After Terminal 1 picnic, a year of direct action

About 250 protesters dressed in Edwardian costumes gathered at Terminal 1 to demonstrate against the proposed third runway last night.

More than 300 police were drafted in to deal with the protest, which forced BAA to close 18 check-in desks.

The protesters staged a mass picnic in opposition to the Heathrow expansion plans to the music of a string quartet.

The activists, who were joined by villagers from Sipson - which will be destroyed if the third runway goes ahead - played party games, cheered and threw hats in the air while chanting "no third runway".

Former Page Three girl turned activist Marina Pepper, 41, who dressed as a suffragette for the event, said: "This is a peaceful protest over an incredibly serious issue and it is important we keep the moral high ground."

Tamsin Omond from Climate Rush, which organised the event, said more protests are being planned.

Referring to a climate conference due to take place in Denmark in December, she said: "There will be another one. There will be one mass action a month until Copenhagen. We will do it completely openly and we will announce it. It is important to keep showing Gordon Brown and the Government that if an event is provided huge numbers will come down, even if they are worried they will be breaking the law, until he gives us political leadership on climate change.

"People can feel safe that they are peaceful, even if they sit on the edge between legal and illegal. As long as we stay peaceful we will have huge numbers."

She promised that the next event would "capture the public imagination".

Climate Rush spokesman Neil Page used a megaphone to tell the crowds at the protest to check online for details of the next demonstration.

He added: "It is up to the Government to listen and take action. They need to know we will do whatever it takes to make that happen."

He added: "We will see you soon for more fun and theatre and art."

A spokeswoman for BAA said no flights were delayed or cancelled as a result of the protest.

John Dennett, 75, from Exmouth, was at the airport to catch a flight to Majorca. He said: "I think the protesters are completely wrong, but they haven't affected me at all. It has been quite entertaining watching them. None of the people catching flights have been angry or upset."

Jane Taylor, 53, from Sipson, will lose her house if the third runway is built. Her 77-year-old mother Sheila will also have to move from her home.

Mrs Taylor, an occupational therapist, said: "Not only do I stand to lose my home, but I stand to lose the close proximity to my immediate family as well. My sister will not have to move, but the M4 will be within 10 feet of her back door.

"I have lived in the village for most of my life and my mother has been there for 77 years in the house that belonged to my grandparents. The runway will have a devastating effect on my family. But I also support the green aspect of this protest."

The three-and-a-half-hour protest, which saw campaigners dancing a conga alongside lines of police officers, ended without arrests.

Ms Omond, who has completed her studies and now works for Climate Rush full-time, said: "The best bit of the protest for me was when everyone was chanting 'no third runway'. I was held up above the crowd. It was an incredible feeling seeing how many people were there and how passionate people were."