Alex Helm was born in Burnley, Lancashire, in 1920, becoming interested in folk dancing while at Burnley Grammar School. After training to become a teacher in York, and with Britain at war, Helm enlisted and was later commissioned in the Indian Army, rising to the rank of major. After the war, he married and lived in Kent for a year before moving to live and teach in Congleton, Cheshire. He assisted Margaret Dean-Smith, Librarian of the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS), in sorting and indexing, and at her suggestion, investigated the souling plays in Cheshire. He was a member of Manchester Morris Men. With E.C.Cawte, Norman Peacock and Roger Marriott, Helm set about devising a geographical index of seasonal customs. The morris and sword dance section was published in the Journal of the EFDSS in 1960. He died at an early age in 1970.(Taken from the Folk Play Research website)