Index On Censorship, Pavilion Theatre, Brighton, May 26

A very hot ticket on a very hot day, Index On Censorship was a debate about free speech, self-censorship, the nature of offence and the rights of society.

Allowing audience participation via the use of hand-held devices to vote on questions posed by the chair Kenan Malik, then open debate by the panel, this interactive discussion held the audience enthralled. Following a last-minute venue change from the Corn Exchange, there were issues with the sound and lighting, and the dark room was stiflingly hot.

However, the talk was so interesting because of the diversity of the panel. Elli Sarah is the first ordained lesbian rabbi, Lloyd Newson is the award-winning director of dance and theatre company DV8, Tahmina Saleem is a spokesperson for Muslim women's rights and anti-Islamophobia, Jeremy Waldron is an influential professor of law and philosophy, and Maryam Namazie is a highly passionate activist whose strong views for completely free speech and against Sharia law have the audience applauding spontaneously. The talk raised heated discussion, and it was fascinating to see the panel debate Islamophobia, the viewpoints of repressed minorities, and the role of religion.

The same question, on the audience's views on the point of self-censorship, was asked at the beginning and end of the talk, and the results shifted very slightly in favour of free speech, to Malik's apparent satisfaction. The problem with hosting an interactive debate in a place as liberal as Brighton is that the audience's views were largely similar, so although the contrasting views on stage were interesting, they didn't really change anyone's views. The questions asked were too few, and the options too similar, to really gauge the audience's position.