HUNDREDS of people turned out to watch the Original Welsh Border Morris Men as they carried out their annual Christmas tour of towns and villages across south Worcestershire on Saturday.

The traditional dancers and their entourage - some 60 strong all told - started off their tour in the village of Whiteladies Aston, which is the origin of two of the dances that they perform.

Mike Finn, the side's bag man - secretary-cum-treasurer - said that the Border style of morris dancing derives from villages around Worcestershire and Herefordshire, and is more rural than the better-known Cotswold style, with the dancer wielding stout wooden sticks rather than waving handkerchiefs.

"When we started out, 42 years ago, we'd perform in Whiteladies Aston and all you'd see were curtains twitching as people peered out wondering what the noise was," he said.

"Now the villagers come out and welcome us with mince pies and mulled wine. There must have been 100 local people out there on Saturday."

The dancers moved on to Pershore, Evesham and Upton, drawing crowds in each town, before finishing up the tour outside the Guildhall in Worcester.

As they danced, they also collected money for St Richard's Hospice, although the exact total has note yet been reckoned.

"It's become a real tradition for us," said Mr Finn. "The Saturday before Christmas is a great day to go out and dance. We had a spot of rain this time, but we don't let things like that worry us. We like to bring a smile to people's faces."