The Wickerman Festival 2009 tickets and listings

are youcomplaining about peop-le smoking weed?

thats generally what happens at festivals.

weed is easier to hide on your person than bottles or cans. Im sure if someone was caught with drugs then the apropriate action would have been taken (ie, stewards wouldve cinfiscated then smoked it)

Security were obviously under instruction to disallow alcohol into the arena. Previous years were more relaxed in this regard but have been getting progessively stricter over the 8 years of the festival.

A bit of smuggling is needed now just to get a drink in to the site. Come on Wickerman wheres the harm in taking a couple of cans of beer or whatever. Plus I dont like pear cider I want cider to have apples in it.

Security annoyed me this year, I'm 15 and i got searched for alchohol and a rather ned like group of people infront of me didn't!

I was a little Angry

I agree that security is essential at any gathering of people, but come one!!!

Most of the "security" were jumped up little turds on a power trip cos they were wearing hi-vis vests!

On entering the arena i was asked by one security person if she could "LOOK" inside my bag, i agreed and opened my bag for her to "LOOK" inside. she didnt like it one little bit when i protested as she put her hand INTO my bag to pull out a small can of soft drink, I have never seen alcohol in cans that small, and if she had ASKED me to remove the can so she could see what it was i would have happily done it for her. I felt totally uncomfortable with someone reaching into my handbag which i feel is my personal space. More manners and better training for most of the "security" would go down a bomb in my book! and tell them to KEEP THEIR HANDS TO THEMSELVES!!!!!!

Oh another gripe about security...............

On entering the disabled camping field (my boyfriend is disabled) we were told almost EXACTLY where to pitch our tent, i asked politley if the general campers in the other fields were being told EXACTLY where to pitch and i was told (and i quote) "you are PRIVILEGED to be allowed your car next to your tent, the others have to carry their stuff from the carpark"

Since when has being disabled been a PRIVILEGE??????????????

Had i not been totally furious at the response of the young girl, obviously on a power trip cos she was wearing a hi-vis vest, I would maybe have mustered a reply, but as i didnt fancy a night in the police cells for assault we quickly moved on............

As i said at the start of this reply, i agree that security are essential, but i really do think a "STEP DOWN" approach would benefit everyone!

i told the HUGE guy on the entrance from camp on saturday I had a shoe bomb if he wanted to inspect the wiring to make sure it went off correctly, he laughed really hard about it. he was a total prick cos my next comment to him came as "so youll let me in with a bomb but not with a drink?" he looked the confused way that ten a penny hired muscle get when you open an intellegent conversation with them. he looked like it just hit him that it was steroids that shrivelled up his man hood and beat his wife to a pulp.

Security are fannies and shopuld be avoided but unfortunately at big events we need them.

why doesnt wickermasn offer paid security possitions to the protesters camped at faslane next year and i am 100% sure that would make for a decent vibe!!

I Have to give praise if I dare to one particular security guard.

I was one of the lucky ones who got access to the VIP bar at the side of the stage but my mate never had a pass. It was about 10pm so really quite dark.

I tried to sneak him in by using the, "both hold your hands up to show the wrist bands at the same time trick". There were about another four or five people entering the area at the same time.

How this security guy managed to pick out his wrist band out of that many people I dont know, I was well impressed if not slightly amazed/ bemused.

That was one of those few moments where the security did not actually piss me off.

i found it a challenge getting beer in . to the annoyance of my wife

she would carry the bag and i would walk in front with my baggy shorts full of can (well 6) at a time .

the next time i put a camo jacket around my waist and put me cans in the huge pockets on that .

i won the battle with the over zealous security men /woman.

next year who knaow maybe inside me shorts might be needed god forbib

I agree the security this year was over the top - one bloke who did speak like a ned demanded that i removed my hands from my pocket as i entered the arena, he was very abrupt and quite rude- I think i embarassed him by asking him to say please in front of his neddy mates (the other festival goers got a laugh and he looked confused)

We all agree that security is required but its pretty obvious who is going to cause trouble at a festival and its generally not people in their late 30's. The whole security issue has left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth - so much so that i am doubtful if i will return ( I have said this before though).

One of the best things about Wickerman was that it used to be really mellow. the guys on the gate spoiled that 4 me. I think it may be an idea to get older people to work the gates as they have a bit of common sense about them.

I am sure the orghanisers will take the feedback on board and stop employing neds to work the gate.

well if they wanna stop us taking in drink we should all take in weed next year and see how happy they are when were all blissed out on weed and they sell no drink.

I dont like any of the drinks that were on sale and if i was to drink cider it would be made from apples not pears.

Id like to see a malt whisky bar possibly for ovwer 30s only (young folks can go mad on the whisky mind you so can the olds!)

I took quite a few glass bottles into the camp, didnt evenm get searched.

my mate got caught taking in 2 cans of lager and they made him throw them, they didnt even let us down them before we went into the arena, i was obviously quite vocal about this situation with the schemie ned prick with bad acne that was masquerading as a steward.

I honestly don't see whats wrong with taking in 1 or 2 cans of beer or a small plastic bottle with wine or spirits. If it isn't going to be allowed then most folk will stay in the campsite to have a few drinks rather than go to the beer tents. This means that the bands play to smaller audiences. It doesn't make sense. I have always bought a few drinks on site regardless of whether you are allowed to take your own drinks in or not. Usually because I want a nice cold one or I have finished the 2 I smuggled in and don't want to miss a particular band. But this means I have to be very choosy about which bands I see and also that I miss some of the acts unknown to me.

I don't believe that drink sales in the arena will fall if a sensible policy is adopted and allows a small amount of your own alcohol to be taken in to the arena. People have usually made up their minds to either drink what they bring with them, or buy drinks when they get there. Those who bring drinks with them have only to make the decision of where they drink, smuggled in or drink in the campsite.

I've got to say that I think the security were a vast improvement on previous years. Those whom I spoke to were polite and asked me to show them my bag or if they could check I had no cans/bottles in my pockets. There was a consistant line taken by everyone and while it was obvious that some of them were loving the power it is easy to deflect with a smile and a bit of cooperation.

We all knew that there was a no alcohol rule, whether we agree with it or not, and they were simply enforcing it.

Like all regular festival attendees where there's a will there's a way and I drank my own alcohol all weekend in the arena.

On that point I attend festivals where you can take your own alcohol into the arena and their beer tent still makes money. The key to this is in offering a quality product that people want to buy...not piss. Had there been decent offerings I would have purchased at the bar instead

Rich i think you are slightly out of touch with what is being said here.

Fair enough the supervisors were nice but the minions were not so.

the main grunt is not the alcohol thing but the rough treatment by security staff.

Many of the younger security staff were very over zealous and handled people very roughly. I refuse to believe that security staff were incorrectly briefed pre festival as to the correct prcedures and techniques used by stewarding/security firms.

They most likely were nice to you as you are one of the organisers and in essence you pay their wages.

They certainly werent nice to a lot of us!