Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

Sea Dog Bamse

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

SEA DOG BAMSE (M-(S48+R/H48)) Sq.Set Elizabeth Neill RSCDS East Angus 2015

Strathspey
1- 8 All face partners to dance Interlocking Reels of 4, all change places RH with partner bars 7 and 8
9-12 All set and link, Men finish facing out
13-16 Ladies dance LH across while Men dance clockwise ½ way round. Ladies dance out while Men dance in, passing LSh
17-24 Men dance RH across while Ladies dance anticlockwise ½ way round. Finish facing partners opposite original places, Men with backs to the centre. All turn partners LH
25-32 All dance Double LSh Reels of 4 (RH across ½ way in middle), finish Men retaining RH across in the centre joining nearer hands with partners, all facing clockwise
33-36 All dance ½ way round, Men bringing partners round to face in original positions, with partner on the left
37-40 All set to partners and change places RH. (All dancers in original places)
41-48 Circle 8H round and back

Reel or Hornpipe
49-96 Repeat bars 1-48 in Reel or Hornpipe time

(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)


Dance Instruction Videos

Sea Dog Bamse - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

Bamse (Norwegian for "teddy bear") (1937-1944) was a St. Bernard dog that became the heroic mascot of the Free Norwegian Forces during the Second World War. He became a symbol of Norwegian freedom during the war.

Bamse was bought in Oslo, Norway by Captain Erling Hafto, the master of the Norwegian whale-catcher Thorodd, and he was taken to sea from an early age. In her childhood memories of pre-war Honningsvåg, Captain Hafto's daughter Vigdis remembers Bamse as a very kind dog that would look after the children while they were playing.

Bamse lifted the morale of the ship's crew, and became well known to the local civilian population. In battle, he would stand on the front gun tower of the boat, and the crew made him a special metal helmet. His acts of heroism included saving a young lieutenant commander who had been attacked by a man wielding a knife by pushing the assailant into the sea, and dragging back to shore a sailor who had fallen overboard. He was also known for breaking up fights amongst his crewmates by putting his paws on their shoulders, calming them down and then leading them back to the ship. One of Bamse's tasks in Scotland was to round up his crew and escort them back to the ship in time for duty or curfew. To do this, he travelled on the local buses unaccompanied, and the crew bought him a bus pass which was attached to his collar. Bamse would wander down to the bus stop at Broughty Ferry Road and take the bus down to Dundee. He would get off at the bus stop near his crew's favourite watering hole, the Bodega Bar and go in to fetch them. If he could not locate his friends he would take the bus back to base.

Sea Dog Bamse
Sea Dog Bamse


Dance information licensed under this Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
Text from this original Bamse, St. Bernard Dog article on Wikipedia.
Image copyright Bamse, St. Bernard Dog.

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