MDRF Third Weekend 2026, Sunday recap
Sep. 18th, 2026 08:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chris_lang_mdrfWell, Sunday of the Third Weekend of MDRF 2026 had some, well, let's say interesting weather.
Before the gates opened, it was a misty moisty morning, with sprinkles of rain, but that cleared up before the Opening Gate, so we still had King Henry arrive on horseback to hear Queen Anna of Cleves' account of the wonders she has discovered in Revel Grove (such as jugglers and food on a stick). So we didn't have too wet a ground, and we had some reduction of dust in the air. However, there was a LOT of humidity that day. And later on we had rain, but I'll get to that later.
Anyway, after Opening Gate, I made sure to see Sunday's Entry Poll from Hugh MacGregor and Millie. The main poll question was one about guilty pleasures. One of the options was one they decided they didn't really recommend, so it was replaced with a squiggly line. The second poll question was "Where does one go first in thy day?". I couldn't pick an option for that one, as where I go first each day might be different every time.
Well, anyway I soon found myself at the White Hart Tavern for the Hooligans' hangover set. The Hooligans were bantering about how they needed more Instagram content, so they were handing out kazoos to the audience for a later bit. And indeed, after "1353", we had a surprise visit from King Henry and Anna of Cleves. They were present during "Wild Mountain Thyme" holding kazoos for the little bit of silliness that ensued. I'm sure others have video of that particular event, and pictures.
Afterward, there was a bit where the Hooligans played brief snippets of other songs, including "Ferryman", before settling on "Loch Lomond". After the King said "one more time", the audience joined in to sing the chorus. The King and Queen soon departed, but the set continued with "Welcome Poor Paddy Home" and "Parting Glass".
The Rambling Sailors performed a set at the Boar's Head Tavern, featuring "Last Shanty", a song about how life at sea has changed since the era of sailing ships described in so many other songs. Next was a song/poem, "You and I are sailors" (I'm not sure of its actual title). Afterward was the grim tale of the "Dark Lady". Next was "Drop of Nelson's/Chariot", mixed with "Drunken Sailor". The set concluded with "Rambles of Spring".
Bard City performed their early set at the White Hart Tavern, starting with "Friendship", about the various tools and treasures adventuring parties find in their adventures, and the reasons for having adventures in the first place. There was also "A Level 3 Party Accidentally Breaks into the Lair of a Beholder", which is short and to the point and tells you just about everything you need to know about such situations. "Are We the Bad Guys?" ponders the actions of adventuring parties whose perception checks fail miserably but proceed anyway not understanding the actual situation.
Then there was the 'Ten Levels Down' song where people are advised not to linger in a particular dungeon. Afterward came a song about how dungeon masters just can't predict everything the players will do or which NPCs will turn out to be the big favorites of the campaign, "Greta the Goblin". And just in case people were saying this set's songs had plenty of dungeons but not any dragons, along comes "Vesuvius", about a dragon who saw the error of his ways, gave up all his gold, and became a most unconventional firefighter.
Over at the Gatehouse Stage, Chaste Treasure was doing their first set of the day. They performed the "Professions" song, where they take suggestions from the audience and improvise lines based on those suggestions. Today the suggestions were certainly bizarre ones, from 'museum tour guide' to 'mortician' to 'P E teacher' to 'I T security'. 'Plumber' seemed kind of conventional compared to those, but Elsa, Sultana, and Lady Gwendolyn came up with some great lines anyway. I especially liked Lady Gwendolyn's revision of the 'at night he comes home and drinks tea' during the 'I T security' verse to a new 'working from home' variation.
Afterward, they did their version of "My Thing is My Own", which contains several new verses Chaste Treasure has written. They finished the set with "Swallow".
I then headed to Canterbury Pork Pockets for my lunch break, and then to the Boar's Head Tavern. Reveler's Roulette soon began with the Toast, followed by Aoife O'Neill with "Downeaster Alexa". Next, Ginger and Robin were joined by Viola Belgard and Nan Rash for the popular "Siren's Song". Beck Marshall sang lead on "Wayfaring Stranger" and Robin and Ty provided an additional tune set.
Next, Baron Templeton and Lady Templeton performed the soft "Sleepsong". This was followed by Ginger and Robin being joined by Anne Bracegirdle, Master Ty, and Sir Richard Mondes to harmonize on "Seven Bridges Road", a personal favorite of mine from back during Ginger and Robin's days with the Surly Mermaids.
Over at the White Hart Tavern, the Hooligans were in the midst of their mid-afternoon set. I arrived in the midst of "Queen of Argyle", and stayed for "Scalliwag (Jump in and Take My Hand)". Next was "Over the Hills and Far Away". They finished the set with "Those Were The Days".
Bard City did their next set at the White Hart Tavern, beginning with a song about being the "fourth favorite band" of a certain figure. The next song took us to a Bog where a Swamp Hag lives. Afterward came a song about how a dungeon master's pain about dealing with paranoid players who can't even have a nice victory party after defeating the Big Bad without worrying about some surprise, "Check for Traps". Then there was "Bar Barbarian", focusing on the barbarian class. They finished the set with a reprise of "Vesuvius".
I headed over to the area of the Gatehouse Stage, and had a brief chat with Queen MUM, one of the visiting street acts this year. Queen MUM, of course, claims to be related to the royalty. This weekend is the last scheduled weekend for Queen MUM, so I made sure to see Queen MUM before the weekend was over.
Afterward, I stayed in the Gatehouse Stage area, where the STREETSpeares for the Romeo and Juliet 'masque' scene (preceded by a bit from Jack Ripley and the Revel Grove Dance Company) and "Poetaster" were to be performed.
It was shortly after the Romeo and Juliet 'dance' STREETSpeare and just at the start of the "Poetaster" STREETspeare that we had a sudden pouring of rain. The cover above the Gatehouse Stage's audience did not do much to help shield the audience from the rain. The cast of the STREETSpeare moved underneath the roof to finish the scene.
The rain soon stopped as suddenly as it had arrived, but the ground was wet, meaning that clearly the dance portions for the Jammer's Ceilidh were going to be a bit different this time around. And indeed they were. There was still some dancing, but it was a bit more subdued this time.
Paul of the Revel Grove Dance Company sang lead vocals on "Broken Mast Bay". After the Jammer Clan played a rendition of "John Ryan's Polka", Bardwin the Bard and Mistral were next with a Tarantella. We still had the "And pelvis" dance, and I was surprised the faster portion of it at the end was still included. Jammers Ceilidh concluded with a scaled down version of the Ripley Rhumba, with everyone mostly staying in one place.
Next at the Gatehouse Stage was Village Court. Presided over by Justice of the Peace Reginald Waldegrave, with bailiff George Grimm, petty constable Margery Malagrave, stenographer Hugh MacGregor, and musician Ty, Sunday's Village Court had some strange turns.
Case one involved a guy saying his girlfriend was too attractive. Reginald warned him that even if he technically wins the case, he could still lose. Grimm said there's no real issue and that some people can't handle attractiveness. The client claimed, however, that she is the light of his life. In the end, it was decided the girlfriend had a respectable amount of attractiveness.
Case two had a woman claiming her sister was a party pooper. In the end, it was basically about differing personalities between the two of them, one being more extroverted. The case was decided in the extrovert's favor.
Case three had a kid arguing for a later bedtime. Grimm argued in the kid's favor, while Margery argued in favor of the existing bedtime. Grimm said all the good things in life happen after 9 pm so the kid is missing out, while Margery said the bedtime should stay where it was so that the parents can rest. By a very narrow margin of the jury/audience's thumbs up/thumbs down vote, the existing bedtime was allowed to stand.
Case four was another relationship drama, where a young lady said that her best friend's boyfriend shouldn't date her.
Case 5 went back to the more usual Village Court territory, where a man argued a citation for witchcraft he received the previous week. Margery said it was slander, while Grimm said it was part of the job to issue such citations. The citation stood.
Case six had a young woman who didn't really have a disagreement with anyone or a citation to argue against, she just wanted her time in the sun. So the case became "Is this a waste of the court's time?", and in the end, it was decided that it was.
In the pathways, I encountered Thomas Tallis, musician on the harpsichord and virginals. He played a favorite that some people familiar with a certain drama series about intrigue and thrones may be familiar with.
I then headed to the nearby Lyric Stage for Famous Death Scenes with Gwendolyn and Nobeard. This comedic show has the pair enact famous death scenes from Shakespeare plays, as long as they have the right props and their means of selecting scenes works. In this particular show, they find themselves doing scenes from Romeo and Juliet, but will they do a famous death scene that's actually in the show? Just where does Gwendolyn get the bizarre props she uses for this one? I'm not spoiling anything, so you'll have to see for yourself.
I then headed to the White Hart Tavern for Pub Sing. Pub Sing began with "Health to the Company", and continued with the Brocades performing "All For Me Grog". The Adventurers were up next with "Santiana". After the Host Toast, Idle Fancies performed "Doodles", and the Vagabonds took the stage with their variation of "Beggarman". Inspired at least partly by today's weather, the ensemble got together for "Misty Moisty Morning".
The Weywards were next with "Beigh Aonach Amarach", a song about a girl who has dreams. Next, Sir Richard Mondes stated that his next song was his contribution for Myth and Magic Weekend, though the song is less of a magical sort, and more of a tall tale, as it is full of exaggeration (such as its description of a seemingly impossibly huge cargo). That song, of course, would be "Irish Rover".
The Vagabonds were next with the upbeat "Old Black Rum", about how the rum can have a hold on people. Afterward, however, it was time for Last Call. But Nan Rash got things upbeat again with "Cuckoo Bird". The Adventurers performed their popular song "Donkey Riding", and Sir Richard and friends performed the shorter version of "Paddy Murphy". Then the Brocades were next with "Toast to Tomorrow", whose opening lines certainly describe what people do at Pub Sing.
The Adventurers returned for "Retirement Song", which explores the reasons why sailors might decide to leave the sea life and settle down on land. The Weywards were next with "The Woods", one of their new songs this season. Nell Quickly sang the darkest of her 'man troubles' songs, "Blue Bleezin' Blind Drunk", a song about a loveless relationship. The Vagabonds had a song about possible love, "The Keys to Canterbury".
Soon, Pub Sing concluded with "Wild Mountain Thyme", followed by Nell Quickly's parting words of wisdom to be safe, be kind to one another, and drink a lot of water (rest assured, I had been doing a lot of that this day, given the humidity). We had an encore tune, "Kellbourne Brewer", from the Jammer Clan to wrap things up.
On the way to gate, I chatted first with Varrick from Bard City, who said that Bard City will be back in later weekends, performing at the Boar's Head Tavern. I also spoke with John Dickson Wakefield, who confirmed that the Hooligans are taking the following week (this coming week, Pirate Weekend) off so that there's more slots for the pirate-themed bands.
All in all, despite the humidity and the strange weather, I still had a good time on Sunday. Looking forward to the Fourth Weekend, Pirate Weekend, where in addition to Bone & String and the Rambling Sailors, we will be joined by the Pyrates Royale and the Crimson Pirates. This will be quite a special weekend, and I'm looking forward to it.
Before the gates opened, it was a misty moisty morning, with sprinkles of rain, but that cleared up before the Opening Gate, so we still had King Henry arrive on horseback to hear Queen Anna of Cleves' account of the wonders she has discovered in Revel Grove (such as jugglers and food on a stick). So we didn't have too wet a ground, and we had some reduction of dust in the air. However, there was a LOT of humidity that day. And later on we had rain, but I'll get to that later.
Anyway, after Opening Gate, I made sure to see Sunday's Entry Poll from Hugh MacGregor and Millie. The main poll question was one about guilty pleasures. One of the options was one they decided they didn't really recommend, so it was replaced with a squiggly line. The second poll question was "Where does one go first in thy day?". I couldn't pick an option for that one, as where I go first each day might be different every time.
Well, anyway I soon found myself at the White Hart Tavern for the Hooligans' hangover set. The Hooligans were bantering about how they needed more Instagram content, so they were handing out kazoos to the audience for a later bit. And indeed, after "1353", we had a surprise visit from King Henry and Anna of Cleves. They were present during "Wild Mountain Thyme" holding kazoos for the little bit of silliness that ensued. I'm sure others have video of that particular event, and pictures.
Afterward, there was a bit where the Hooligans played brief snippets of other songs, including "Ferryman", before settling on "Loch Lomond". After the King said "one more time", the audience joined in to sing the chorus. The King and Queen soon departed, but the set continued with "Welcome Poor Paddy Home" and "Parting Glass".
The Rambling Sailors performed a set at the Boar's Head Tavern, featuring "Last Shanty", a song about how life at sea has changed since the era of sailing ships described in so many other songs. Next was a song/poem, "You and I are sailors" (I'm not sure of its actual title). Afterward was the grim tale of the "Dark Lady". Next was "Drop of Nelson's/Chariot", mixed with "Drunken Sailor". The set concluded with "Rambles of Spring".
Bard City performed their early set at the White Hart Tavern, starting with "Friendship", about the various tools and treasures adventuring parties find in their adventures, and the reasons for having adventures in the first place. There was also "A Level 3 Party Accidentally Breaks into the Lair of a Beholder", which is short and to the point and tells you just about everything you need to know about such situations. "Are We the Bad Guys?" ponders the actions of adventuring parties whose perception checks fail miserably but proceed anyway not understanding the actual situation.
Then there was the 'Ten Levels Down' song where people are advised not to linger in a particular dungeon. Afterward came a song about how dungeon masters just can't predict everything the players will do or which NPCs will turn out to be the big favorites of the campaign, "Greta the Goblin". And just in case people were saying this set's songs had plenty of dungeons but not any dragons, along comes "Vesuvius", about a dragon who saw the error of his ways, gave up all his gold, and became a most unconventional firefighter.
Over at the Gatehouse Stage, Chaste Treasure was doing their first set of the day. They performed the "Professions" song, where they take suggestions from the audience and improvise lines based on those suggestions. Today the suggestions were certainly bizarre ones, from 'museum tour guide' to 'mortician' to 'P E teacher' to 'I T security'. 'Plumber' seemed kind of conventional compared to those, but Elsa, Sultana, and Lady Gwendolyn came up with some great lines anyway. I especially liked Lady Gwendolyn's revision of the 'at night he comes home and drinks tea' during the 'I T security' verse to a new 'working from home' variation.
Afterward, they did their version of "My Thing is My Own", which contains several new verses Chaste Treasure has written. They finished the set with "Swallow".
I then headed to Canterbury Pork Pockets for my lunch break, and then to the Boar's Head Tavern. Reveler's Roulette soon began with the Toast, followed by Aoife O'Neill with "Downeaster Alexa". Next, Ginger and Robin were joined by Viola Belgard and Nan Rash for the popular "Siren's Song". Beck Marshall sang lead on "Wayfaring Stranger" and Robin and Ty provided an additional tune set.
Next, Baron Templeton and Lady Templeton performed the soft "Sleepsong". This was followed by Ginger and Robin being joined by Anne Bracegirdle, Master Ty, and Sir Richard Mondes to harmonize on "Seven Bridges Road", a personal favorite of mine from back during Ginger and Robin's days with the Surly Mermaids.
Over at the White Hart Tavern, the Hooligans were in the midst of their mid-afternoon set. I arrived in the midst of "Queen of Argyle", and stayed for "Scalliwag (Jump in and Take My Hand)". Next was "Over the Hills and Far Away". They finished the set with "Those Were The Days".
Bard City did their next set at the White Hart Tavern, beginning with a song about being the "fourth favorite band" of a certain figure. The next song took us to a Bog where a Swamp Hag lives. Afterward came a song about how a dungeon master's pain about dealing with paranoid players who can't even have a nice victory party after defeating the Big Bad without worrying about some surprise, "Check for Traps". Then there was "Bar Barbarian", focusing on the barbarian class. They finished the set with a reprise of "Vesuvius".
I headed over to the area of the Gatehouse Stage, and had a brief chat with Queen MUM, one of the visiting street acts this year. Queen MUM, of course, claims to be related to the royalty. This weekend is the last scheduled weekend for Queen MUM, so I made sure to see Queen MUM before the weekend was over.
Afterward, I stayed in the Gatehouse Stage area, where the STREETSpeares for the Romeo and Juliet 'masque' scene (preceded by a bit from Jack Ripley and the Revel Grove Dance Company) and "Poetaster" were to be performed.
It was shortly after the Romeo and Juliet 'dance' STREETSpeare and just at the start of the "Poetaster" STREETspeare that we had a sudden pouring of rain. The cover above the Gatehouse Stage's audience did not do much to help shield the audience from the rain. The cast of the STREETSpeare moved underneath the roof to finish the scene.
The rain soon stopped as suddenly as it had arrived, but the ground was wet, meaning that clearly the dance portions for the Jammer's Ceilidh were going to be a bit different this time around. And indeed they were. There was still some dancing, but it was a bit more subdued this time.
Paul of the Revel Grove Dance Company sang lead vocals on "Broken Mast Bay". After the Jammer Clan played a rendition of "John Ryan's Polka", Bardwin the Bard and Mistral were next with a Tarantella. We still had the "And pelvis" dance, and I was surprised the faster portion of it at the end was still included. Jammers Ceilidh concluded with a scaled down version of the Ripley Rhumba, with everyone mostly staying in one place.
Next at the Gatehouse Stage was Village Court. Presided over by Justice of the Peace Reginald Waldegrave, with bailiff George Grimm, petty constable Margery Malagrave, stenographer Hugh MacGregor, and musician Ty, Sunday's Village Court had some strange turns.
Case one involved a guy saying his girlfriend was too attractive. Reginald warned him that even if he technically wins the case, he could still lose. Grimm said there's no real issue and that some people can't handle attractiveness. The client claimed, however, that she is the light of his life. In the end, it was decided the girlfriend had a respectable amount of attractiveness.
Case two had a woman claiming her sister was a party pooper. In the end, it was basically about differing personalities between the two of them, one being more extroverted. The case was decided in the extrovert's favor.
Case three had a kid arguing for a later bedtime. Grimm argued in the kid's favor, while Margery argued in favor of the existing bedtime. Grimm said all the good things in life happen after 9 pm so the kid is missing out, while Margery said the bedtime should stay where it was so that the parents can rest. By a very narrow margin of the jury/audience's thumbs up/thumbs down vote, the existing bedtime was allowed to stand.
Case four was another relationship drama, where a young lady said that her best friend's boyfriend shouldn't date her.
Case 5 went back to the more usual Village Court territory, where a man argued a citation for witchcraft he received the previous week. Margery said it was slander, while Grimm said it was part of the job to issue such citations. The citation stood.
Case six had a young woman who didn't really have a disagreement with anyone or a citation to argue against, she just wanted her time in the sun. So the case became "Is this a waste of the court's time?", and in the end, it was decided that it was.
In the pathways, I encountered Thomas Tallis, musician on the harpsichord and virginals. He played a favorite that some people familiar with a certain drama series about intrigue and thrones may be familiar with.
I then headed to the nearby Lyric Stage for Famous Death Scenes with Gwendolyn and Nobeard. This comedic show has the pair enact famous death scenes from Shakespeare plays, as long as they have the right props and their means of selecting scenes works. In this particular show, they find themselves doing scenes from Romeo and Juliet, but will they do a famous death scene that's actually in the show? Just where does Gwendolyn get the bizarre props she uses for this one? I'm not spoiling anything, so you'll have to see for yourself.
I then headed to the White Hart Tavern for Pub Sing. Pub Sing began with "Health to the Company", and continued with the Brocades performing "All For Me Grog". The Adventurers were up next with "Santiana". After the Host Toast, Idle Fancies performed "Doodles", and the Vagabonds took the stage with their variation of "Beggarman". Inspired at least partly by today's weather, the ensemble got together for "Misty Moisty Morning".
The Weywards were next with "Beigh Aonach Amarach", a song about a girl who has dreams. Next, Sir Richard Mondes stated that his next song was his contribution for Myth and Magic Weekend, though the song is less of a magical sort, and more of a tall tale, as it is full of exaggeration (such as its description of a seemingly impossibly huge cargo). That song, of course, would be "Irish Rover".
The Vagabonds were next with the upbeat "Old Black Rum", about how the rum can have a hold on people. Afterward, however, it was time for Last Call. But Nan Rash got things upbeat again with "Cuckoo Bird". The Adventurers performed their popular song "Donkey Riding", and Sir Richard and friends performed the shorter version of "Paddy Murphy". Then the Brocades were next with "Toast to Tomorrow", whose opening lines certainly describe what people do at Pub Sing.
The Adventurers returned for "Retirement Song", which explores the reasons why sailors might decide to leave the sea life and settle down on land. The Weywards were next with "The Woods", one of their new songs this season. Nell Quickly sang the darkest of her 'man troubles' songs, "Blue Bleezin' Blind Drunk", a song about a loveless relationship. The Vagabonds had a song about possible love, "The Keys to Canterbury".
Soon, Pub Sing concluded with "Wild Mountain Thyme", followed by Nell Quickly's parting words of wisdom to be safe, be kind to one another, and drink a lot of water (rest assured, I had been doing a lot of that this day, given the humidity). We had an encore tune, "Kellbourne Brewer", from the Jammer Clan to wrap things up.
On the way to gate, I chatted first with Varrick from Bard City, who said that Bard City will be back in later weekends, performing at the Boar's Head Tavern. I also spoke with John Dickson Wakefield, who confirmed that the Hooligans are taking the following week (this coming week, Pirate Weekend) off so that there's more slots for the pirate-themed bands.
All in all, despite the humidity and the strange weather, I still had a good time on Sunday. Looking forward to the Fourth Weekend, Pirate Weekend, where in addition to Bone & String and the Rambling Sailors, we will be joined by the Pyrates Royale and the Crimson Pirates. This will be quite a special weekend, and I'm looking forward to it.
