The following from the SCoFF newsletter.

Weymouth Folk Festival and Portland Sessions

A number of Chinese (and other) whispers have surfaced in local folk publications Solent Waves and Folk On Tap:

1) An obsolete telephone number for Weymouth Festival Enquiries was supplied to Solent Waves. Please disregard the printed number. Contacts are Nicky Jenkins (Publicity Officer) 01305 838566 (Office Hours only), Karen Brown (principal voluntary Organiser) 01305 812876 or Pavilion Box Office 01305 783225.

The Cove Inn on adjoining Portland, one of the venues where informal activities are being held, is on 01305 821407. As far as can be ascertained all contacts on websites (WPBC, Festival Team, Solent Waves and SCoFF Festivals) are correct. SCoFF has more detail on the Cove and also Artiste links.

2) Folk On Tap April-June 2003 has its usual article 'Dorset Scene and Heard' by Sophie Wright and Bob Axford (this is the 'Chinese Whispers' bit):

i) Referring to the paragraph headed '2-in-a-bar at Weymouth', p37, Roger Gall would like to point out that he is not a publican on Portland or anywhere else!
He is the Organiser for the Thursday Sessions at the Cove Inn on Portland, where the publican with whom he co-operates is Mr Brian Flynn, tel as above. The Cove is participating in Festival activities and Roger also wishes to point out that Portland would have been left out but for his intervention.

ii) The article fails to distinguish between Council Officers (who have been the actual agents of supression in the Weymouth and Portland Borough Council or 'WPBC' area) and the Councillors themselves, the elected representatives who have in fact been denied any voice in these decisions.

This is a complicated situation, since a Councillor wishing to go against the stated opinion of eg a Council Solicitor is effectively accusing that Officer of incompetence. Since the Solicitor in question refuses to reconsider that opinion in the face of considerable legal weight behind a contrary one, an impasse has developed. It hardly needs to be pointed out that it would take considerable moral courage to make the change.

iii) In their own estimation, Neither Roger Gall nor Brian Flynn wrote to booked performers for the Festival 'advising them not to come' as was stated in the article. The facts were laid before the public by Roger and others, not before performers particularly, via the internet, where they were invited to make up their own minds and encouraged in any case to write to the Council telling them what they thought of them.

iv) It is incorrect to write that 'The Council didn't make the law', since that is in fact exactly what they did. Here is recent (Lords, 11 December 2000) Government comment on the matter:

Whether members of the public who sing on licensed premises count as performers is a matter for the licensing authority to decide, depending on the circumstances. Ultimately, the compatibility of this provision with the European Convention on Human Rights would be a matter for the courts to determine.

It appears that this very ambiguity is to remain under the new provisions (although, of course, the 2-in-a-bar exemption is to go). It will certainly be up to Local Authorities to decide what live music is or is not 'incidental' to another activity (like drinking), as in the latest amendment, and all the signs are that any advertising, even by word of mouth, will disqualify it.

The Government should certainly continue to 'feel the weight of our angst', along with the Council.

I'm not about to transmit comments concerning the apropriateness or otherwise of political action, whether as SCoFF webmaster or as Fo'c'sle co-organiser. Jane & I, in our guise as Fo'c'sle Organisers, should report that we have written to the Council making clear our support for the Festival itself and its volunteer Organisers, and our appreciation of Council funding, but complaining bitterly about their performer policy.

We regard the replies received as highly misleading, not to say dishonest, and have told them as much. There has been no further response.

Southern Counties Folk Federation, SCoFF.
web.onetel.net.uk/~trevorgilson/SCoFF

Trevor Gilson, SCoFF Webmaster.