and Martyn Harvey considers some recent ceilidh successes in the north-west of England.

Free Reed Records kicks off a series of features on independent record labels.

Sadly, we also report the deaths of a number of folk music and dance enthusiasts: Francis Shergold and Sonner Townsend from the Bampton Morris traditions, the three guitarists, John Pearse, Davy Graham and John Martyn, the dance caller John Lagden, musician Johnny Conquest, morris dancer and Towersey Festival founder Denis Manners and song collector Ken Stubbs.