Local cops seemed surprised. Five ran from the main gate as they saw the procession moving south, and sleepy pair on the south gate were alarmed to see they might have to do a bit of work.

So it came as a shock to find two police vehicles ready to form a roadblock a couple of hundred yards down a suburban street. And odd that there seemed to be quite a few media folks already on the spot.

Ten minutes later, with the group (now down by ten who'd legged it down an alley) halted in their progress, half a dozen Tactical Support Group vehicles turned up, parking on and therefore blocking Harlington High Street. They were to be there for a half hour, so there was soon quite a tailback.

The 50 campers were now surrounded by more than a hundred police officers.

Kids cruised around on bikes, residents came out of their houses to watch. "Get burgled round here you can wait a week for a copper, bring fifty protesters you get a hundred" one told me.

The kettle now turned into a procession. Police seemed to know where the campers were going, which quite frankly was more than many of them did.

Turning right onto the High Street the airport became visible in the distance. Fearing what might be to come some asked to leave. "There's no way I want to protest at the airport" said one, but he was pushed back into the group. Legal observers attest to this, there are also photographs of the incident.

Meanwhile motorcycle police had been busy blocking the busy A4 Bath Road that adjoins the airport. As the procession was brought to halt some hundred yards short of the junction for ten minutes, the traffic had plenty of time to build.

And now, whether they liked it or not - and surrounded and pushed around by more than a hundred police they had no say in the matter - they were taken across the A4 and on to the airport perimeter road - the very thing that BAA and the police claimed was the worst scenario, and one which they were determined to stop.

(I asked one of the TSG about taking them into "the injunction zone" - he said "...we'd wondered about that...")

So the court injunction attempt, the claims that it enabled terrorism and all the other BAA bluster was exposed for the sham that it was.

And no doubt some family - "a hard working family that has saved all year to give the kids a holiday" - can be found to have been delayed - not by the actions of protesters - but the by the Metropolitan Police Force acting - no doubt - on the instructions of BAA and their servants the State.