John Osborne meets Molly Dancing

Lowestoft High Street flared into cultural life this Saturday, with an intimate piece of enticing story-telling in a bookshop and a stomping outdoor exhibition of the strange tradition of Molly Dancing.

John Osborne's My Car Plays Tapes  was a delightful experience. A consummate piece of story telling. A wry, insightful and funny wander through low wage jobs, nostalgia, mechanical failure and being a support worker. John's has a wonderful rhythm to his delivery, with immaculate verbal timing. If you see he's on somewhere, go see him. You'll be gently uplifted.

My Car Plays Tapes was the evening's performance in The Old Curiosity Shop's series of events at Books & Prints. John has done sell-out shows at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival,  and Norwich Arts Centre, as well as comedy shows on Radio 4.O

Just up the road from Books & Print Old Glory stomped and danced outside the Triangle Tavern to a thumping drum and melodic accordion. Oil-drum braziers supplied a suitably flickering light to this, frankly, odd form of folk dancing. Two characters vaguely represent the aristocracy, one of whom is a 'molly', an old word that refers to a man dressed in women’s clothing. To me, the dancing looked like a cross between group baroque and rave line-dancing. 

There was a good crowd watching and clapping, and the pub was full. Just like old times.