PEACE, LOVE AND HARMONY

The splendidly named Baroness Buscombe has praised the music at Glastonbury for helping cut crime rates - presumably on the basis that the music there stops people bubbling over with anger that there's no music there. We like her theory, shared with the House of Lords during a debate on the arts:

More crimes took place in Bath during Glastonbury 2004 than at the music festival, said Baroness Buscombe.
The debate coincided with the launch of a government-sponsored drive to make Britain "the world's creative hub".
Speaking in the House of Lords on Thursday, Baroness Buscombe said revellers at the Glastonbury music festival committed proportionately fewer crimes - despite "consuming most of the cider Somerset can produce". "More music equals less trouble," she said. "Music can act as an effective catalyst for improving the quality of life at a very local level."

Makes you wonder what the Woodstock revival would have been like if Limp Bizkit hadn't played. We wonder if Baroness Buscombe had pondered that the hundred and fifty quid ticket price and travel costs played a major factor in keeping crime levels down; most people investing so much cash in a weekend are going to be determined to get their money's worth rather than going on a vandalism spree.

music festivals glastonbury