Sadly, at the start of the New Year, we lost a member of the dancing world, Mr Lyndon B. Wainwright, IDTA General Secretary Emeritus and Honorary Secretary of the British Dance Council Teachers’ Committee.
A gentleman who gave so much not just to the IDTA but to all dancers.
Lyndon celebrated his 98th Birthday in early December 2017 and passed away peacefully in his sleep on 2nd January 2018.
Our thoughts are with his family and all his friends and colleagues.
Lyndon B. Wainwright
IDTA General Secretary Emeritus
Honorary Secretary, British Dance Council, Teachers’ Committee
Lyndon was a member in the Ballroom and Latin branches, a member of the Executive Council (now the Board of Directors), and Honorary Treasurer & Company Secretary of the IDTA. He also served as a delegate to the British Dance Council and as founder and Honorary Secretary of its Teachers’ Committee, was on the Council for Dance Education and Training, and the Central Council of Physical Recreation (now the Sports and Recreation Alliance).
For over 50 years he contributed articles to dance magazines; Dance Teacher (now Dance International), Ballroom Dancing Times (now Dance Today) and Dance Expression and wrote articles for the press and nine books on ballroom dancing.
The dance profession honoured Lyndon for his services to dance. In 1996 and 1999 he received the Carl Alan Award; in 1998 the Classique de Danse; in 2000 the President’s Award of the Ballroom Dancers’ Federation and in 2005 the Distinguished Service Award of the IDTA.
Lyndon’s career includes working as a metrologist, ballroom dancer and author. He worked at the National Physical Laboratory during World War II and is a former Chairman of the British Engineering Metrology Association.
After the war, he was a leading exhibition dancer and one of a small group of experts who introduced Latin American dance to Britain. Lyndon is also a member of the British Ring of the International Brotherhood of Magicians.
Lyndon has appeared on the BBC taking part in the television documentary Last Man at the Palais, screened on Christmas Eve 2007, dealing with the history of the Hammersmith Palais which opened in 1919 as a dance hall and entertainment venue and finally closed in 2007. With a fellow professional Lynda King, Lyndon danced a waltz, which was the last dance shown on the program.
Lyndon was also interviewed by Len Goodman for his BBC programme Len Goodman’s Dancing Feet: the British Ballroom Story, first screened in 2012.