Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

The Westminster Reel

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

THE WESTMINSTER REEL (R8x32) 2C (4C set) Jeremy Hill RSCDS Book 45

1- 8 1M+2L turn RH, 1L+2M turn RH 1½ times end facing partner ready for diagonal reel of 4
9-16 1s+2s dance diagonal reel of 4. All end in original places
17-24 1s+2s set and rotate:
 Set (facing diagonally opposite dancer), rotate singly and dance on 1 place clockwise, change places RH on sides and dance on 1 place to own sides (1s in 2nd place)
25-32 2s+1s dance R&L

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


Keith Rose's Crib Diagram


Dance Instruction Videos

The Westminster Reel - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

Westminster is a city and area of Central London, England, within the larger City of Westminster, most notable for being the seat of the majority of government institutions in the United Kingdom.

The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Westminster Cathedral, Trafalgar Square and much of the West End shopping and entertainment district.

The name (Old English: Westmynstre) originated from the informal description of the abbey church and royal peculiar of St Peter's (Westminster Abbey), west of the City of London (until the English Reformation there was also an Eastminster, near the Tower of London, in the East End of London).

The abbey's origins date from between the 7th and 10th centuries, but it rose to national prominence when rebuilt by Edward the Confessor in the 11th century.

Westminster has been the home of England's government since about 1200, and from 1707 the Government of the United Kingdom. In 1539, it became a city.

The Westminster Reel Crib
The Palace Of Westminster


Image copyright Graeme Maclean, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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