MORE than one hundred people will be dancing in the street, as ‘flash mob’ dancers descend on Wharf Green this Saturday.

The Let’s Dance event, in collaboration with NHS Swindon’s Change4Life, Swindon Council and Swindon Dance Explosion is based on the flash mob dancing craze probably best known from T-Mobile’s television ad campaign.

The craze is designed around people gathering in one place and bursting into ‘spontaneous’ dance to the bemusement of unsuspecting passers-by.

Saturday’s event begins at 1pm when participants aged seven to 70 will burst into dance styles from African and Bollywood to Caribbean and street – taught by Swindon Dance.

Emma Langhorne, senior education and access officer at Swindon Dance, said: “The event is not for professional dancers to show off their moves, but to show that dancing can be fun for everyone.

“Whether you love ballroom, salsa or ballet, dancing is a great way to keep fit. We hope this exciting Dance Explosion event will not only see children across the town dancing but will hopefully encourage their families to dance to stay healthy too.”

The event is part of a drive to get more people in Swindon moving, in response to statistics showing that one in four adults in the town are obese. Obesity is also high among local children. Shoppers and residents can join in with the demonstration themselves learning dance moves as they go.

Fiona Dickens, of NHS Swindon, said: “Dancing is an excellent and fun way for people of all ages to get active.

“In Swindon, we have higher than average numbers of people who are overweight and this has to be tackled if we are to make a real difference to the health and well-being of local people.”

Coun Fionuala Foley, Swindon Council’s cabinet member for leisure, added: ‘Dancing is a way of keeping healthy in an enjoyable and sociable environment, and we are hoping this event will encourage more families to use dancing as a means of exercise.’ The live performance will run from 1pm to 1.30pm and 2.15pm to 2.45pm. The African and Caribbean dance workshops begin at 1.30pm and 2.45pm and last for 15 minutes.