Music festivals are just the ticket for Dads Some of us are driven by the irresistible urge to retrace our steps into youthful abandon. Festival-goers like Dave relish the opportunity to let their hair down (or he would if he had any). A festival offers more than music, too. If you're lucky there will be the unmissable chance to watch a performance by that Gujarati mime act you read about in the Sunday paper arts section, or to catch the brilliant stand-up you saw on telly do a set in a garden shed. But for many of us, empty-nesters in particular, the principal motive of spending a weekend in a field is to share something with our children. Where else can you do the same thing as the rest of your family for an entire weekend? The festival offers the perfect symbiotic relationship between the middle-aged and their offspring. The child navigates the complexities of the booking process, while the parent hands over the credit card. The young provide the knowledge of festival lore, while the old provide the transport there and back. We swap fixations - them introducing us to Beth Orton; us showing them why no one will ever be as funny as Half Man Half Biscuit. The old can do their thing with a yoga mat, while the young disappear to the dance tent to watch a bloke in a complicated haircut stand behind a keyboard issuing unconnected bleeps and whistles. Then everyone gathers at the Thai curry concession - where the old man picks up the tab. The fundamental truth is that for the parent, the world - particularly the festival world - is a better place with your children beside you. As long as they are over 15, they don't even get embarrassed by your dancing. And when an adult presence is required, as Dave's son demonstrated, the youngsters are there to help their over-refreshed elders. Some of us can't wait until the festival season gets going. This Saturday, my entire family, plus partners, is gathering for a day out to see Bruce Springsteen play at Wembley. One of my children, obliged to fly in from work abroad, explains that he wouldn't miss it for the world. Of course he wouldn't: his father bought the tickets.