Alright. My last word.

Let us assume that you and Richard are correct You have read the smoke signals correctly and you have divined what is the tradition of English folk music.

I have no quarrel with you having your little enclaves, covens whatever wherein these black arts - hidden from the general population - are practised. Exclusive as you like. No riff raff.

What I object to is the elevation of these opinions into a code of practice, that disciminates and plots against the careers of people not in your frame of mind about what is the English tradition.

Now your side gets any subsidy going. It gets the World Council Tours. It gets the one hour long BBC2 documentaries and concert specials. It gets more review space. It gets slots on BBC arts programmes. It gets the invitations to appear all over the world at folk festivals. It gets the Brit awards and the Mercury awards and the OBEs, and the MBEs. It gets the invitations to supply music for Shakespeare plays at Stratford. Even a radio 2 programme and plays on Andy Kershaw and other interested parties.

Our side - well we get to bitch about the inequality of it. And we're not giving that up.