To my knowledge (and it is good knowledge) the attendance at Lancaster has always been pretty level - we know this from the numbers of visitors at the Museum - and I don't think that the festival was on a much smaller scale this year, at Glasson. There were less pub sessions but the music was more accessible.

The uncertainty over Lancaster's future doesn't seem to have had a major impact on those people who were regular attenders - and the numbers attending has not been a factor in its uncertain future - that is a different issue.

There has to be more to the event than just shanty singing - not a broad enough appeal for a local authority funded event BUT - if there is shanty singing, it should be given a proper status and the artists not treated as musical wallpaper. The organisers are creating a whole scenario - something which will create a mood and, hopefully, provide something for everyone. Lancaster isn't a folk festival, or a shanty festival as such - it can't be for the reason mentioned above - it is a Maritime Festival, with sea songs and shanties at the heart of the event - but it has to provide a broader spectrum of attractions. The move to Glasson provided an excellent backdrop and allowed an opportunity to have Kipperman (an exhibition about the history of the herring fisheries) / Coracles / more outdoor entertainment - all strictly themed.

I have been to some maritime festivals where there was no maritime music at all - these were more like jamborees with boats / fun fair etc and no sense of exploring a culture.