South Yorkshire Times, February 17, 1951

His 1,000th Dance

West Melton M.C.’s Denaby Carnival

To-morrow night will be Carnival night at Denaby Baths Hall when Mr. Wilfred Ricketts, 48 Brampton Road, West Melton, will be comparing his 1,000th dance since becoming an M.C. nine years ago.

But Mrs. Ricketts will not be there—”I don’t think she’d go if I went down on my hands and knees,” Mr .Ricketts said this week. “I wouldn’t,” Mrs. Ricketts laughed. “I got sick of it years ago. 1 haven’t been to a dance for three years.” Nor will Mr. Ricketts junior be there-“He was a lovely little dancer when he was eight but now, at 16 he just isn’t interested,” his rather said.

But Mr Ricketts is as enthusiastic now as he was when he compared his first dance at Wath Pavilion one Monday night in 1942. “I like the job,” he told a reporter, “I direct modern or old- time dancing so meet a fair selection of all types of persons.” Mr Ricketts is equally proficient at both types of dancing, but when he officiated at his first modern-type dance he “couldn’t dance a step.”

Mr. Ricketts, who is a bricklayer at Wath Main Colliery, has officiated at most of the halls in the district.

Asked his opinion on be-bop Mr. Ricketts said: “Well, it’s very clever, but I find in some cases that good ‘hoppers’ are not good dancers! It really is in a class of its own and too many spoil the dancing for others.”