Prompt's TechBlog

The police in Leeds are worried. On Sunday 25 May, it is quite possible that the residents of the Yorkshire city will march out en masse, and battle each other in a large-scale pillow fight.

The battle has been organised through a group set up on social networking site Facebook, and calls for participants to meet at the city's Hyde Park at 3pm and batter each other silly with pillows. According to The Telegraph the residents of Hyde Park are a little apprehensive about the fight, and alerted the police.

Authorities have contacted the organiser and asked him to cancel the event and the group has disappeared. Unfortunately, a number of splinter groups have emerged to keep the enthusiasm for pillow fighting going.

It's not difficult to understand why people as so nervous: earlier this month, a similar Facebook-organised 'flash mob' event took place in the city. Over 350 people met up in Millennium Square garden for a mass water pistol fight, and essentially destroyed it. The garden was one of Leeds' most treasured assets. Built in honour of Nelson Mandela, it won a medal at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2004. The war of the water pistols is believed to have caused thousands of pounds worth of damage, and videos of the event can be seen over Facebook and YouTube.

So will combatants pour onto the streets on 25 May, feather-filled armaments at the ready, or will they instead choose to stay in bed. We'll find out the week after next...

Labels: Facebook, Leeds, pillow fight