Glastonbury 2025: Work hard, play harder

GLASTONBURY Festival provided for an altogether different experience in 2025 even though this was my eighth visit to Worthy Farm.

This year, for the first time, I volunteered as an Oxfam steward, taking on three eight-hour shifts - and, as such, I felt an even more heightened sense of anticipatory anxiety ahead of the Festival than usual.

What if I quite frankly was not fit enough to do a full week in a tent? What if I was rubbish at what I was being asked to do?

What if it rained all week and I just could not hack being damp and miserable for that long?

But I really needn't have worried - particularly with regards to any prospect of a washout.

WORK HARD

OXFAM requires its volunteers to arrive at Glastonbury Festival by Tuesday at the latest - and, better still, by Monday evening.

Therefore, I booked the 11:31 train from Newcastle to arrive at Castle Cary - the nearest station to the Festival site - at 18:14 on Monday 23 June.

An early problem presented itself at Doncaster where my connecting Hull Trains service to London Kings Cross was cancelled as a result of industrial action - and so I hastily gathered all of my stuff on the platform and reboarded my initial train all the way to the capital.

In London, I diverted from the direct route between Kings Cross and Paddington to buy some tent pegs on Tottenham Court Road - and so it was only once I boarded the service to Somerset that I was able to feel a little more relaxed about everything.

From Castle Cary, I bit the bullet and took a rather expensive taxi to Blue Gate near the Oxfield but gladly made it on time to register.

There, I received my all-important luminous tabard, my briefing pack including my shift times, my ID lanyard and wristbands, and my meal and shower vouchers.

My shift times and areas were confirmed as follows:

• Wednesday 25 June - Pedestrian Gate A - 05:45-14:00
• Thursday 26 June - Vehicle Gate 5 - 13:45-22:00
• Saturday 28 June - Pedestrian Gate D - 21:45-06:00

In short, I had hit the jackpot!

These were great shifts to be allocated with two of them completed even before the main stages kicked off and an overnight stint during which the only significant artist appearances were the Saturday night headliners.

For the rest of Monday, I took a whistle-stop wander around bits of the site before, tired from the long journey from the North East, I got myself cozied up in my sleeping bag for my first night in a week of tent-dwelling.

At that stage, my mind was still racing about just what I had let myself in for - but an entertaining, though mandatory, hour-long briefing - delivered on Tuesday at 3pm - provided some guidance and reassurance.

During the briefing, we learned about the different roles to be undertaken, the security features of the various tickets, and the support available to us.

However, there was a disappointing lack of specific information about working on Vehicle Gates (see shift 2 below).

Nevertheless, we were advised that a far more detailed briefing would be delivered by a supervisor at the start of each of our shifts during which our exact roles would be allocated.

The remainder of Tuesday was unquestionably a time to try and relax, and I made a quick tour of a few of the crew bars available to staff and volunteers before the Festival gates open such as Maceos, the Tow and Hitch, and a couple of others.

Still, I returned to the tent around 10pm for a responsibly early night ahead of my first ever work at Glastonbury Festival, starting at 5.45am!

Shift 1 - Wednesday 25 June
at Pedestrian Gate A - 05:45-14:00

Now, anyone who has ever known me will be aware that my attendance at a pre-6am shift was almost a miraculous effort in itself.

However, I quickly realised that this was the place to be for my first ever shift. Pedestrian Gate A almost always attracts the television cameras and Glastonbury glitterati for its proximity to the Festival bus station.

Allocated a standard ticket-checking and scanning role, there was palpable feeling of nerves and excitement ahead of the official opening of the gates shortly before 8am.

And then came a real lump-in-the-throat moment as Emily Eavis helped her father Michael out of a vehicle in a wheelchair to acknowledge the crowds as a small band played the theme from Chariots of Fire.

Thereafter, it was down to work - except it did not really feel like work to offer a warm welcome to everyone who had waited so patiently outside.

The shift was notable for one runner who appeared to evade Security - and a couple of other punters who, without the correct credentials, were dealt with effectively.

But, while part of the role of the Oxfam steward was to be on the lookout for anything that did not look or feel right, most of the eight hours passed by steadily, with only the sharply-rising temperature beyond midday causing any sort of discomfort.

The end of the first shift produced a little surge of confidence in myself - and I knew, after a decent rest, that I could enjoy the rest of Wednesday in the knowledge that I had done my bit to get the party started...

Shift 2 - Thursday 26 June
at Vehicle Gate 5 - 13:45-22:00

From a busy Pedestrian Gate on Wednesday to a nearby busy Vehicle Gate on the following afternoon - this was a rather different, and initially extremely confusing, experience as a team of four of us managed two lanes of traffic heading into the Festival.

My senses were heightened by the constant hum of idling engines as they waited at the checkpoint with some larger vehicles - trucks and tour buses, most notably - having kicked up a lot of dust on yet another scorching afternoon.

For sure, there was a different type of clientele on this shift than the excited punters on the day prior with the arrival instead of loads of production staff, delivery workers as well as site worker and hospitality tickets.

Performers and their guests were also beginning to arrive - including Joe Goddard of Hot Chip and some friends of the Alabama 3 - though presumably the Oxfam volunteers over the weekend had the opportunity to be a little more star-struck.

In another notable difference to the Pedestrian Gate, though, the Vehicle Gate had its own dedicated staff - and dealt with some of the tickets themselves.

Nevertheless, there was still no shortage of stubbing and scanning of EPOs for us volunteers.

Following a late break, the remainder of the shift brought the far more laidback responsibility of liaising with the Security staff and literally using a blue marker pen to write the number of occupants of a vehicle on its windscreen.

But, as the last of the evening sunshine disappeared behind the treeline and the temperature cooled, the end of the shift was a welcome feeling especially as there was now almost 48 hours to indulge in the Festival as a punter.

Shift 3 - Saturday 28 June
at Pedestrian Gate D - 21:45-06:00

Fully into the swing of the Festival by this point - and on an emotional high following the glorious performance of Pulp on the Pyramid Stage - the overnight shift had the reputation for providing its own challenges.

Notably, depending on exactly where you are stationed, I was warned that the shift would drag if there were not a lot of people to deal with.

Moreover, it would have the potential to seem even longer if the temperature dropped significantly as is often the case in the Mendip Hills even at the very height of the summer.

As such, I took a jumper, wore my warm, waterproof trousers and three pairs of socks and mentally prepared myself for a long night.

Instead, cloud cover ensured the night remained mild with little to no breeze - and, although I decided on my break that I still needed my jumper for the second half of the shift, there was little time to think about anything else.

From towards the end of the headliners at around 11pm, it was a remarkably busy shift as a steady stream of people - in varying states of drunkeness and joy - passed through the Gate D throughout the whole of the night right until 6am.

Hopefully they all remembered their Pass Outs for re-entry on Sunday - though, in reality by 6am, my own thoughts had rather drifted to dropping off for a full morning of sleep to a soundtrack of light drizzle against the canvas of the tent.

Still, before I hit the sack, I embraced my good friend Jonathan for prompting this opportunity to attend Glastonbury which never would have been possible without his regular gentle arm twists.

Work for the weekend was now completely over - and once again the whole of the Festival was ours to enjoy! 

PLAY HARDER

Wednesday and Thursday

I really scored on my Oxfam shifts which effectively offered the opportunity to have fun on all the major nights of the festival between Wednesday and Sunday, except for the overnight Saturday. 

Additionally, there was plenty of time for fun throughout Friday, on Saturday afternoon, and the whole of Sunday. 

Back to Wednesday - and, with the majority of the attendees having arrived, the Pyramid hosted its first Opening Ceremony since 1990 as the acrobats and jugglers from the Theatre and Circus area took centre stage at 10pm.

Sadly, their technically-outstanding show was something out of a damp squib, suited to a much smaller audience than that which appeared in the Pyramid field with little else on around the site.

Without a music licence on the main stages until Friday, the audience was encouraged themselves to participate by humming and providing vocals. 

However, a lack of clear messaging left the crowd largely oblivious to what they were meant to be doing and the sense of bafflement led to the show itself not getting the attention which it deserved. 

Instead, approximately 24 hours later on Thursday, a far more engaging - albeit completely unofficial ceremony - took place on the Sensation Seekers stage thanks to the excellent Oh My God, It's The Church.

A downpour of mild rain - or waam waata - fell from the Heavens provided no great discomfort - and merely added to the atmosphere being generated by band preacher Michael Alabama Jackson. 

This rain was indeed the only time that the festival site got a bit of a soaking - and was one which made pretty much no impression on the parched ground.

By contrast, Oh My God, It's The Church made a brilliant impact as usual, though - and provided a key message for all to follow throughout the remainder of the weekend. 

The remainder of Thursday night brought a true Glastonbury pursuit of largely directionless bimbling in search of something foot-tapping, enchanting or both. 

We found it in the Toad Hole in the Green Fields where the Berlin-based psychedelic outfit Tolstoys livened everyone up in a joyous hour to wrap up this particular chapter. 

Friday

In an unexpectedly sprightly start to Friday, I made my way back to Pyramid for the opening act proper on the stage as Supergrass started things off with their up-tempo brand of Britpop.

Irish singer-songwriter CMAT followed and showed beauty truly lies in the eye of the beholder with an engaging performance.

From there, I headed straight back to the Britpop 1990s for the searingly underrated York-based band Shed Seven who recaptured that bittersweet era with their anthemic hits Going For Gold and Chasing Rainbows.

Already on target to be one of my favourite sets of the weekend, the frontman of Elvana capped it off by randomly turning up halfway through and joining Rick Witter for a duet of Suspicious Minds. It was wonderful stuff.

Frantic Friday then stepped up yet another gear as Lewis Capaldi made a previously unconfirmed emotional return to complete the 35 minutes of the set which he had been forced to abandon in 2023.

A quick blast of early-2000s post-punk from Franz Ferdinand on Other Stage included an unexpected twist as the other Capaldi - former Thick Of It and Doctor Who actor Peter - made a guest appearance to duet on Take Me Out with Alex Kapranos.

Then it was back to the Pyramid for the awesome and angsty-as-ever Alanis Morrisette. 

The Canadian delighted the main stage by recapturing the iconic soundtrack for so many 1990s teenagers with Hand In My Pocket, Hands Clean, You Learn, Ironic (of course), and You Oughta Know, before finishing - appropriately enough - on Thank U. 

Next was a first trip up the hill to the Park Stage where Self Esteem supplied a welcome chilled-out vibe - though, disappointingly at times, seemed more interested in creating something special for her audience on TikTok than the one right in front of her. 

Then again, perhaps I am just getting a bit old and grumpy about this sort of thing - especially in red-hot weather. 

Saturday

After being frazzled throughout Friday - and with my shift coming at the end of the day - I was fairly unambitious with my Saturday plans and so missed the return of the Kaiser Chiefs to Pyramid. 

Instead, buoyed by some extra rest, I made my way to the Acoustic tent for the first time for a heartfelt tribute to Bob Dylan - my dad's favourite artist and mine too. 

A collection of Dylan aficionados, including veteran folkie Ralph McTell, combined to contribute a couple of songs each - though there were one too many obscure tunes and McTell sang his entries like he was going to burst out any second into his famed Streets of London.

Nevertheless, to finish, the troupe prompted a really emotional moment between myself and my friend John - a true Dylan fanatic - with 1967 song I Shall Be Released. 

From the legend of Dylan to Pyramid for a true pioneer of rock-n-roll John Fogerty - and the former Creedence Clearwater Revival frontman was in fine fettle, celebrating his recent success in regaining the global publishing rights to his band's songs following a 50-year legal battle. 

Mystery band Patchwork was next on Pyramid - though, when Pulp's Jarvis Cocker bounded on stage in his inimitable style, there was a sense of relief, rather than surprise. 

In perhaps the worst kept secret of all-time, Patchwork was indeed Pulp - and, restricted to an hour, had to squeeze in all of their hits - Disco 2000, Do You Remember The First Time?, Mis-Shapes, Babies, and more. 

There was little-to-no filler - and the set concluded with the anthemic Common People as the Red Arrows roared overhead on cue. 

With the entertainment curtailed by work, this potentially iconic Glastonbury moment was a spectacular way to head into shift - and nothing on Sunday really promised to match it. 

Sunday

Nothing did, as it happens - but, with all my shifts completed, it was still a fantastically fun day. 

The Libertines on Pyramid promised a riotous start - but, as well as a relatively early set time counting against Pete Doherty, Carl Barat et al, their undoubtedly necessary mellowing unsurprisingly means that I no longer hear the music in the same way as I did at the peak of the band's powers. 

 

Elsewhere, on the Avalon stage, there was better news as the Horne Section - fronted by the genuinely clever humourist Alex Horne - furnished this adorable corner of the festival with an hour-full of genuine belly laughs. 

Then, next of course, came Rod Stewart in the fabled Sunday afternoon Legends' slot on Pyramid.

"If you want my body, and you think I'm sexy" crooned the 80-year-old midway through his set - not really Rod thought the vast majority of the crowd, surely.

At least, though, Sailing - a reliable set-closer if ever there was one - genuinely went down a storm. 

Instead, I was far more enthused by the appearance of Nile Rodgers and Chic in the following set - and, as always, the New Yorker had the Pyramid field on their feet for a boogie.

Legendary songwriter and producer for the likes of Diana Ross, David Bowie, Madonna and more recently Daft Punk among many others, Rodgers really is a must-watch at a big Festival to make you forget about tired feet. 

Would The Prodigy without the glorious Keith Flint still be worth a watch was a big question of mine on Sunday night?

The answer unquestionably was affirmative - the music and the light show was as good as ever, and a stunning show from the Braintree act set the vibes just right for Sunday night. 

The feelgood factor continued back on Avalon where The Alabama 3 had their audience in the palm of their hands - and there was still more fun at The Levels in the Silver Hayes area where Groove Armarda drew a huge crowd.

Now, at 3am on Monday morning, the festival was over for many - but, in what is fast becoming a bit of a Glastonbury tradition, the final night does not feel as if it is over until the New York Brass Band have sounded out their final note.

Chugging back a Guinness from the can at 5am while bouncing around in a busy and friendly crowd - this truly had been another Glastonbury Festival which had the absolute maximum of fun joyfully squeezed out. 

More than that, though, this will always be an especially memorable visit to Worthy Farm for me as, for the first time, I can say that I made a genuine contribution to the running of this huge operation. 

Better still, I can say that I made my contribution with pride - and, even better again, volunteering with Oxfam added to my experience, rather than detracting from it - even if it was pretty hard graft at times.

OTHER GLASTONOTES

Headliners

As always, it was a Glastonbury Festival involving some firsts - and, notably on this occasion, this was the first edition in which I did not see a single minute of any of the headliners on Pyramid stage. 

Apologies can be offered to Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts who I would have seen if I had not been on shift. 

However, by all accounts, The 1975 - a painfully overrated band, in my opinion - unsurprisingly gave an underwhelming performance. Meanwhile, at the tender age of 22, it is a wonder that Olivia Rodrigo had enough songs to fill the 90-minute slot.

Then again, Glastonbury is about so much more than the headliners - and I am no doubt just getting a bit old and grumpy. 

Politics

Glastonbury Festival is an inherently political place - it always has been and hopefully it always will be. Notably this year, there was a couple of excellent tributes of the 40th anniversary of the Battle of Beanfield in the Green Fields and the South East Corner - read more here. 

More notably, two artists - Kneecap and Bob Vylan - made the biggest headlines of the festival in the print media, at least. 

For the record, I went to neither of the sets - Bob Vylan clashed with the Songs of Bob Dylan on Acoustic while hip hop act Kneecap isn't my vibe, and I wasn't interested in going along for the sake of it. 

Bob Vylan in particular were strongly criticised for leading a chant of "Death, death to the IDF [Israel "Defense" Force]" - but, while I agree with Emily Eavis's statement that Glastonbury Festival should be used as a positive force for change, "Death to the IDF" on an organisational level - and a complete reassessment by the Israeli government of its values - is simply a must if there is ever going to be peace in the Middle East given its ongoing murderous action. 

Certainly, if I were in the UK government, I know which one I would be more disgusted by. 

Crowds

With a capacity well in excess of 200,000, much has been made about crowd management at the festival - and there have been some past mistakes by the organisers, in 2024 in particular, where relatively large-name acts ended up on stages which were far too small for them. 

In response, there was a slight drop in capacity this year - but, to be honest, the well-publicised reduction made no noticeable difference to me. After all, a few thousand less is a drop in the ocean in Glastonbury terms, and there was not a noticeable difference to the naked eye. 

Nevertheless, communications on the official app in particular were better than ever with specific and timely information given about which acts were likely to reach capacity. Matrix signs for the raucous overnight South East Corner were similarly informative. 

Now, it is always going to be extremely difficult to manage crowds at an event with the size of Glastonbury Festival - but it is clear from the vast improvement in comms that Emily Eavis and team have listened to concerns and are doing their best to manage some extremely difficult situations. 

Litter

Related to the above, the sheer size of Glastonbury Festival inevitably means there will be some "unintentional" littering - stuff left in a genuine emergency and empty cans which unknowingly fall out of pockets, for example. 

However, the amount of litter around the festival site cannot all be down to accidents - and indeed I have witnessed punters stamp on their can to flatten it then leave it on the ground. 

There are plenty of bins available so there is genuinely no excuse - and, even when the receptacles are overflowing, the waste will no doubt be collected more easily if it is propped up against the bins.

Truly, the festival is blessed by the litter-pickers and recycling crew - and I am aware that this is a societal issue, rather than something which is specific to Glastonbury. 

Nevertheless, Glastonbury punters and the festival itself really should be held up as a standard-bearer for this sort of thing - and the Love The Farm, Leave No Trace message can sound rather hollow sometimes.

Glastonbury 2017: A Worthy return

THE TRUE measure of a successful visit to Glastonbury Festival is often in the memories which abide, as much as in the experience itself.

So, in that case, Glastonbury 2017 was and still is a glorious triumph.

Even now, more than a week since it started, little moments fill the vacant boredom of everyday life and the corners of my mouth involuntarily curl up at the edge. My eyes dazzle excitedly and I catch myself smiling.

Right from the start, though, I knew this was going to be a special Glastonbury for me.

It was, after all, my first visit for four years - and so, when I eventually arrived on site, late on Thursday, I immediately collapsed to the turf in the manner of a Wimbledon champion who had just landed a winning forehand on championship point.

Time to explore - although, to be totally honest, Thursday night was a little stop-start for me and my companions as we consistently found ourselves in the unfortunate position of greeting the end of a set.

Perhaps it was inevitable that we would end up down a Rabbit Hole that night.

On Friday, we found better form as Chryssie Hynde and the Pretenders opened the Other Stage before we hot-footed it to West Holts for the Hot 8 Brass Band and a taste of festival-strength Brothers Cider.

Liverpool band Circa Waves then infused a summery burst of indie-pop as I clambered on the shoulders of a mate for their set-closer T-Shirt Weather.

"It's gonna be okay" affirmed lead vocalist Kieran Shudall as the band around him played out. Already, though, I knew it was going to be much better than that...

Next for me came the highly-rated Brighton-based Royal Blood and a first proper visit of the year to the Pyramid. Gladly, it can be reported that it was not a disappointment.

Indeed, there must have been few noisier sets of the weekend as duo Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher celebrated their album How Did We Get So Dark? going to number one by clanging champagne bottles together. The little monsters.

George Ezra did nothing to slow the pace by opening his Other Stage appearance with Cassy O before he strummed his way through a genuinely classy set to Budapest.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor then enticed the Avalon, indulging in a costume change while reminding her audience of her array of hits from the turn of the millennium.

And so, onto the first of the headliners - and Radiohead on Pyramid, 20 years on from the release of OK Computer.

Undoubtedly there was a buzz around the crowd - but, unfortunately for the more casual observer like myself, Thom Yorke had back-filled his set and my thoughts soon began to wander elsewhere.

In the Park, those thoughts found their home, as Wayne Coyne and the Flaming Lips reproduced exactly the sort of bizarre performance which first appealed to me back in 2010.

There is a gentle beauty among all the bizarreness, though - and the cover of David Bowie's Space Oddity was an outstandingly lovely touch before a becalmed crowd faded into the night to the words of Do You Realize??

Saturday already had a lot to live up to meet those opening standards.

Nevertheless, the day got off to a grand start as, on Pyramid, the Bootleg Beatles, marching suits and all, reincarnated Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on its 50th anniversary.

The Brass Funkeys entertainingly opened up the Avalon tent and kept spirits high amid the drizzle with a cover of One Step Beyond and a blast of the Bear Necessities.

And Jools Holland then brought on a whole array of guests during his set on Pyramid including his old mucker Chris Difford of Squeeze for a rendition of Cool For Cats.

Clearly, though, the afternoon belonged to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Drawing one of the biggest audiences of the weekend, Mr Corbyn's 14-minute speech on Pyramid was, in many ways, largely preaching to a converted choir.

However, in a week in which the Conservatives cheered the retention of a 1% cap on public sector wage growth in the House of Commons, Mr Corbyn's words will still have resonated well beyond the most hardcore of his supporters, and so his battle goes on.

Back to the music - and Saturday evening was a tale of two Katys, as KT Tunstall rolled back the years on the Acoustic stage before pop star-extraordinaire Katy Perry lit up the Pyramid.

The Avalanches provided more nostalgia on West Holts ahead of the Foo Fighters taking to the Pyramid stage.

Cruelly denied the top slot in 2015 when injury forced Dave Grohl to pull out, the Foos made up for lost time by starting with Times Like These and All My Life.

My Hero was dedicated to a naked fan in the audience and, as the set drew to its close, it reached its climax when Monkey Wrench and Best of You came in quick succession.

I think it would be fair to say that we did, indeed, see the best of the Foo Fighters who were on top form throughout - and it set me up for a night which felt at the time it as if it would last forever but now feels as if it was gone in a flash.

At least I know the night finished with people in a packed Silent Disco blasting out Bohemian Rhapsody to each other, and then it literally dawned upon me.

Dawn arrived, the sky was no longer dark - and yet I had not been to bed. Forgive me then for my later start on Sunday...

The final day of the festival began at Other as the Boston-based Dropkick Murphys paid testament to their celtic roots, ahead of a much-anticipated appearance by Rag'n'Bone Man.

Rag'n'Bone was clearly nervous during his set and he even admitted as much - but, thankfully, his voice remained as strong as ever, as he picked his way through the hits from his Human album.

Now, up until this point, the weather had been warm. There had been a little rain on Saturday morning but not enough for the ground to break up. However, for much of the time, the skies had been filled with a leaden cloud-cover.

Perhaps then even the weather knew it was party time on Pyramid as Barry Gibb brought some Saturday Night Fever to Sunday afternoon.

He was followed swiftly by Chic feat Nile Rodgers who brought the whole arena to its feet in a set which included all the hits and covers of Daft Punk and, again, Bowie.

It is difficult to put in words just how brilliant those three hours of disco under clear blue skies and a baking hot sun were - but, as the BeeGee sang, words are all I have.

Following all the dancing and singing, it was time to tone it down a bit - though only via another sing-a-long to the Bootleg Beatles' closer Hey Jude on Acoustic - and we made our way to the Circus Fields.

There, in the Big Top, we watched the stupidly entertaining Flying Dutchmen jugglers on unicycles.

And then the Occam's Razor acrobatics quintet dazzled my mind as a performance featuring huge metal poles played with at all sorts of different angles, the weight and timing of each move being key.

By this time, it was Ed Sheeran's turn to headline Pyramid, only six years after his appearance on the BBC Introducing Stage in 2011.

In fairness to Sheeran, we knew pretty much every number he played in his first hour - but, as this was the last night of Glastonbury for over 700 days, we wanted a big party in which to dance.

Mr Bombastic himself Shaggy - at the Gully Stage in the Silver Hayes area - duly obliged as he sailed through his tunes. Remember, though, it wasn't him...

At that point, all that was left was a final wander around the site, taking in the ever-magnificent Arcadia and ambling into the Bimble Inn for the raga-infused celtic sound of Delhi to Dublin.

One last boogie there and another in the Glade at around 3am on Monday morning just about finished us off as we headed back to our tents to put this festival to bed.

It had been an unbelievable few days, a festival which will not be easily forgotten in a long time.

But that period in the sunshine on Sunday afternoon was a particular highlight so, to conclude this write-up, I will lean upon the words of Bowie which featured on the 2016 Glastonbury t-shirts:

Oh, to capture just one drop of all the ecstasy that swept that afternoon
To paint that love upon a white balloon...

The Sun Machine is Coming Down, and We're Gonna Have a Party

Glastonbury 2011 and Hyde Park review: Mud, sweat and beers

BEYONCE KNOWLES brought the curtain down on the last Glastonbury Festival until 2013 with a stunning show in front of a packed crowd on the Pyramid Stage.

The 29-year-old Texan singer opened her set by stepping down onto the stage from a mini version of the Pyramid while ticker tape and fireworks filled the air.

Beyonce fronted her performance with some of her biggest hits - starting with Crazy In Love and Single Ladies - before teaching the crowd some of the lyrics to her new single, Best Thing I Never Had.

The latter part of her set included covers of Prince and Kings of Leon, and a medley of Destiny's Child tunes.

But it was hardly a mistake to leave early and close the festival in style on the West Holts Stage with Kool & The Gang who played great versions of Get Down On It and Celebrate Good Times.

Earlier on the Sunday, Don McLean won the battle of the two American legends against Paul Simon, delivering a beautiful slow version of Vincent before milking American Pie for all its worth.

Simon stirred the crowd with Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes and You Can Call Me Al but he needlessly omitted Graceland and also could not find time for any Simon & Garfunkel tunes.

Thankfully, then, the Kaiser Chiefs on Other ran through all of their hits from their first album Employment after the Eels had helped us see in a beautiful sunset.

The hot sun on Sunday had come as a welcome relief after the heavens had poured down on most of Friday and Saturday morning.

Much of the site turned into a quagmire with up to a foot of mud in places and some of the bands struggled to rouse the crowd in the rain.

U2 were the biggest of the casualties with a largely underwhelming set.

Nevertheless, it did have a classy touch when Beautiful Day was introduced by an American astronaut in the International Space Station.

And Bono and the others will have at least pleased the purists having featured virtually all their biggest hits.

Earlier in the day, the Pyramid played host to an uninspiring set by Metronomy who would subsequently disappoint again at the Wireless Festival in Hyde Park.

On the Park, American pop duo Jenny and Johnny unsurprisingly struggled to blend their summery tunes with the inclement weather, despite their best efforts.

But, back at the Pyramid, there was total reverence as 85-year-old BB King sang the blues before, over on West Holts, Dr Jimmy Cliff hosted one of the best party atmospheres of the weekend.

On Saturday, Coldplay were another act to produce a great atmosphere at the front.

However, a truly magical Glastonbury moment - like when they finished on Fix You in 2005 - eluded Chris Martin and his band as they opted instead to finish on their new single Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall.

Elbow were a sound choice in providing the warm-up for Coldplay with front-man Guy Garvey giving the appearance of a man who could not believe his band had finally made it.

Meanwhile, much earlier in the day on John Peel Stage, Ardal O'Hanlon-lookalike Jamie 'Pockets' Fox from Fight Like Apes gave the impression that he should be anywhere other than a rock band.

That was not to his detriment, though, and the Irish group - fronted by shouty female vocalist Mary-Kate 'MayKay' Geraghty - provided a hugely entertaining start to the day with both their songs and ad libs.

After repeating the trick at Wireless, I can see Fight Like Apes - and not Shite Like Apes as a self-referential Fox amusingly called them - become another favourite of mine.

Just as the Gaslight Anthem did after their visit to Glastonbury on John Peel Stage in 2009. This year, the Brian Fallon-led New Jersey rockers were back - and playing on the big, uncovered Pyramid Stage.

But the Americans did not let the big venue unnerve them and they gave the big crowd an assured display of their talent.

Of course, as always, Glastonbury Festival has far more to it than just the main music stages though Tony Benn disappointed on the Leftfield Stage by turning up an hour early, meaning I missed him for a third successive year.

Another irritation was the new late night one-way queue system. With its winding seemingly never-ending path, it did its best to exhaust revellers even before they reached the likes of Shangrai-la and the Unfairground.

Worse still, most of these areas remained clogged up with mud even after the sun had dried out the rest of the site on Sunday.

My preview post showed I was skeptical of the one-way idea beforehand and being stuck in such a big queue did little to force me to reevaluate my opinion.

It may have been more organised for the organisers but there was an element of it becoming a chore to visit the late night areas when this has always previously been one of my most enjoyable parts of the festival.

Nevertheless, Arcadia is now such an impressive structure that Orbital played a DJ set there on Saturday night and it has certainly been a pleasure to see the venue develop over the last few years.

My favourite after-hours place this year was away from the south east corner, though. The Bourbon Street Bar gained two visits from myself.

The first was to see Sandi Thom play the blues on Thursday evening, and the second was for some late night boogie back to the jazz of the brilliantly-named Rabbit Foot Spasm Band on Friday.

Glastonbury certainly tested my patience on this fourth visit but, as usual, it still came through with a kaleidoscope of flying colours.


Hyde Park

ARCADE FIRE and Mumford & Sons impressed Hyde Park on the following Thursday, managing to stir a sleepy crowd into action after earlier sets by the Vaccines and Beirut.

And last weekend, Chase & Status, the Chemical Bros., The Streets, The Hives and Pulp were top billing at the aforementioned Wireless Festival.

Wireless was not without its hitches. A poor queuing system meant that I missed the chance to see Devotchka, a band which I held back from seeing at Glastonbury.

However, my biggest beef with the Hyde Park event was its rampant commercialism.

I understand the need for a festival to pay its way with advertisers but there were enough adverts there to make your eyes and ears bleed.

Mike Skinner of the Streets even joked main sponsors Barclaycard had approved the popping of pills during the subsequent sets by Chase & Status and the Chemical Brothers.

Earlier, Canadians Arcade Fire sprung somewhat of a surprise by featuring as many songs as they did from their first two albums, Funeral and Neon Bible, rather than their most recent release The Suburbs.

Still, another chance to hear Rebellion (Lies), Wake Up and No Cars Go live was no bad thing.

On Sunday at Wireless, the Hives played a straighter bat, reminding us of their biggest songs Hate To Say I Told You So and Main Offender.

Dressed in their usual sharp suits, Swedish front-man Pelle Almqvist ever-modestly self-proclaiming his band as the only one the crowd wanted to hear.

Of course, it was Pulp who were closer to that the description and the Sheffield band dug even deeper into their back collection to perform Disco 2000 and Babies in what was effectively a greatest hits set.

Appropriately, Jarvis Cocker and his band finished on Common People and ticker tape fell from the skies to signal the end of a party.

What a party it had been, though! An epic fortnight of music, mud, sweat and beers.

Glastonbury Festival and the Hyde Park hiatus

MY, OH MY! How quickly a year flies!

It seems just like yesterday since Stevie Wonder brought down the curtain on Glastonbury's 40th birthday celebrations.

But the time has come to make the journey to Michael Eavis' Worthy Farm in Pilton once again.

Even by Glastonbury standards, last year's festival was particularly spectacular. Not only was there the anniversary aspect but we also had a full week in which not a single raindrop fell.

It was, in fact, the first totally-dry Glastonbury since 2002 and so wishing for a repeat performance from the weather gods is rather optimistic.

Nevertheless, my hiatus from this blog for this year's festival looks like being pretty extraordinary again.

For, I will not only be attending Glastonbury - but also three further days of music on the following week at Hyde Park in London.

The reasons for this, in my head at least, are three-fold. Firstly, by paying for Hyde Park tickets, the number of clashes at Glastonbury is vastly reduced. More on this below.

Secondly, attending more gigs is the perfect way to banish the inevitable Sunday night Glastonbury blues which I have not avoided yet in three previous visits.

And, finally, there is no Glastonbury Festival next year so splashing out on extra music now seems especially worth it.

The fallow year was actually meant to be this year but with resources such as portaloos and security being taken up by the 2012 London Olympics, it made more sense to delay the recess.

So what exactly will I be looking forward to see at Glastonbury 2011?

Well, for a start, the Pyramid Stage headliners are U2 on Friday, Coldplay on Saturday and Beyonce Knowles on Sunday.

U2 will make a belated return to the festival, having intended to play last year until pulling out due to a back injury to their front-man Bono.

Coldplay are also making a long-awaited return to Glastonbury, having last played there in 2005, while this is Beyonce's first appearance, coming three years after her husband Jay-Z headlined.

To be honest, it is far more likely that I will spend the last hours of Sunday at the West Holts Stage celebrating good times with Kool & the Gang over a few last pints of Brothers cider.

I will have already spent a fair bit of Sunday in front of Pyramid anyway, waking up to the sea-shanties of the Fisherman's Friends before watching Don McLean and Paul Simon on the afternoon.

On Friday, I intend to make visits to the Park Stage for Jenny & Johnny and Big Audio Dynamite before a long evening stint at the Pyramid for Morrissey and U2.

And, on Saturday, I will probably be back at the Pyramid again for the likes of Stornoway and the Gaslight Anthem.

However, I would like to get myself around the site a bit and, on Saturday afternoon, I will combine some real ale and folk as Thea Gilmore's version of Bob Dylan's John Wesley Harding is followed in the Acoustic Tent by Pentangle.

And, of course, I would hope to indulge in some Glastonbury traditions by attending Tony Benn's talk at the Poetry & Words tent - if there is room - and by seeing to a bit of Billy Bragg on Leftfield.

Then, there are the visits to the Green Fields, the Stone Circle and the plethora of late night areas, now operating under a new one-way system. I am a little skeptical about those new plans but it is intended to improve access.

By way of a disclaimer, this itinerary is not for definite - nothing ever is at Glastonbury where there are constantly plenty of distractions. But the schedule is perhaps more definite than in other years.

The reason for this is that the number of possible clashes between the various acts has been vastly reduced by my choice to extend my trip by attending Hyde Park on 30 June.

There, I will see a one-off gig by Arcade Fire, Mumford & Sons, Chase & Status and the Vaccines - before returning there for the Wireless Festival on 2-3 July.

At Wireless, I expect to see the likes of Pulp, the Chemical Brothers, Devotchka, Yuck, Fight Like Apes and Katy B among many others.

And so it is no surprise that, right now, I feel like a kid at Christmas and simply cannot wait to get going. I think Millie the Micra and myself are in for the most fun we have ever had.

Best foot forward

THE GREAT North Run is a massive annual event on the North East calendar - and I don't just mean on the sporting calendar.

In fact, the race from Newcastle to South Shields attracts over 50,000 entries and hours of BBC coverage, making it the world's most iconic half marathon.

This year, two days before my 28th birthday, I should be taking my place on the start line (or some way behind it) with thousands of others.

Yes, I have been 'fortunate' enough to be selected in the general ballot - but, already, part of me is absolutely petrified of what I have let myself in for.

Like many novice entrants into the Great North Run, I have never run 13.1 miles in my life - and I suspect I will never again do so after September.

For the record, the furthest I have officially run was 5.7 miles in the 2004 Blaydon Race but that was now more than six-and-a-half years ago.

Indeed, my last attempt at a proper run was last year's Sport Relief Mile in Gateshead's Saltwell Park when I just about collapsed over the line having been drinking until 3am that morning.

That was over just one measly mile and, though the late night undoubtedly did not help, it was still an embarrassing indictment of my fitness.

Since then, the poor state of my cardio has been playing on my mind hence the rather rash entry into the Great North Run.

But, having paid my entry fee and gained a place, it seems wrong to waste the chance of ticking off one of the things I have always wanted to do in my life.

In preparation, I plan to train up for and re-enter this year's Blaydon Race (now 5.9 miles) on 9th June, Geordie Day.

However, most of my Great North Run training will be made in the 12 weeks after the usual indulgences of the Glastonbury Festival.

Yes, once again, I will be making the annual pilgrimage at the end of June to Michael Eavis' Worthy Farm in Somerset to see - among other things - Beyonce Knowles shake her booty.

The July to September plan is probably leaving myself short of doing justice to the run to South Shields.

But, like my mum and my sister in 2009, and countless others before and since, I will more than likely just be happy to finish having picked up my fitness a little.

A moment of madness to be regretted or a great chance for personal achievement?

I suppose all will be revealed on Sunday 18th September.

In Review: Glastonbury Festival 2009 - The Boss still rules

Festival organiser Michael Eavis declared Glastonbury 2009 to be the most successful festival he has hosted.

Eavis also claimed Bruce Springsteen's played "probably the best show of his life" in his Saturday night performance on the Pyramid Stage.

Yet, before The Boss could rule Worthy Farm, the festival endured a most surreal moment in not, for once, being the main music story of the week.

The news of the death of Michael Jackson was broken to me straight after East17 had finished playing in the Dance Village.

Immediately I considered it to be a typical, if slightly crude, Glastonbury rumour.

But, by the time I suffered my usual festival faux pas by losing my spectacles to Hattie Hatstar, Jackson's death had been confirmed.

***

Despite this, there was still an air of unreality as I stared at the newspaper and took in the opening set on the Pyramid Stage, Bjorn Again.

Thankfully, the up-tempo Abba tribute act were a timely boost as they made their way through all the classics.

The Rakes followed this up with a lively show on the Other Stage before I made a gem of a find in a group called Baskery.

As it happens, Baskery is a trio of good-looking Stockholm lasses.

But minus my glasses, of course, it was actually their music - acoustic, punk rock - which got me into the Acoustic tent.

On Friday night, I saw an excellent set from The Specials on the Pyramid Stage before heading back to the Acoustic tent for The Kinks' Ray Davies.

Davies was brilliant. He had the whole crowd singing along to his many classics.

I was right towards the front and, partly because I'm a soft lad but also because the cider had been flowing, broke down as he sang 'Days' and 'Waterloo Sunset'.

Davies was my Glastonbury highlight - for me, he even beat The Boss.

***

Saturday began with the political comedian Mark Thomas on the Speaker's Forum.

A large attentive crowd listened as he recalled entertaining accounts of being stopped and searched, having his DNA taken before later getting it destroyed.

Thomas was followed by a wonderful set from the natural entertainer Rolf Harris on Jazz World.

Harris, who enjoyed the biggest attendance of the festival on his last Glastonbury visit, sung his classics (finishing on 'Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport' to the tune of 'Land of Hope and Glory') and cracked a few decent jokes.

It was the perfect set up for an amusing interlude on Pyramid from Spinal Tap, which inevitably featured the Stonehenge dwarves.

After a short break, it was off to see the mercurial Peter Doherty on the Other Stage.

Perennially-troubled Doherty played well and looked much better than he did when I saw him last - at Benicassim Festival in 2006. But, disappointingly, his set was one of the shortest of the weekend.

This allowed me to catch The Gaslight Anthem on the John Peel Stage but I still missed out on their highlight - an early appearance by Springsteen who joined the band on stage for 'The 59 Sound'.

The Boss returned the favour when Gaslight lead Brian Fallon played alongside Springsteen for 'No Surrender'.

After the Gaslight Anthem, there was the rather unusual festival sight of Kasabian fans impatiently waiting for Crosby, Stills and Nash to finish their stuff on the Pyramid Stage.

Meanwhile, I caught a bit of Maximo Park having missed them opening up the festival on the Park Stage on Thursday.

But, just as I thought it might be before the festival, Saturday's music was all about The Boss.

Dressed in a dark shirt, blue jeans and welly boots, he arrived at five past 10 and played until 39 minutes past midnight.

The nine minutes beyond the curfew will cost Eavis a fine of £3000, imposed by Mendip District Council.

But Eavis has said he doesn't mind paying this time around, calling the last nine minutes "spectacular".

The Boss quickly struck up an affinity with a huge Glastonbury crowd and the front rows were treated to frequent visits as he dived on top of them, guitar in hand.

It was the show that got better and better and better. Notably, he held back 'Glory Days' and 'Thunder Road' until the encore before finishing on 'Dancing in the Dark'.

So, while Davies was my personal highlight, Springsteen was undoubtedly a Glastonbury 'I was there' moment.

***

Unsurprisingly, The Boss was still the talk of the campsite on Sunday morning.

Providing the entertainment on the Pyramid Stage were the Easy Star All Stars who played a dub/reggae version of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band LP.

The All Stars were followed by Status Quo who were happy to play their chord to stereotype, commenting on their performance in a wonderfully self-depreciating fashion.

I did not see all of the Quo's set, however, as I made my way over to Other Stage to see Art Brut for the second time this year.

Frontman Eddie Argos was as entertaining as ever in front of a modest crowd and further strengthened my belief that Art Brut are much better in an intimate venue.

A stroll over to the Acoustic tent to see some instrumentals from The Penguin Cafe Orchestra was well-timed as they struck up 'Music For A Found Harmonium' as soon I got there.

And I made it back to the Pyramid Stage for an enjoyable performance from Sir Tom Jones during which I moved through the crowd for Madness.

The Nutty Boys were as impressive as ever in the evening sunshine but as their set ended, my thoughts turned towards the festival's end.

Thankfully, there was one final act to savour as Blur made a triumphant return to Glastonbury for the first time since 1998.

They played magnificently, complementing the raucous 'Girls and Boys', 'Country House' and 'Song 2' with stand-out moments of raw emotion on 'Tender' and 'The Universal'.

***

It's hard to disagree with Michael Eavis and his belief this has been the best year yet - even if he tends to say that every year...

Glastonbury has been good to me, very good to me. I even got sunburn when the Friday rain gave way to glorious conditions on Saturday and, for the most, part, Sunday.

Ray Davies and Blur both gave unforgettable performances and Bruce Springsteen's 150 minutes will undoubtedly become the stuff of Glastonbury legend.

While the King of Pop may have sadly fallen to his demise, The Boss still rules.