Oxford students sit-in protest fails to silence Holocaust-denier David Irving and BNP leader Nick Griffin

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As student protests go it was a rather tame affair.

At stake were two issues that had ignited the passions of some of our brightest undergraduates - the right to free speech versus the right to demonstrate.

But when the two camps clashed in the shadow of Oxford university's most hallowed halls last night, neither emerged as a clear winner.

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BNP leader Nick Griffin arrives at Oxford University, despite the uproar

BNP leader Nick Griffin and controversial historian David Irving were each allowed a voice during a much-heralded debate at the Oxford Union - and anti fascist campaigners successfully disrupted the proceedings by crashing into the meeting hall and staging a sit-in.

The breach delayed the speeches and split the meeting into two. But the speakers were each allowed to address separate audiences after the hall was cleared by police.

Perhaps the only losers were the police and security staff who were supposed to have thrown a so-called ring of steel around the event - and who somehow allowed more than 30 demonstrators to infiltrate a meeting which, at one stage, was being billed as a potential riot.

More than 300 protestors had gathered at the gates of the Union from early evening, night, chanting slogans waving banners.

But this was hardly the stuff of Sixties protest, and certainly not on a par with Paris student riots of yesteryear.

True, they played Woody Guthrie protest songs through loudspeakers outside, and called participants 'fascist scum' as they went into the building.

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A man opposing anti-fascist protestors expresses his opinion outside the Oxford Union Debating Society and is then led away by police, below

But the nearest the great young minds of Oxford came to a riot last night as the two men prepared to address the Union was to bang a few drums and invent rather lacklustre chant including: "Oxford Union, hear us say: Griffin, Irving, go away."

There was shouting and booing, of course, but nothing like Griffin and Irving are probably used to on occasions such as this.. And there were banners - lots of them - all urging people to kick out fascism or "go home".

One police officer joked that it was the politest protest he had ever been to. Griffin and Irving, it transpired, had been escorted in several hours earlier and were already inside when the first protestors came on to the scene.

Irving had arrived with a ball and chain as a prop for his "free speech" address. Biggest excitement outside, meanwhile, was a confrontation with a drunk, who stripped to the waist to reveal a cross of St George tattoo on his back and shouted abuse.

Then mounted police dispersed a group of rowdy youths shouting anti-fascist slogans as they marched through nearby streets.

It was while the commotion was going on that the 30 breached security. Some chained themselves to chairs in the hall.

Others simply sat down and sang. The disruption took more than an hour to clear, and meant that the two speakers - branded "brothers in bigotry" by one banner - delivered their addresses to audiences in separate rooms.

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Respect MP George Galloway joined the protesters outside the university

Rob Owen of the NUS National Executive was among the protestors who got in.

He said: "It was a spontaneous thing which just kind of happened.

"There were people sitting on top of the railings next to the gate and right up against the gate when for some reason it opened for about half a minute and around 30 people managed to force their way through.

"The security guards tried to grab us but there were too many and we managed to get into the debating chamber.

"Once we actually got inside there the union president was outraged but a significant portion of other people actually came up to us and said they respected what we were doing and were opposed to the BNP as well."

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