Crowds across Sheffield have been brought to a halt by a glorious spectacle of curious dance.

Yorkshire's own tradition of longsword dancing, with records dating back some hundreds of years, has seen a resurgence of late with more people showing an interest.

Now, after Handsworth Sword Dancers were crowned national champions last year, a dozen different teams descended on the steel city for a competition final for 2023.

As teams demonstrated with public displays, there was a "buzz" of interest from onlookers. This is a Yorkshire folk dance tradition , said James Merryclough of the Handsworth Traditional Sword Dancers, that not many people know about.

The Wath Upon Dearne Morris Group are pictured performing outside Sheffield Town Hall. Picture taken by Yorkshire Post Photographer Simon Hulme 14th October 2023

"Many villages would once have had their own dance, distinctive style and costumes," he said. "There aren't many left now, although Yorkshire has a strong tradition and we have two teams in Sheffield, Handsworth and Grenoside. Every year the teams get together.

"There's no competitive spirit really, in folk dancing,” he added. “It's all very social. There was a nice reaction from Sheffield city centre as well, people enjoyed seeing something a bit different. And it's important for us to get out in front of people. When they see it, they do find it interesting. There is a real buzz and an interest."

Evidence suggests there were once many more longsword dances unique to villages across Yorkshire and Cleveland. Teams today traditionally dance on Boxing Day in their respective villages, attracting huge crowds, using rigid steel or wooden swords around one metre in length.

Competition winners in the traditional category were Sallyport, for writing their own dance were Southport, and for those more used to other traditions of dancing it was Lord Conyers.

Sharing Yorkshire's little-known tradition of longsword dancing as competitors come to Sheffield