We report on the first use of a fibre interferometer incorporating triature analysis for measuring rapidly evolving plasma densities of ne ∼ 1013/cm3 and above, such as those produced by simple coaxial plasma guns. The resultant system is extremely portable, easy to field in experiments, relatively cheap to produce, and—with the exception of a small open area in which the plasma is sampled—safe in operation as all laser light is enclosed.