ROUGHLY 30 years ago, a Gwent field played host to a council-sanctioned rave and an Argus reporter was there to - somewhat reluctantly - take in the action.

The date? June, 1992. The location? A non-descript field near the village of Magor in Monmouthshire.

This was the site of a rave which had apparently been given the go-ahead by Newport Borough Council, as it was then known.

The first legal rave in all of Wales.

This was right in the middle of the early 90s rave scene where 'illegal' raves were all the rage. What better way to spend your weekend (or week) than heading to a random field to dance the night(s) away with a little chemical help?

That is apparently what the "thousands" who attended the Magor event had in mind.

South Wales Argus:

Argus reporter from the time Andrew Hill also attended and reported back on what he saw.

"As I entered the party I was told 'Let it all go'," he writes, noting that many people already had done.

He was joined by photographer Mike Lewis who captured snapshots of the early 90s in all its glory.

South Wales Argus:

Pictures of revellers, now surely in their mid-50s, were captioned in-paper as 'cool man in shades' and 'ravers dig the music'.

The Argus was obviously as 'down with the kids' in the 90s as it remains to this day.

The Argus report notes that "there was no popular chart music" included in the set. The horror.

"Most [attendees] were wide-eyed and hyperactive", the Argus writes, deducing this to be the result of "rave drugs".

South Wales Argus:

Such drugs, the report states, came in three varieties - "'hash, 'acid' and 'speed'" - and were readily available if you "were looking".

Ravers were dressed in "jeans or shorts, baggy sweatshirts and hats" - a look which, if this reporter's wardrobe is anything to go by, has certainly stood the test of time...

A "constant" stream of cars coming off the M4 were all headed for the Magor rave field - entry was a steep-for-1992 £20.

South Wales Argus:

"I spotted one girl taking a pill off her boyfriend and swilling it down with a can of cola," Andrew Hill writes, opting himself to head to the bar.

There, he spoke to a raver named 'Buzz' from Cwmbran.

"It's about time they had something like this on my doorstep," Buzz said.

"There's always going to be arrests at things like this, but if there's not too much trouble they say they will hold more, which will be great."

Unfortunately for Buzz, the next story of a rave in Magor on the Argus system is a report of a 'rave rumpus' causing outrage among villagers in 2004.

South Wales Argus:

Andrew signs off with a point which may have foreshadowed the state of the music industry more recent years.

It, he said, "is a whole new movement where companies can make a quick profit out of thousands of youngsters, drawn by the music and drugs".