By Anna Maxted

PUBLISHED: 14:53 EST, 13 June 2012 | UPDATED: 01:49 EST, 14 June 2012

Occupy London are determined to protest against the City of London Corporation, so today they set up camp on that ugly symbol of elitism and privilege, Hampstead Heath. 

Sadly, in another victory for  the overarching forces of international capitalism, the park's police escorted them off the premises just after teatime.

I've lived near the Heath all my life and it's one of the most serene and beautiful areas of the capital; one of the few that you don't need money to enjoy. When Karl Marx lived in London, he loved to visit with his family. Kenwood House - part of the estate bestowed to the nation by that privileged toff Lord Iveagh in 1927 - may look tatty on the outside, but if you nip inside (donations are voluntary) you can show your five-year old a Gainsborough. 

A privilege to be there: When you're on Hampstead Heath, your status, your bank balance ceases to matter

A privilege to be there: When you're on Hampstead Heath, your status, your bank balance ceases to matter

I was there this morning, beaming at the exquisite views of the City, breathing in the delicious air, marvelling at the gorgeous profusion of green, along with various other capitalist pigs (an old lady on a Zimmer frame, an artist, a young photographer, an elderly man walking his dog, a young couple with a newborn...)

Eventually I spotted the Occupy London set, trudging along the sun-dappled paths, squinting at their maps - though they were hardly obvious: none of the people wandering around the Heath this morning were head-to-toe in Dior.

They set up camp in the Vale of Health (convenient for Hampstead High Street; Starbucks, Tesco Metro and Gap). One doesn't have to eschew all trappings of commercialism to make a huffy point against capitalism - I don't expect them to scrape for nuts and berries and live on rainwater - but this exercise was little more than a hypocritical student jolly.

Trespassers in tents: Will we soon see scenes like this, outside St Paul's last year, on the Heath?

Trespassers in tents: Will we soon see scenes like this, outside St Paul's last year, on the Heath?

I feel aggrieved at the wretched difference between wealthy and poor - but I feel as aggrieved that these protestors were so witless as to think that they were doing the less privileged a favour by camping out - with their litter, and worse, judging from the mess they made of St Paul's - in the one place that is an oasis of peace, and serenity - and free to those who have everything and nothing alike.

When you're on Hampstead Heath, your status, your bank balance ceases to matter. You feel privileged to be there. You feel rich. Until you chance upon a massive bunch of trespassers in tents, and then the Heath loses its magic, and your carefree ramble becomes yet another irritating, slightly depressing exercise in trying to enjoy London despite it being stuffed full of sociopaths and egotists.

Truly, harassing a bunch of dog walkers is not a valid form of protest against bankers. It was facetious, brattish; bullying. If they wish to get their point across in a democratic manner, they have civilised options - from blogging to, hmm, politics - but they made the laziest, most slovenly choice: to make a nuisance of themselves and inconvenience, oh, just everyone. A minority, imposing their selfish will on the majority, is nothing less than tyranny.

Exquisite views of the City: Misty view over London from Hampstead Heath

Exquisite views of the City: Misty view over London from Hampstead Heath

They claimed that they wanted to 'reach out to the community about shared concerns'... I can tell you what the community's main concern was today - that a bunch of pseudo-crusties had illegally pitched their luxury tents in a public beauty spot. (Hampstead Heath's by-laws forbid 'the training of whippets,' 'the beating of carpets,' and 'Persons in an Offensive, Filthy Condition.' And no camping, either.)

One of OL's excuses was that fans of the Heath ponds were 'up in arms' about the recent outrageous decision by the City of London to charge a couple of quid for a swim. My husband has swum there for years, occasionally with our 10-year old son, and says that most who use the pond have no objection - if they want a lifeguard, and basic maintenance, they see it makes sense to contribute a little.

As far as I can tell, this protest was a feeble excuse for a spot of glamping. If they are genuinely serious about protesting against capitalism, I suggest they occupy Legoland: nearly 200 on the gate, for a family of five. However, if they  prefer to occupy a green space owned by the City of London, why not try West Ham Park? It has all the traditional trappings of privilege (children's playground and so on.) Or are the views not spectacular enough?


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Witless,lazy,selfish. Says it all.

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Horatio, I find it odd that on the one hand those involved in Occupy London are criticised for being spoiled brats and on the other for being homeless addicts. If you'd actually met the guys who were on Hampstead Heath yesterday you'd know that the truth falls between those two opposites. Some are educated, some are the dispossessed. Some have jobs and homes, some don't. What they have in common is that they want a better world and are prepared to try and make a difference. Think Robin Hood, Gandhi, the Suffragettes, Martin Luther King. People prepared to make themselves unpopular for the good of all.

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- hazel, London, UK, 13/6/2012 21:24 - Go back to the Guardian website; we don't do childish, spoiled and uninformed pseudo-socialism here. The OL are a bunch of lazy, smelly spoiled brats who if it weren't for mummy and daddy would be stacking shelves!

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Beautifully written but full of inaccuracies, prejudices & contradictions. "Hypocritical student jolly" - none were students. "Mess they made at St Paul's" - what mess? "With their litter" - what litter? "...witless to think they were doing the less privileged a favour" - in Tower Hamlets & Hackney many of the 'less priveleged' thanked occupiers for making their parks safer spaces (by deterring drug dealers & muggers) and for providing cups of tea and listening ears and a sense of hope to those at the end of their tether. "Massive bunch" of occupiers? The CoL reported that there were less than 20. Can the detractors get their figures sorted out? "Harrassing dog walkers... bullying" - really? Were they? I know these occupiers and it seems unlikely. A pensioner in Mile End said "these guys are some of the kindest, most polite people I've ever met". "Laziest, most slovenly choice" - you think living in a tent in the city is a lazy choice? It's not. "Glamping" - you're kidding, right?!

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