The Upton Stick Dance is a great Show Dance and crowd pleaser. It is danced with a limited amount of variation between teams, although the calls generally are the same. It is probably the most common Border Dance danced by Cotswold Teams. Some teams used the Upton Step of flicking the leg across the other leg, and others just plain double step. Hammersmith Morris Men single step it and follow what they consider to be Sharp's first version. Sharp documented this twice, with different versions from each source. I first learnt this from a Cotswold Team, Kinnerton Morris Men, but have since covered it with teams such as Mersey Morris Men (I hate their version) and from some workshops that Mike Salter of Open Morris presented. I have danced it with a number of teams, the best being Bedford Morris, a Cotswold Team. The version below is mostly like that of Bedford Morris. I consider this version to be the most common way it is done, with the additional extrovert touches. It builds up in energy through the dance.
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Set : Double stepping, sticks on shoulders. 6
dancers. Right foot start. One long stick.
Music : Upton Stick Dance
Calls 
- MORRIS
- BUTTS AND TIPS
- RIGHT BACK TO BACK
- STAVES
- LEFT BACK TO BACK
- FIGHTING
- CROSS AND TURN
- DOUBLE BUTTS AND TIPS
- THREE TOPS HEY
- DOUBLE STAVES
- UPTON HEY
- DOUBLE FIGHTING
- MORRIS
- Morris
- Start with stamp. Hold sticks low pointing to the centre and dance completely around clockwise, 8 double steps.
- Butts and Tips
- Feet astride facing partner. Using wide strokes, alternately strike butts and tips twice. Twizzle. (Performed on spot. Turn to left whilst whilst giving partner a single clash. Three double-steps round on spot ending in Stamp-Stamp-Stamp.). REPEAT all.
- Right Back-to-Back
- Do a back to back, passing right shoulders (surge and yell on the first), returning to position. Twizzle.
- Staves
- Feet astride facing partner. Holding sticks with two hands at ends, clash with the left and right hands alterately low (left hand down first), twice. Twizzle. REPEAT all.
- Left Back-to-Back
- Do a back to back, passing left shoulders (surge and yell on the first), returning to position. Twizzle.
- Fighting
- Feet astride, side on to partner. Strike high and low alternately, twice, hand on outside hip. Twizzle. REPEAT all.
- Cross and Turn (P on the floor)
- Make a Dumbell shape by passing partner by right shoulder surging and yelling with one set of double steps, turning sharp right and arcing round in a tight circle to left for three sets of double steps, getting to partners original position. REPEAT back to your own original position.
- Double Butts and Tips
- Feet astride facing partner. Using wide strokes, alternately strike butts and tips four times ( twice as fast as before). Twizzle. (Performed on spot. Turn to left whilst whilst giving partner a single clash. Three double-steps round on spot ending in Stamp-Stamp-Stamp.).
- Three Tops Hey
- Dancers 3 & 4 move immediately diagonally right forwards passing left shoulder of spot 1 or 6. They turn arround that spot to their left and head to positions 2 or 5, passing right shoulders with that spot. They head to original position and turn on that spot to left. They end with three stamps. Dancers 1 and 6 head towards spot 2 or 5, immediately after 3 or 4 has passed in front of them. They pass right shoulders with that spot, performing a figure of eight back to the original spot. They dance round the spot to the left, and end with 3 stamps. Dancers 2 and 5 immediately dance round on spot to right. They then head towards spot 1 or 6.. They pass left shoulders with that spot, performing a figure of eight back to the original spot. They end with 3 stamps.
- Double Staves
- Feet astride facing partner. Holding sticks with two hands at ends, clash with the left and right hands alterately low (left hand down first), four times (twice as fast as before). This time Odds forces Evens back with each blow BUT MAINTAIN THE LINE, even when it means deliberately crashing into the audience. Twizzle in the new position. REPEAT all but Evens force Odds back to original position.
- Upton Hey
- Country Dance Hey, short way in.
- Double Fighting
- Feet astride, side on to partner. Strike high and low alternately, four times (twice as fast as before), hand on outside hip. This time Odds forces Evens back whilst yelling with each blow BUT MAINTAIN THE LINE, even when it means deliberately crashing into the audience. Twizzle in the new position. REPEAT all but Evens force Odds back to original position.
- Morris
- Dance around with sticks held low. After 7 double steps, face in, stamp and shout UP-TON whilst raising sticks high vertically, bunched in the centre. Turn faces out, drop sticks and walk away. (Faces are turned away in case falling sticks
