Well, from a singer's point of view that was not a good Chaversham.

There was a coterie of Englishmen pretending to be Irish playing Irish tunes (with the occasional hackneyed Irish song: I heard the Fields of Athenrae, Tell me Ma, and McAlpine's Fusiliers before I gave up and left) in the back bar of the Bear (where the beer was £3.30 a pint).

There were two unofficial song/mixed sessions - the Friday and the Saturday nights - in the Crown and Anchor, dominated by the usual suspects. The beer was I think £3.40 a pint.

As far as I know, that was it. Totally no other folk song or tune sessions at all.

The electric bands outside the Shepherd Neame office, in the back garden of the Wine Vaults, and in the back yard of the Railway were so loud that any unamplified music in reasonable distance would have been impossible. Indeed the Railway stage could be heard from the campsite. NB - these are not stages run by the festival.

I am told that on Saturday night the blood was running in the drains, with the Railway, the Albion, and the Phoenix all closed by the police. However the Mechanics Arms, Three Tuns and the other pub between them (name escapes my for the moment - might it be the Bull?) were quiet and peopled only by locals on Saturday night, I am told.

The lavatories in the school did their usual - no wonder they call them "bogs".

Police were on and off the campsite at the school pretty frequently, and I think had to remove some local yoof.

Some local yoof (possibly other ones) were trying to intimidate female morris dancers and/or start fights with younger male morris dancers.

However the Hells Grannies on the motorised shopping trolleys were sidesplitting, and the 9 ft tall aliens in what looked like carbon fibre exoskeletons were impressive too.