HOPES of being able to watch England’s World Cup semi-final on Swindon’s big screen at Wharf Green were dashed.

Apparently the big screen is knackered and there’s not enough cash in the kitty to fix it.

If only Swindon were one of those towns with lots and lots of those big hi-tech companies, staffed by the sort of folk who can read a circuit diagram as easily as the rest of us might read a shopping list, and who know exactly where to source the best parts for the best prices.

Come to think of it, if only Swindon were one of those towns where most businesses, from the biggest to the smallest, have a commendable and deep-rooted sense of their role in community life, and frequently offer their time, skills and resources to help out in all manner of ways.

It would also have been ridiculous for anybody to suggest hiring and setting up a temporary screen, perhaps sponsored by some of those local businesses we don’t have. There simply wouldn’t have been time to make the arrangements.

After all, once one World Cup is done, it’s difficult to say when the next one will be.

Some social media commentators observed that showing a football match on the big screen might lead to trouble.

I’m sure this line of thinking played no role in the situation, and that the absence of football screenings even when the big screen was working was merely coincidence.

After all, the nearest thing to trouble just about anywhere in the town throughout the recent tournament was a pub fight, one which involved the sort of fools who’d probably have found something else to fight about had the football not been on.

Somebody looking at somebody else’s pint, for example. Or inadvertently dropping a crisp on their shoe.

Also, an outdoor public screening, if arranged correctly, would have attracted people of all ages and backgrounds, from young families to senior citizens and everybody in between.

That’s exactly what happened at plenty of other screenings in other parts of the country, including the one at Hyde Park which attracted about 30,000 people and was notably peaceful.

Those in charge clearly recognise that football fans are ordinary members of the public, just like fans of any other cultural or sporting event such as the Olympics, the last night of the Proms, a royal wedding, Wimbledon, a Royal Opera performance or any of the other things broadcast at Wharf Green between the screen being put up a decade ago and whenever it went kaput.

However, even though most of the football fans who turned up would have been ordinary people seeking nothing more than an enjoyable, communal experience, some might have been under the influence of alcohol.

They might, for example, have been drinking at nearby pubs or smuggled their own booze in defiance of the public drinking ban.

Such a situation would have been very difficult to remedy, other than by using a fearsomely complex strategy such as employing security guards for the evening at relatively little cost.

Either that or getting on the phone to the police and asking them to swing by.

Still, now that the World Cup is over we can all get back to normal.

It’s a shame there were no public screenings, which might have been a golden opportunity to generate a joyful carnival atmosphere, some good publicity and possibly extra revenue for the town centre, but I’m sure nobody feels too let down by what happened.

I’m also sure nobody feels neglected or stereotyped.