Organisers advertised the unofficial rave, at the former Rode Bird Gardens near Frome in Somerset, on the internet.

Officers decided to act on Sunday after speaking to a small group of rave-goers three days earlier.

They seized four sound systems and made several arrests.

Chris Clark, owner of The Mill at Rode, a restaurant close to the rave site, told BBC News Online: "I was very impressed by the police response.

"There could have been thousands of people there and we would have been inundated.

"As it was, we had to close for several hours on the Saturday."