Anyone in England can drive to any festival in England, if he/she has a car and a driver's license and can get the weekend off from work (and the motorways aren't so crowded that everything comes to a stop). That would lead to all the folkies in England being more likely to know each other than in the US. Like, I've wanted to go to the Getaway for several years, but it just isn't doable without us taking a Friday and a Monday off, and Kris only gets four personal days a year.

Also, the point about styles being a lot more diverse, even within "folk music," is well taken.

Peter