Despite the economic crisis, young people are still finding the cash to pack out a huge number of music festivals.

On the whole they are selling out less quickly than in recent years, but there's plenty of demand for big and small events the length and breadth of the country.

There have been casualties this year, with the excellent loch-side Hydro Connect Festival deciding early to pull out of the running, and Red List Live, a charitable shindig in Port Lympne Wild Animal Park, Kent, had to pull the plug last week over concerns that the market was too crowded, despite a lineup that was shaping up nicely - they hope to return for their first event next year.

And today, Homecoming Scotland announced that the event would not go ahead on May 2-3, blaming the local council for increasing revenue demands.

Europe's 20 best music festivals

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Of those that missed out on the top 20, honourable mentions go to Guilfest, which wins awards for being family-friendly, Beautiful Days, the Levellers-headlined event where you can rediscover your inner-crustie, the delightful Larmer Tree and all the smaller indie festivals that are dotted around the country.

A big omission is the V Festival, which has increased the commercialisation of large festivals since its inception. On my one visit to Chelmsford I was miffed to have to pay £10 for a programme to find out stage times, listings seemingly impossible to obtain with spending a tenner - something that's been copied by lots of other festivals. Not a great advertisment for an event that is right up there with the most expensive festivals anyway. Oh, and did I mention the lack of atmosphere?

In the capital, Hyde Park's Hard Rock Calling and O2 Wireless are simply large gigs featuring some of the biggest names playing the festivals so they don't make the cut either - otherwise we'd have to start including stadium gigs. There are more imaginitive smaller festivals in London.

So here it is, the Times Online countdown of the 20 best rock, pop and dance music festivals in Britain this summer, in reverse order.

Check the festival websites for full details and tickets

20 End of the Road, Larmer Tree Gardens, Wiltshire - September 11-13

One for the true stalwarts, this is the last significant festival of the year, taking place as it does a week after Bestival. Always featuring a nice array of leftfield, folk and indie acts, this year you can relax while shaking your stuff to Explosions in the Sky, Archie Bronson Outfit, Fleet Foxes and plenty more.

19 Hop Farm, near Tunbridge Wells, Kent - July 3-5

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