What on earth are 
they up to?

By Steven Bowron THE LEITH POLICE may well dismisseth us, as the old tongue-twister goes, but there’s part of Leith where “coppers” are always welcome in large numbers!  Pennies, tuppences — the St Thomas-Junction Road parish church sequence-dancing social club are always happy to take them into custody. In fact, the phrase “in for a penny, in for a pound” could well have been coined for their Saturday evening activities — except, in their case, the pound has amounted to something like £10,000 over the years. Every weekend the church hall in Great Junction Road echoes to the clatter of small change raining down on the floor in a cascade as the parishioners show their appreciation of that night’s solo performers. Then all the cash is collected, and donated to charity. “We’ve given to various children’s charities over the years, as well as campaigns like the Dunblane appeal,” says Janette Mackenzie, one of the organisers.  The 60 regulars at the church are following a custom which goes back  23 years.  Around Christmas in 1968 an enterprising club organiser suggested that, after the dancing, people could get up on the floor and do a turn — sing a song, do a bit of patter, perhaps perform a solo dance routine. Records of the brave soul who did the first turn are lost in the mists of time but whoever it was inspired the audience to start clapping and throw their change on to the floor.  It was such a success it became a regular feature of the get-togethers. When our appeal for a second children’s hospice was launched, St Thomas’s was determined to do its bit to help. And help they did — in just three weeks, they collected £500 which was presented to us at last weekend’s hop.

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