Police Blamed Over Glade Festival Cancellation

The lead up to this summer's UK festival season has been dealt a blow with the news that the Glade Festival has been forced to cancel with organisers blaming increased pressure to raise the level of policing, security and stewarding.

The dance event was to have taken place at the Matterley Bowl in Winchester on July 15 -- 18 with scheduled performances from Tricky, Orbital, Simian Mobile Disco and Delphic.

A statement from the organisers praised the local council for their ongoing help but poured scorn on the attitude of the police who had imposed increasing costs over the last few years.

"This year the requirements imposed upon us for policing, security and stewarding have been greatly increased," the statement said.

"To make matters worse the reluctance of the police to negotiate in advance and deliberately delay any dialogue with us has resulted in our being unable to tie down a final costing for the event.

"This, along with unexpected legal fees associated with a last minute license review, has radically increased the cost of the festival."

They also conceded that advanced ticket sales were "below our expectations." Refunds are available for the point of purchase though the Glade organisers are in talks with other events about the possibility of tickets holders swapping their tickets for another festival at a discounted rate.