You can hold a Barn Dance for almost any excuse! We regularly perform at Club Fundraisers/Socials, Company do's, Anniversaries, Weddings, Birthdays, Reunions, School and College Dances and many others that escape me at the moment.

Numbers - You will need to decide how many people you want to invite. As a guide, a minimum of 40 is practical so that 3 or 4 sets of eight people at a time can be dancing while the others get the beer in and recover! The more the merrier, and we have played to over 400 in a barn with very little space to dance, but ideally about 75 - 100 will really swing. However, if you can't muster that number it won't really matter unless you need the numbers to avoid making a loss (see below re ticket prices).

Ticket Prices - If you are selling tickets to your event, either as a fund raiser, or just to recover its costs (eg a club social), then make sure you do your sums and get your ticket price right. First of all, add up the fixed costs (eg the venue hire and the band), then divide that total by a conservative estimate of the number of tickets you can sell. That will be the break-even ticket price excluding food. Then add the price per head for food and decide whether that is a reasonable ticket price (around £5-£7 per head seems be the norm). If you use this method and sell the number of tickets you estimated, every extra guest after that is profit.

Raffles - These can make a little extra cash on the night if you are fundraising, but there are various legal requirements, none of which I am qualified to speak about. You are advised to check the legislation before running a raffle.

Venue - The hall must be booked well in advance, some village & school halls get very booked up for Saturday nights (the most popular night for a dance) so have a fall back option in case your favourite venue is booked. Halls, Marquees, Barns, Covered Wagons -we've played in or on them all! Check the access times (see 'Times' below) and also if it is a winter event, check with caretaker/steward that heating is available and where to turn it on. Also check the position regarding mains power, is there an isolator switch somewhere that they haven't told you about. (I remember one evening searching for it for what seemed like hours ... but that's another story!)

Drink - Will you want to provide drinks? Many halls will provide a bar and bar staff, but this will cost extra, check out how much they will charge and are they selling at Pub or Club prices. For smaller events you can ask your guests to 'Bring their own' but remind them to bring drinking vessels or provide plastic 'glasses' (for safety). A licence may be required for alcoholic drinks, it is your responsibility to check.

Food - Breaks - The band will take a 20-minute break during the evening, at the time when you usually take your break. Most dances provide food, everything from a full meal, fish & chips (the local chip shop can usually deliver at a set time during the evening) buffet, or once again you may wish to ask your guests to bring their own.

Times - Most dances tend to start at about 8:00pm. Local bylaws sometimes insist that dancing and music finish at midnight. Allowing time for clearing up, 11:30 is the best time to finish, so book the hall from 7 - 12 and you will have time to set out chairs and tables beforehand. We need to gain access to set up and complete our soundcheck about an hour before the start, so we would be arriving at about 7 o'clock as well.

The Band - Don't forget to book the Band!! Contact Frank for booking details; we get heavily booked up during certain times of the year so check your date as soon as possible

On the Night - We will need mains power on 2 x13amp sockets, this may seem obvious, but if we are in a marquee, power will have to be provided from a suitable connection by a qualified electrician and waterproof connectors must be used. If playing outside we will need a covered area to set up under. We will provide all the equipment for the PA (Public address system) and residual current circuit breakers for mains safety.

The Event - The caller runs the dance, he or she will usually ask you when you wish to have a break, make announcements for you or let you make any that you need to. He or she will usually start with a few simple dances which they will either demonstrate or instruct you on the moves. This is to help the caller assess the ability of the dancers and will often dictate the dances that they do, the number of dancers will also affect the type of dance chosen. DON'T PANIC if you have never danced before, our callers are all very experienced and will make it seem easy even if you think that two left feet is the norm ! Ask the caller for any special dances that you may know and they will do their best to accommodate you.

You can call Frank in the evening on 01276 475202 or email him on: fj.coyle@btopenworld.com if you want to know more.