[Carruthers]

Musicians travelling home from Devon wedding relieve drivers' traffic woes by performing Pachelbel's Canon in outside lane of motorway near Taunton

Drivers stranded in a motorway jam were treated to an impromptu roadside concert by a string quartet.

The M5 was closed in both directions after a horse box broke down on Sunday and the animals inside became agitated.

So a group of musicians travelling home from a performance decided to pass the time by staging a gig in the outside lane. They set up their instruments and amazed their fellow motorists by performing Pachelbel's Canon.

Footage of the roadside concert was filmed by Helen Delingpole, of Ferndale, Wales, and posted on Facebook.

The 45-year-old wrote: "A horse escaped on the M5 today on our way back from Devon, causing a complete stand-still and a string quartet to play."

The quartet members, who were on their way back from a wedding in Devon, performed between junctions 26 and 27 on the Somerset/Devon border near Taunton.

Alison Gillies, 37, of Bristol, who plays the cello in the group, said: "We were on our way back from playing at someone's wedding and we got caught up in the traffic jam, then one of the quartet jokingly suggested it and we thought why not?

"A crowd of people came over, and everyone seemed to like it - it was great. People seemed to just come over, they saw us unpacking and everything so it wasn't much of a surprise for them, but they got into it it was really nice.

"We were playing so we didn't really notice at the time, but there was quite a crowd. We got a round of applause at the end and a woman came over and gave us some sweets. It was the more unforgettable gig of the weekend."

Another member of the group, 31-year-old Lu Jeffery, of Portishead, near Bristol, said: "It was a lovely moment, one the quartet will treasure.

"Between us, we have played some of the most incredible concert venues globally and the one afternoon you play the M5 it all goes crazy."

Highways Agency officials and a vet were all called to deal with the situation, which closed the road for about half-an-hour.

The horse transporter stopped at the hard shoulder, but the horses inside became agitated and tried to escape while traffic passed.

Daily Telegraph



You'll have to excuse the second motorcyclist who drowned them out at one point. Terribly bad form.