Rothbury Traditional Music Festival starts after Raoul Moat hunt

Jul 16 2010 by Brian Daniel, The Journal

A NORTHUMBERLAND village thrust to the centre of the Raoul Moat hunt will tonight kick off a mainstay of its calendar, with a reinforced police presence.

Rothbury was forced into the national spotlight when it became the focal point of the search for the gunman.

The village was awash with police and the media up to and beyond the early hours of Saturday morning, when Moat was finally found and killed himself after a stand off with armed officers.

Organisers of this weekend’s Rothbury Traditional Music Festival had been considering cancelling the event if the manhunt had been ongoing.

With the search now over, Moat dead and villagers striving a return to normal life, they have been made aware of rumours that people may head to Rothbury for festival weekend seeking to cause trouble.

They were contacted by Northumbria Police on Sunday to let them know the force is to deploy extra resources in the village during the event.

While police normally increase patrols for the festival, they have told The Journal they anticipate even more visitors because of last week’s events.

And while they say they do not expect any trouble, they also say they will not let it happen.

Police yesterday confirmed officers who provide cover across the force area will be in the village as well those on horseback.

Last night, festival committee member Caroline Dawson said: “We want people to come into the festival but we do not want to have the wrong type of person turning up, people that is coming up wanting to cause trouble.

“There are idiots who will come up and do that sort of thing. I think people are a little bit worried about that.

“We are hoping that it will not happen, it just has to be at the back of your mind.

“It is a family run festival that has been running successfully for over 30 years and we do not really want anything spoiling it, especially as it will be something that will help the village recover from the ordeal.

“We had this thrust upon us, we did not want him coming up here causing all this trouble. We do not want people coming up here blaming us.”

The festival, first held in 1977, is now in its 33rd year.

It begins tonight with dancing in the Jubilee Hall and a battle of the bands at the village mart.

On Saturday, there will be competitions for children at the first school and others at the hall and All Saints church.

In the evening, there will be a concert in the church from 6.30pm to 8pm and a non-dancing ceilidh in the mart from 8.30pm.

There will also be piping and a singaround at the Coquetvale Hotel.

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