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By RICHARD OSLEY
 

Joan Bakewell
Joan and peer voice their fears over park concerts

Warning that music festivals bid comes as gangs menace mounts

BAFTA-winning broadcaster Joan Bakewell and life peer Lord Moser are among protesters pleading with licensing chiefs to reject plans to hold music festivals in Regent’s Park.
Councillors will decide on Monday whether the Royal Parks Agency, which manages the 197-hectare grounds, which include Primrose Hill, can have permission to stage concerts and show films on projectors on a regular basis.
Park bosses have said they would use a new licence sparingly and close beer tents at 10.30pm but their application would effectively give them permission to stage events on a daily basis if they chose to.
Dozens of residents living on the fringes of the park fear the licence application is part of a long-term goal to raise money.
Ms Bakewell, who lives in nearby Chalcot Square, Primrose Hill, has warned the council that the licence will lead to public disorder.
The broadcaster – an objector to late-night opening at her local pub last year – said in a letter to the council: “Primrose Hill is a small grassy area hemmed in by densely populated housing, much of which is home to families with small children.
“At the best of times the roads are choked and parking is difficult. Any entertainments on Primrose Hill would aggravate a situation that is only held within bounds at present with considerable tension.
“There has been increasing crime, with gangs causing trouble in the neighbourhood.”
She said she backed Camden Council’s decision four years ago to end the Primrose Hill fireworks display. Ms Bakewell, who presented the BBC current affairs programme The Heart Of The Matter, added: “Healthy and safety were greatly at risk and Camden wisely decided to stop them.”
Many residents fear Regent’s Park could follow the example of Hyde Park, which this summer will host concerts by rock stars Bon Jovi and Shania Twain.
Close on 30,000 people would be allowed to attend events in Regent’s Park.
Lord Moser, who lives in Regent’s Park Terrace, Regent’s Park, said he was “horrified” by the applications.
He said the park and Primrose Hill “are very important as natural breathing spaces of peace and quiet within an area awash with noise and traffic”.
Lord Moser, a former chairman of the Royal Opera House, added: “Large events will disrupt this atmosphere, not just for the evening but for a considerable time both before and after the event in the setting up and dismantling.”
He said he would be raising the issue with colleagues in Parliament, adding: “If the intention is to raise money for the upkeep of the parks this is not the way to do it.”
Others who have objected include the Friends of Regent’s Park and Primrose Hill Community Association. Labour councillors have called on the Royal Parks Agency to provide new zebra crossings on the ring road around the park.
An Agency statement said that most events would attract only modest crowds, as opposed to the near-30,000 limit, adding: “In practice, only major events are expected to reach that number of visitors.
“Many instances of regulated entertainment will attract an audience under 5,000 people.
“Similarly, this application is for the sale of alcohol but in practice alcohol will only be supplied at a very few major events each year.
“Many of the events are charitable with no commercial profit. Income from commercial events in the park is used for the upkeep of the royal parks.”

• Ms Bakewell is backing a campaign to opening another post office branch in Belsize Park. In a letter to the New Journal she said: “I hope its not too late for an effective protest.”
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