First of all, thank you to Rosie, for her kind words, earlier on.

And if I could just re-iterate, I asked why the Canadians and Americans seem able to just turn up and play, welcome all, and 'get on with it', whilst the English have a thread of near on 1,000 posts discussing 'folk club manners'. It's intriguing, that's all, particularly from a world that I, personally, have found to be so deeply hostile.

'Ruth' - I am so disinterested in what you say to me these days, or about me, that I can't even be bothered to respond. You apparently know *far* more about my life than I do, and you are always ready to paint the blackest picture to everyone about me, so please....paint away. It no longer concerns me.


David, with all due respect, if I leave this thread, then I will do so by my own volition, not because you have told me to not reply. I have had my right of reply, my freedom of speech, taken away by those in your world, none of you have the right to tell me what to do any longer. As it happens, I now choose to leave this thread, so you can breathe easy again.

I very rarely come into these threads any longer, because they hold no interest for me anymore, for I am done with a pedantic, excluding, controlling, dictatorial world..and the fact that Sidmouth folk week now has an artistic director who said openly on the BBC board that she'd rather have pins stuck in her eyes than listen to the music of Show of Hands, shows me how far down the road of hypocrisy Sidmouth folk week has gone. To be honest, they lost my vote when Gordon left, because that man put all he had into saving Sidmouth, and he was treated very badly by those in the very world whose major festival he saved, by choosing to take a huge gamble and invest tens of thousands of pounds of his own money into it, to save it for all. He gave all he had for Sidmouth.

You want good manners? Then you should show them to people who love 'your' music.

You want folk clubs filled? Then you should realise that this is 'our' music, not 'yours'

You want me to stop.

I grant you that wish.

It is 'your' world.

Keep it.