A Legal Rave in Cramlington

An oddity amongst the free party / rave scene this is a news report from a very legal rave in Cramlingotn, North East England - prior to the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act of 1994. Put together by a local builder and licensed in collaboration with the police and local authorities for 3,750 people. The piece almost comes across as a scene from 'The Day Today' with a combination of disbelief and admiration that something like this was endorsed by local authories - pretty open minded thinking from the police to allow it to happen legally.

Here's more: 

"The first signs that a suspect, underground culture could be gaining respectability."

Close-Up North reports from Cramlington, on the outskirts of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, about a rave party that 3,750 ravers are expected to attend. This rave is perhaps a little different to what you might expect - it's entirely legal, for one - licensed by the local authorities, organised under supervision from the police and with police in attendence on the night. It's a carefully planned, commercial affair.

The rave is the brainchild of promoter Graham Auld, who identified that there was an unsatisfied demand in the North East for these types of events. Some local politicians and clergy are wary of raves and rave culture, and would rather the event didn't happen at all, but the police see it as preferable to the alternative - an illegal, underground gathering that they have no control over.

Clip taken from Close Up North: Rave, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 18 January, 1993.

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