Police - it's a fair cop-out...
The forces of law and order lost out when the punks and skin-heads took on Police.
And a packed New Theatre at Oxford on Saturday didn't take kindly to 30 or so mindless bozos who brought the potentially sparkling gig to a premature, shambling close.
But Police got off to a sizzling start, Sting natty in his blue romper suit and those laser-sharp vocals slicing through the PA like a hot knife through butter.
When Police are really on the beat they're excellent, Andy Summers' fluid guitar counterpointing Sting's vocals and pinpoint precision from the admirable Stewart Copeland on skins.
But it was too good to last - and it didn't.
The sub-reggae rhythms were too much for the pogo-ers who hauled themselves on stage to get in on the act.
The safety curtain came down and the magic that was building up just ebbed away.
After a disappointing 'Roxanne' - not a patch on the original - they clicked again with the haunting 'Walking On The Moon'.
'Message in in a Bottle' came over strong, but as soon as the temperature rose, so did the bozos.
Within minutes the stage resembled Piccadilly underground in the rush-hour the band lost in the melee and assorted punks bashing on the amps with Copeland's spare drumsticks.
Some of the blame must go to Police if they'd handled things better the gig might have been saved.
But the band played on, as if in the hope that if they ignored the intrusion it would go away.
Eventually they gave up, leaving the stage to the milling throng - and the majority of the audience thoroughly unsatisfied.
(c) Swindon Advertiser by Jan Henderson
Concert hit by battling punks...
A gang of punks and skinheads - some believed to be from Swindon - have put paid to a major rook concert.
Top rock band Police ground to a halt after less than an hour when punks repeatedly invaded the stage.
The trouble started soon after Police kicked off at the New Theatre, Oxford, on Saturday.
The youths evaded stewards and clambered up on stage, ignoring pleas from the group's lead singer, Sting, and stage hands, to get off.
The concert was stopped and the safety curtain brought down while the stage was cleared - but soon after Police restarted the punks were up again.
Scuffles broke out, and a number of youths were thrown head-first off the stage.
The group tried to play on with dozens of punks and skinheads milling about the stage, but eventually gave up after about 45 minutes.
(c) The Swindon Advertiser by Jan Henderson
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