The side was established in the Bedfordshire market town of Ampthill in 1976, and named after the historical ‘Chiltern Hundred’ of Redbornstoke.

The initiator was David Adcock (an art teacher and first Squire) who had learned Morris from an Esperance dancer and had danced in several teams before arriving in Beds. No original members are still with the side, but Brian Mander has been in Redbornstoke for 30 years and Foreman for about 20.

 From the late 1970s, Redbornstoke concentrated on the Bledington dance tradition, but included others, (e.g. Badby). Our own Ampthill tradition was developed in the mid-1980s. Ducklington became our main tradition along with Ampthill from 1986 (also the Upton-upon-Severnhanky dance). Ducklington led to Bampton and back to Bledington along with an expanded Ampthill. December 1998 saw the world premiere of the Marston tradition, danced in black kit for the winter months. In 2002 we were fortunate enough to stumble across the Scouthall tradition, another Cotswold type tradition, which we are still attempting to master.The Ampthill tradition (which now makes up most of our repertoire) contains home-grown tunes written by Barry Goodman, Brian Mander, Taz Tarry and Martin Banks.

From 1986, Redbornstoke kit has been all white with a red and black baldrick with a Redbornstoke logo on the front and an ant (for Ampthill [OE ant-infested hill]) on the back; red, green and black arm bands and bell pad ribbons. The original kit was all white, with black shoes, straw hats and a simple baldrick held together with teddy bears’ eyes! From 1979, we had white shirts, green breeches, red socks, black shoes, with duller ribbons than present.

The side grew rapidly in the early 1980s with recruits from Luton Folk Club and the remnants of another local side, Wilstead. However numbers dwindled to about ten in 1985 and Redbornstoke nearly folded; but a new spirit took over in the 10th Anniversary Year of 1986, from which we have not looked back.

We have become regulars at the Hastings Jack in the Green celebrations and the Cheltenham Folk Festival, and have been an invited side to the Chippenham Festival. We generally spend a couple more weekends away during the summer as invited guests of other sides.

In recent years we have added eating out to our repertoire, something we do as a side about three times a year in our locality – as the Anteaters – and when we are away at festivals etc.

Television appearances on Look East; Anglia News; Canterville Ghost (ITV, Boxing Day 1997).  

In 2006 the side took part in the filming of The Bedfordshire Clanger, which was scheduled to be premiered at Cannes in 2007, but instead they chose to do so at St. George's Theatre in Luton.  For further information on this enterprise see www.thebedfordshireclanger.co.uk

Other highlights include:- visits to Verberie (l’Oise); Rose of Tralee and Bray International Dance Festivals; Lichfield 1989 (how do they dance so high? and Justin Baldrick) and Chippenham Folk Festivals; co-hosting the Morris Federation AGM in 1995; dancing on Plough Monday, 1987, at minus 11°C with our beer freezing in our glasses; dancing at the New British Library while still a building site; annual visits to Hastings Jack in the Green; Jim Grennell’s antics (especially in the River Ouse with Richard Death); our 21st Anniversary Weekend, with so many good friends.  We had a memorable 25th Anniversary weekend in 2001, when we met up with many old (and new) friends.

We had a memorable 25^th Anniversary weekend  in 2001, when we met up  with many old (and new) friends.

For our 30th Anniversary we were joined in Ampthill by other sides who we have become friends with over the years, who were also celebrating 30 years.  These were Oyster Morris, from the Whitstable area in Kent, Ironmen from Ironbridge in Shropshire, and Sheffield City Morris.To crown the season off we spent a few days performing and running workshops at the Whitby Folk Festival in August.  

To round off our celebrations we held an “Old Boys” reunion at Clophill to which all the former members (plus partners) we were able to contact were invited.This attracted a turn-out of over 70, and we celebrated with a meal, good beer and wine, lots of old photos, and some of Jim’s magic tricks.The evening prompted a lot of reminiscences as we met up with other former Redbornstokers we had not met for years - or had never met before, and there was a certain amount of bad unrehearsed dancing from some former members who clearly had their best dancing years behind them.