I had the misfortune to be compelled by family to attend a craft fair the other day at a stately home. Tedious I know but in the middle was an area cordoned off for a "band stand" and watching an excellent miners welfare band playing Glen Miller stuff were about 50 people, mostly eldererly, all respectable etc.

I thought about post licensing act provisions? Do the organisors need to give notice and pay £20 for an "occasional event" licence - probably- although it was free. Unless it was "incidental to" the main event, which was not licensable unless you need a licence to sell tea trays with padded backing to rest on your knee.

And would the local authority send in a team of inspectors? There were no obvious fire escapes apart from hundreds of acres of grass all round, but most of the audience were too old to beat a rapid retreat if a trombone caught fire.

And what about trouble. There was certainly some toe tapping that could have lead on to spontaneous waltzing on the grass, which could have lead to anything.

Seemed to me that the whole thing could have caused uproar and riot. The nearest police station was probably 10 miles away if there had been trouble.

On the other hand if this needs a licence but no one bothered I would have doubted if there would have been much action as a result. Then suddenly I saw someone I know. He is the Chief Executive of a local authority. Was he there as a spy checking out for noise disturbance or trouble? He was eating an ice cream and carrying a bag of hand made dried flowers but that could have been a front for someting far more sinister.

I used to be keaner on labour but I now gather they want to ban herbal medicines and supplements, and are continusing apace to regulate every aspect of life, whilst taking us to war on the back of someones A level Georgraphy paper so I have gone right off them.