I have a nightmare vision of the folk-scene of 20 years hence !! The scenario is this;
       Some friends and I are at a big festival, like Sidmouth,say.
We go into one of the pub sessions ,ie the Bedford or the Anchor, or the Black Horse, carrying our instruments.As we walk in , the venue falls silent. We start to take out our instruments, when a 13 year old folk-violin virtuoso & Professer of Folk-music at Newcastle World Centre of Folk Music Excellence ,says,reedily,"I say !! You there !!You can"t play in here,you know !! You"re obviously over 25,all of you,and anyway,there is no way that you could be as good as us !!If you DO stay,then you must understand that WE cannot possibly play with YOU ---So there ! " Guiltily we slink out,back to the Ham bus-shelter where we belong . Fantasy ?? No,something like this has ALREADY HAPPENED in Sidmouth. It makes me cry !!venue ?? Anchor. year? 2005. young players/ Can"t remember ! We joined in with them,they glared at us . We played something,they stayed silent.Similar thing happened in "Old Tom" in Oxford. Who do these people think they are ?? RIP folk as we knew it !!!