A CITY council decision to book a convicted international drug smuggler at authority's Platform theatre raised a few eyebrows this week.

Howard Marks will play the council's Platform venue in Morecambe on Wednesday night to talk about his experiences smuggling drugs around the world before he was caught and sent to jail.

The publicity about the gig prompted two members of the public to phone The Citizen and complain that the city council were booking a man who glamorised breaking the law and drug taking.

One informed us that Telford council had booked Marks (who reportedly smokes cannabis during his performance) but had been forced to cancel the booking after all because organisers of other events had cancelled when they discovered that Marks was due to appear. Another man from Dallas Road in Lancaster commented: "I don't want my name to be used in case anyone thinks I'm a kill-joy but I feel strongly that the question needs to be asked about whether it's right to book a ex-convict boasting about his drug exploits."

Manager of The Platform, Kirk Worley, confirmed that they had also received an enquiry from the public about Howard Marks. But he argued that Mr Marks was a reformed character was now a respected writer and journalist.

He added: "Part of what he does is educational and in any case he has served his sentence and so paid his debt to society. He's not a low-life drug pusher, he's an intellectual who has written a best-selling book."

Chairman of the city council Arts and Events committee, Cllr Mort Allan, said he'd had a change of heart about the booking.

He commented: "At first I thought 'what are we doing booking a man with a record like this?' I thought he was glamorising it. But I'm informed he's actually a reformed character and he will be warning of the dangers of drugs. If he didn't I would be annoyed."

Mr Marks argues he only ever smuggled cannabis and not stronger drugs.

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