UK travel regulations

Flew to Edinburgh today and can confirm that travelling within the UK is not much fun at the moment. I fully understand and support security measures, after all, with my kinda airmiles accumulation, I want air travel to be safe. However, some of those rules imposed by the BAA, are bordering on ridiculous. I had three bags, a rollaboard, a computer bag, and a camera bag. Typically, I'd check the suitcase, and take the two (very small) carry-on bags on board. Today, the officials at Heathrow demanded that I take only one piece of hand luggage. My argument, that both of those bags combined were way smaller than the allowed size of hand luggage (they checked every piece whether it fit into the "size tester") didn't count. Only one piece was the rule. They suggested that I'd check in one of the bags. When I responded that I'll neither check my camera nor my computer, because they won't survive the typical baggage handler treatment, one guy suggested to put both into one bag and the airline would gladly provide a bag. I could have simply found some large plastic bag, stuff both luggage pieces in, and walk through. Instead, I pulled the camera from the bag, unmounted the lens, put both the body and the lens into the computer bag, stuffed the two remaining lenses into my pockets, folded the camera bag into the other, and voila, I had only one bag. Pockets full that my suit looked funny, yes, but only one bag. The guy couldn't say anything anymore, because there was no rule about not having exploding pockets. Went through the x-ray with my single bag, at the other end, put everything together, and there I was again with empty pockets, camera, computer, but two bags. And the reason for all of this? I don't know.