I was once met with a statement in the first years of Sheff Folk Festival when I suggested that myself and ken johnson took on these roles 'Don't think you are getting the plum jobs', I promptly 'booked' a very good compere , who cost the festival. He wasn't that well received, he couldn't do the sunday final concert, I took over and everyone said how much better the concert was. The use of booked artists as a compere , I personally think is flawed and crap, and cheapskate, ( unless it's an experienced compere like Keith Donnelly)i don't want to totally diss Ali's offer to festivals but I think it should be tempered with the knowledge that an experienced compere is worth the same weight as an experienced sound engineer. I have worked as an established compere for 30 years and i would like to think that I get rebooked ( and do get rebooked) because I can do the job. Best wishes with getting more work Ali but doing it for nowt might not be the answer