VIDEO of prisoners “enjoying an impromptu rave on Christmas Day” has caused widespread outrage after it emerged online.
One former prison officer said the scenes of cons dancing made him want to “vomit”. Other said it reminded them of scenes from “Butlins”.
The clip, which is believed to have been filmed in HMP Lancaster Farm, North Lancashire, has received over 500,000 views with nearly two thousand comments.
The clip, believed to have been filmed by a prisoner, has emerged on two Facebook pages so far, one of which said it happened on Christmas Day and both of which identified the same jail.
In the short clip, it shows the prisoners dancing and trying to dance while listening to deafening dance music.
The prisoners, who appear to be on a landing in an open area of the jail, are waving their hands in the air while one is happily dancing away in a Santa hat.
They are happily chanting along to the song “Whoomp There It Is” by Tag Team as they party it out.
A prisoner is smiling and puts his arms up in the air showing his Hugo Boss jumper
Another prisoner is smiling and puts his arms up in the air showing his Hugo Boss jumper before the clip moves over to the the guy in the grey t-shirt robotically dancing.
The one in the santa hat then attempts a cart wheel before going to the floor to move backwards like a worm.
Meanwhile in the background a two litre bottle of fizzy juice can be seen on a table.
Sam Riley wrote under the Facebook post: “As a retired Prison Officer these scenes make me want to vomit.
“The Governors at the Farms should hang their heads in shame. Total disgrace.”
Phil Kuczer added: “Looks like f*****g Butlins not prison. Absolutely shocking.”
Nathan Sweeney wrote: “It’s a prison. Not a playhouse. No wonder people aren’t a***d if they get sent down any more.
“Let’s not blame mental health now for f**k sake. That words get thrown about to much these days. Absolute joke if you think they should have the right to party like that. They need a good hiding.”
Shaun Nixon posted: “Criminals getting a bed and Christmas dinner whilst ex- servicemen and women are homeless for Christmas. Absolute joke.”
James Adam Jackson said: “The fact that they are in jail but they are happy. It shows how much they don’t take their punishment seriously and just don’t care about our joke of a justice system.”
Dona Shand said: “F*****g joke this is. They have a better life in jail than us out here.”
Simon Gaskell said: “Tax payers money well spent again I see. What a joke this country is.”
A Prison Service spokeswoman said: “This behaviour is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
“We have recruited an extra 3,500 prison officers over the last two years and are investing an additional £40 million in safety and security.
“Anyone found with a mobile phone faces extra time behind bars and we are spending £2 million to detect and block them from being used.”
