As one who always enjoyed the Arena concerts I well recall the BBC giving substantial support to the Sidmouth Festival in recent years. I fear they will not give Councillor Hughes the same support. In answer to Rhyzla (above) there are some who would argue that the best way of ensuring the return of a proper Folk Festival in 2006 is by preventing Councillor Hughes from promoting a half-baked, poor quality substitute in 2005. If all the businesses in Sidmouth who make money from the Festival find they can continue to do so without giving anything back then we will never get a Festival with the funding it needs and deserves from the local business community. Have a year with no Festival in 2005 and local businesses will soon realise what a huge hole there is in their income. It's the only hope for persuading them to put their money where their mouths are. Sidmouth needs a proper Folk Festival and the Festival needs proper funding support from those businesses who have made a mint over the years.