Tea dance proves the perfect tonic (From The Oxford Times)

Tea dance proves the perfect tonic

1:00pm Saturday 2nd March 2013 in News

CLASSIC moves, tea and a bit of cake.

It didn’t take much to transform Oxford Town Hall into a sea of tranquillity as tea dance couples swayed in perfect time to the strains of the organ.

The bustle outside was forgotten as partners grabbed hands and moved across the floor in gentle rhythm.

For Jane Jones, 65, of Oxford, the tea dance brought vigour and calmness and a reminder that life need not be lived at a hundred miles an hour.

She said: “It’s great; great for the brain and the body. You lose yourself for a while, meet new friends, and forget there is a world going on out there. We meet every other fortnight, you never quite know what the music will be but that’s half the fun.

"For the price of a raffle ticket, your tea and your cake, what more could you ask for? Everyone gets so much out of it, it’s as refreshing as it is relaxing.”

The former receptionist and her dance partner Berenice Makelow were one of many couples showing off their moves on Wednesday.