Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

The Earl Of Errol's Reel

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

The Earl of Errol's Reel
Mary Isdale MacNab S C D Volume 1
Jig 200 bars 3 Couple Repeat 3 Couple Set Longwise Set
Part I:

    1-4     1s set and lead down one place WHILE 2s step up;

    5-8     1s set and lead down one place WHILE 3s step up;

    9-12   1s set and cross by the right, finishing on opposite sides facing up, 3s facing down;

  13-16   3M1L 3L1M set facing and cross by the left on the sides;

  17-20   2M1L 2L1M set facing and turn by the right halfway, all finishing in original places;

  21-24   all turn partners by the right;

  25-32   1s2s3s poussette, finishing 2s3s1s;

  33-64   Repeat bars 1-32, 2s dancing as 1s, 3s as 2s, 1s as 3s, finishing 3s1s2s;

  65-96   Repeat bars 1-32, 3s dancing as 1s, 1s as 2s, 2s as 3s, all finishing in original places, 2s facing down, 3s up.


Part II:

  97-100 Grand chain for two places and set facing the next dancer;

100-108 repeat bars 97-100 twice, all finishing in original places;

108-112 all turn partners by the right.


Part III:

113-114 1L3M turn by the right;

115-116 1s 3s turn by the left;

117-118 1L2M 3M2L turn by the right;

119-120 1L3M touch right hands and return to places;

121-122 1M3L turn by the right;

123-124 1s 3s turn by the left;

125-126 3L2M 1M2L turn by the right;

127-128 1M3L touch right hands and return to places;

129-130 2s turn by the right halfway;

131-132 2L1M 2M3L turn by the left;

133-134 2s turn by the right;

135-136 2L3M 2M1L turn by the left;

137-140 2s turn by the right ¾, slowly;

140-144 all turn by the right.


Part IV:

145-146 3M dance (pas-de-basque) partial (¼) petronella turn to finish facing down on the centre line;

147-148 3L full (¾) petronella turn to finish facing down;

149-152 2s repeat bars 145-148;

153-156 1s repeat bars 145-148, finishing 1L1M2L2M3L3M on the centre line, all facing down;

157-160 all set twice, turning on the spot, finishing facing down;

161-166 1L dance down the line passing alternately by the left and the right;

167-168 all dance backwards one place in the line;

169-176 1M repeat bars 161-168;

177-184 2L repeat bars 161-168;

185-190 2M repeat bars 161-166;

191-191 all with pas-de-basque, Mn travel diagonally backwards to their side line facing out WHILE Ls travel backwards up the centre line;

192-192 on the second step of pas-de-basque, Mn turn about and advance WHILE Ls retire towards their side line, finishing ready for poussette;

193-200 3s1s2s poussette, finishing 1s2s3s.

(MAXICRIB. Scottish country dancing instructions compiled by Reuben Freemantle)


Dance Notes

3 couple poussette is difficult to perform elegantly; instead, use the following instructions for bars 21-32 and 192-200:

  21-24   all turn partners by the right, 1s2s finishing ready for poussette, 3s in 3rd place;

  25-30   1s2s poussette for 6 bars;

  30-32   2s continue poussette normally WHILE 1s lead down to 3rd place WHILE 3s step up.

192-192 on the second step of pas-de-basque, Mn turn about and advance WHILE Ls retire towards their side line, 3s1s finishing ready for poussette, 2s in 3rd place;

193-198 3s1s poussette for 6 bars;

199-200 1s continue poussette normally WHILE 3s lead down to 3rd place WHILE 2s step up, finishing 1s2s3s.


Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams


Dance Instruction Videos

The Earl Of Errol's Reel - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

The Earl Of Errol's Reel is a jig, collected in Quebec, Canada, by Mary Isdale MacNab, who noted that the dance originated in France. It is a 6/8 jig, performed to a tune Mrs McMillan's Quadrille.

There is also a Scottish highland dance The Earl Of Erroll - Highland Dance Video sometimes danced today at Highland games around the world, as part of Scottish National dances repertoire. It is danced to two slow reels (4/4), Earl of Erroll and the 23rd Countess of Erroll. It is based on an 18th-century percussive hard shoe footwork, although today's Highland dancers perform it in soft Ghillies. The dance came back to the repertoire of Scottish dancers after it was published in 1953 by Mrs Isobel (Tibbie) Cramb, with reference to Frederick Hill's Manuscript (1841) and Miss Cruickshank of Aberdeen. (It is still seen as a soft balletic Scottish step dance by RSCDS teachers). The Earl of Erroll is considered one of the hardest national dances to perform well. The dance takes its name from James Hay, 15th Earl of Erroll, for whom it was choreographed by Francis Peacock.


The Earl of Erroll is an ancient title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1453 for Sir William Hay.

The subsidiary titles held by the Earl of Erroll are Lord Hay (created 1449) and Lord Slains (1452), both in the Peerage of Scotland. The Earls of Erroll also hold the hereditary office of Lord High Constable of Scotland. The office was once associated with great power. The Earls of Erroll hold the hereditary title of Chief of Clan Hay.

Erroll is an English male given name or surname that is synonymous to Earl.

The Earl Of Errolls Arms
Arms Of The Chief Of Clan Hay - The Earl Of Erroll


Dance information licensed under this Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
Text from this original Earl Of Errol article on Wikipedia.
Text from this original Earl of Erroll (reel) article on Wikipedia.
Text from this original Erroll article on Wikipedia.
Text from this original Scottish Highland Dance article on Wikipedia.
Image copyright Tomek Steifer.

Back to the top of this Scottish Country Dancing Instructions 'The Earl Of Errol's Reel' page