Michael Eavis: People who disagree with Glastonbury's politics can go elsewhere
Glastonbury Festival founder Sir Michael Eavis has said people who do not agree with the politics of the event 'can go somewhere else'.
Eavis, 89, and his daughter, organiser Emily Eavis, opened the gates to the festival on Wednesday morning and could be seen counting down and cheering as a brass band played.
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The festival has always had a political element to it with stages such as Left Field and Green Fields' Speakers Forum welcoming politicians, pundits and celebrities to speak on topics that range from feminism to fascism.
Organiser Emily Eavis and her father, co-founder Sir Michael Eavis, open the gates on the first day of the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm (Yui Mok/PA)
Asked if the event still stands for something, Eavis told Glastonbury Free Press, the festival's resident newspaper: 'Oh heaven's above, yes, of course it does.
'And I think the people that come here are into all those things. People that don't agree with the politics of the event can go somewhere else!'
Eavis, who has used a wheelchair to get around the festival in recent years, said he still gets 'really excited' for the five-day celebration of performing arts and music, though he can 'no longer run around like I used to'.
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Revellers arrive at the Glastonbury Festival during a rain shower, at Worthy Farm (Yui Mok/PA)
He told the paper: 'I still take a lot of pleasure from all of it. I'm enjoying every day.
'And Emily is doing so well. I'm just feeling really safe with the show being in her hands.'
Former Match Of The Day presenter Gary Lineker, who left the BBC One show last month, will be speaking at Silver Hayes's The Information on Saturday for a panel titled 'Standing Up For 'Getting Along' In A World That's Being Pushed Apart'.
He told the paper: 'It's basically along the lines of: everything is done to try and divide us, and I think if people can pull together – because I think most of us are decent human beings – then just a bit more kindness in the world would go a long way at the moment.'
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People with flowerpots as heads during the festival on Thursday (Ben Birchall/PA)
This year's line-up features a number of acts listed as TBA, as well as a mysterious act called Patchwork, who will take to the Pyramid Stage on Saturday.
Among the music stars rumoured to be performing a secret set is New Zealand singer Lorde whose fourth-studio album, Virgin, is set for release on Friday.
The pop star, 28, posted a picture of Woodsies stage to her Instagram story on Thursday, fuelling speculation that she could be the act listed as 'TBA' slated to perform on the stage at 11.30am Friday morning.
Earlier in the month she told BBC Radio 2 that she is 'pretty keen' to see if she can 'pull some strings' and make an appearance at this year's festival.
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Revellers experienced lashings of rain when they arrived to Pilton on Thursday morning, but Friday should see sunshine, according to the Met Office.
Revellers shelter under a tree at the festival (Yui Mok/PA)
Spokesman Stephen Dixon told the PA news agency: 'Friday should start relatively sunny, with temperatures reaching into the mid-20s. However, there will be a touch more cloud later in the day and into the evening.'
Festivalgoers have been pouring into the festival since it opened on Wednesday, and those who took the 12.35pm train from London Paddington to Somerset on Thursday were treated to an acoustic set from singer Sam Ryder who got out a guitar to sing What's Up? by 4 Non Blondes.
Ryder, 36, who placed second during the 2022 Eurovision Song Content when he represented the UK, is playing the Avalon Stage on Sunday at 7.50pm.
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Sam Ryder performs an impromptu gig onboard a train service travelling from Paddington Station to Glastonbury (David Parry Media Assignments/PA)
This year's event will see headline performances from British rock/pop band The 1975, veteran singer Neil Young and his band the Chrome Hearts, and US pop star Olivia Rodrigo.
One of the more controversial acts performing is Irish rap trio Kneecap, who have been in the headlines recently after one of their members was charged with a terror offence.
Before the festival, UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer said it would not be 'appropriate' for them to perform their slot, taking place on the West Holts Stage at 4pm on Saturday.
Rapper Liam Og O hAnnaidh was charged for allegedly displaying a flag in support of proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah at a gig in London in November last year.
Kneecap's Liam Og O Hannaidh leaves Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, through a crowd of supporters after he appeared charged with a terrorism offence (Jordan Pettitt/PA)
Last week, the 27-year-old, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was cheered by hundreds of supporters as he arrived with bandmates Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh at Westminster Magistrates' Court in 'Free Mo Chara' T-shirts.
He was released on unconditional bail until his next hearing at the same court on August 20.
On Thursday evening, the rap trio posted a film they executive produced to social media, titled Stop The Genocide, which includes testimonies from a Palestinian activist and plastic surgeon on the war in Gaza.
Performing in the coveted Sunday teatime legends slot this year is Sir Rod Stewart, who previously said he will be joined by his former Faces band member Ronnie Wood, as well as some other guests.
His performance is to come after the Maggie May singer postponed a string of concerts in the US, due to take place this month, while he recovered from flu.
Acrobats and circus performers take part in the opening ceremony in the Pyramid Arena during the Glastonbury Festival (Yui Mok/PA)
Among the acts expected to draw large crowds this year is alternative pop star Charli XCX, who will perform songs from her genre-defining sixth studio album Brat.
She is performing on Saturday night on the Other Stage, 15 minutes before the West Holts stage is graced by US rapper Doechii, another artist who has exploded in popularity in the last year.
Other performers include Irish singer CMAT, Prada singer Raye, US musician Brandi Carlile, Nile Rodgers and Chic, hip-hop star Loyle Carner, US pop star Gracie Abrams, indie outfit Wet Leg, Mercury Prize-winning jazz quintet Ezra Collective, US rapper Denzel Curry, and rising star Lola Young.
This year, the BBC will provide livestreams of the five main stages – Pyramid, Other, West Holts, Woodsies and The Park.
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Glasgow Times
13 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Police assessing videos of Kneecap and Bob Vylan's Glastonbury performances
Rap punk duo Bob Vylan led crowds on the festival's West Holts Stage in chants of: 'Free, free Palestine' and: 'Death, death to the IDF', before Irish rap trio Kneecap suggested fans 'start a riot' outside one member of the band's upcoming court appearance. In a post on social media, Avon and Somerset Police said: 'We are aware of the comments made by acts on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury Festival this afternoon. Bob Vylan also displayed pro-Palestinian images (Yui Mok/PA) 'Video evidence will be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation.' Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has spoken to the BBC Director General about the Bob Vylan's performance, a Government spokesperson said. They added: 'We strongly condemn the threatening comments made by Bob Vylan at Glastonbury. 'The Culture Secretary has spoken to the BBC Director General to seek an urgent explanation about what due diligence it carried out ahead of the Bob Vylan performance, and welcomes the decision not to re-broadcast it on BBC iPlayer.' There was a display of pro-Palestinian flags and t-shirts during Kneecap's set (Yui Mok/PA) Kneecap, who hail from Belfast, have been in the headlines after member Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara, was charged with a terror offence. In reference to his bandmate's upcoming court date, Naoise O Caireallain, who performs under the name Moglai Bap, said they would 'start a riot outside the courts', before clarifying: 'No riots just love and support, and support for Palestine.' In the run-up to the festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset, several politicians called for Kneecap to be removed from the line-up and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said their performance would not be 'appropriate'. During the performance Caireallain said: 'The Prime Minister of your country, not mine, said he didn't want us to play, so f*** Keir Starmer.' He also said a 'big thank you to the Eavis family' and said 'they stood strong' amid calls for the organisers to drop them from the line-up. O hAnnaidh, 27, wore a keffiyeh during the set, while member JJ O Dochartaigh, who performs under the name DJ Provai, wore his signature tri-coloured balaclava as well as a T-shirt that said: 'We are all Palestine Action', in reference to the soon-to-be banned campaign group. News broadcasts criticising the hip hop trio played from the sound system before they walked onto the stage were booed by the Glastonbury Festival audience. The trio opened with the song Better Way To Live from their 2024 album Fine Art and also performed tracks including Get Your Brits Out and Hood. Access to the area around the West Holts Stage was closed around 45 minutes before their performance after groups of fans arrived to form a sea of Irish and Palestinian flags. A Bob Vylan member crowd-surfs surrounded by Palestinian flags (Yui Mok/PA) Earlier on Saturday, the BBC confirmed they would not be live-streaming the set but said the performance is likely to be made available on-demand later. O hAnnaidh was charged with allegedly displaying a flag in support of proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah, while saying 'up Hamas, up Hezbollah' at a gig in November last year. On June 18, the rapper was cheered by hundreds of supporters as he arrived with bandmates O Caireallain and O Dochartaigh at Westminster Magistrates' Court in Free Mo Chara T-shirts. He was released on unconditional bail until the next hearing at the same court on August 20. Elsewhere at the festival, Haim were revealed as the surprise act on the Park Stage at 7.30pm on Saturday. The band bounced on to the stage in black and silver outfits and tore into a raucous version of hit single The Wire. After the song, singer Danielle Haim said: 'On our first album, we came to Glastonbury and we played the Park Stage, I love you, and it was the best show I had ever played, until now, this tops everything.' The band was revealed as the surprise act with a red LED sign, similar to the one on their new LP I Quit, which was released earlier this year. The sign read 'the Haim show is about to begin'. Haim also dipped into some of their best-known songs, such as Summer Girl, Want You Back and one of their latest singles, Relationships. On the Pyramid Stage, Pulp were revealed to be Patchwork with the Sheffield-formed Britpop band paying homage to their breakthrough 1995 stand-in headline set during the performance.
South Wales Argus
13 minutes ago
- South Wales Argus
Police assessing videos of Kneecap and Bob Vylan's Glastonbury performances
Rap punk duo Bob Vylan led crowds on the festival's West Holts Stage in chants of: 'Free, free Palestine' and: 'Death, death to the IDF', before Irish rap trio Kneecap suggested fans 'start a riot' outside one member of the band's upcoming court appearance. In a post on social media, Avon and Somerset Police said: 'We are aware of the comments made by acts on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury Festival this afternoon. Bob Vylan also displayed pro-Palestinian images (Yui Mok/PA) 'Video evidence will be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation.' Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has spoken to the BBC Director General about the Bob Vylan's performance, a Government spokesperson said. They added: 'We strongly condemn the threatening comments made by Bob Vylan at Glastonbury. 'The Culture Secretary has spoken to the BBC Director General to seek an urgent explanation about what due diligence it carried out ahead of the Bob Vylan performance, and welcomes the decision not to re-broadcast it on BBC iPlayer.' There was a display of pro-Palestinian flags and t-shirts during Kneecap's set (Yui Mok/PA) Kneecap, who hail from Belfast, have been in the headlines after member Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara, was charged with a terror offence. In reference to his bandmate's upcoming court date, Naoise O Caireallain, who performs under the name Moglai Bap, said they would 'start a riot outside the courts', before clarifying: 'No riots just love and support, and support for Palestine.' In the run-up to the festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset, several politicians called for Kneecap to be removed from the line-up and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said their performance would not be 'appropriate'. During the performance Caireallain said: 'The Prime Minister of your country, not mine, said he didn't want us to play, so f*** Keir Starmer.' He also said a 'big thank you to the Eavis family' and said 'they stood strong' amid calls for the organisers to drop them from the line-up. O hAnnaidh, 27, wore a keffiyeh during the set, while member JJ O Dochartaigh, who performs under the name DJ Provai, wore his signature tri-coloured balaclava as well as a T-shirt that said: 'We are all Palestine Action', in reference to the soon-to-be banned campaign group. News broadcasts criticising the hip hop trio played from the sound system before they walked onto the stage were booed by the Glastonbury Festival audience. The trio opened with the song Better Way To Live from their 2024 album Fine Art and also performed tracks including Get Your Brits Out and Hood. Access to the area around the West Holts Stage was closed around 45 minutes before their performance after groups of fans arrived to form a sea of Irish and Palestinian flags. A Bob Vylan member crowd-surfs surrounded by Palestinian flags (Yui Mok/PA) Earlier on Saturday, the BBC confirmed they would not be live-streaming the set but said the performance is likely to be made available on-demand later. O hAnnaidh was charged with allegedly displaying a flag in support of proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah, while saying 'up Hamas, up Hezbollah' at a gig in November last year. On June 18, the rapper was cheered by hundreds of supporters as he arrived with bandmates O Caireallain and O Dochartaigh at Westminster Magistrates' Court in Free Mo Chara T-shirts. He was released on unconditional bail until the next hearing at the same court on August 20. Elsewhere at the festival, Haim were revealed as the surprise act on the Park Stage at 7.30pm on Saturday. The band bounced on to the stage in black and silver outfits and tore into a raucous version of hit single The Wire. After the song, singer Danielle Haim said: 'On our first album, we came to Glastonbury and we played the Park Stage, I love you, and it was the best show I had ever played, until now, this tops everything.' The band was revealed as the surprise act with a red LED sign, similar to the one on their new LP I Quit, which was released earlier this year. The sign read 'the Haim show is about to begin'. Haim also dipped into some of their best-known songs, such as Summer Girl, Want You Back and one of their latest singles, Relationships. On the Pyramid Stage, Pulp were revealed to be Patchwork with the Sheffield-formed Britpop band paying homage to their breakthrough 1995 stand-in headline set during the performance.
The Sun
17 minutes ago
- The Sun
Gracie Abrams snogs and parties with boyfriend Paul Mescal until 3am after finishing Glastonbury set
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