Neil Young throws 'BBC bosses into chaos over Glastonbury set as star makes unusual demand' after saying festival was 'under corporate control'
Neil Young has reportedly thrown BBC bosses in chaos over his Glastonbury set as the rock legend made an unusual demand just days before his gig.
The singer, 79, is one of the biggest names to be performing at the festival in Somerset along with the likes of Sir Rod Stewart and Nile Rogers.
However, there is still much uncertainty over how much of his Saturday gig at the Pyramid Stage will be shown on TV, according to the Mirror.
As per the publication, Neil is still 'wrangling' with the broadcasting corporation, and insiders suspect he will only allow for just a handful of his songs to be shown.
It is currently unknown whether the clips he allows will be live or part of an edited highlights package.
The BBC schedule of live sets was released to the public earlier this month which sees other Saturday headliners such as Charli XCX and Doechii.
However, Neil has been left out of the live schedule due to ongoing negations with the BBC.
A BBC spokeswoman told the Mirror: We aim to bring audiences as many performances as possible from the Pyramid Stage, and our schedules and plans continue to be finalised, right up to and during the festival.'
MailOnline has contacted BBC and Neil's representatives for comment.
Back in January, the rock star finally agreed to play at Glastonbury Festival after initially turning down the offer because it was 'under corporate control' of the BBC.
The singer and his new live band The Chrome Hearts were thought to be in the running for the huge music event which takes place at Worthy Farm.
But Neil issued a bombshell statement on New Year's Day accusing the festival of being controlled by the BBC, appearing to dash fans' hopes.
A statement posted on Neil Young's website at the time said: 'Due to an error in the information received, I had decided to not play the Glastonbury Festival, which I always have loved.
'Happily, the festival is now back on our itinerary and we look forward to playing. Hope to see you there.'
Young had previously said in an open letter on the Neil Young Archives this week: 'The Chrome Hearts and I were looking forward to playing Glastonbury, one of my all time favourite outdoor gigs.
'We were told the BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way that we were not interested in. It seems Glastonbury is now under corporate control and is not the way I remember it being.
'We will not be playing Glastonbury on this tour because it is a corporate turn-off, and not for me like it used to be. Hope to see you at one of the other venues on the tour.'
The BBC has aired sets from the music festival across its various television and radio stations for years.
Neil's most recent performance at Glastonbury in 2009 was broadcast on the BBC. But only portions of it were actually televised due to Young's team objecting.
In response to criticism from his fans, the BBC said it had 'spent the last couple of months' negotiating with his management about how much of his set they could broadcast.
'Neil Young's career has been conducted on his own terms,' the broadcaster said at the time.
'Neil's management agreed to let TV and radio broadcast five songs as they watched and listened to his performance. They believe in the live event and retaining its mystery and that of their artist.'
The singer was also booked to appear at the 1997 festival, but had to pull out after cutting his finger while making a ham sandwich.
Neil's new band features Micah Nelson on guitar, Spooner Oldham on organ, Corey McCormick on bass and Anthony LoGerfo on drums.
Announcing his return to the Pyramid Stage, Glastonbury promoter Emily Eavis hinted at frantic negotiations behind the scenes as she wrote: 'What a start to the year! Neil Young is an artist who's very close to our hearts at Glastonbury.
'He does things his own way and that's why we love him... We can't wait to welcome him back here to headline the Pyramid in June.'
Elsewhere, Roman Kemp has issued a bizarre warning to Glastonbury-goers 24 hours before Britain's biggest festival kicks off.
The podcaster and One Show presenter, 32, will be among the 210,000 music fans heading to Worthy Farm in Somerset for the five-day festival sponsored by Vodafone – the Nation's Network.
Roman has revealed his five must-have items for festival-goers this summer – and the one thing he would certainly not bring.
He said his one essential item is a battery pack and explained: 'Take two if you can, you'll be everyone's mate but mostly you just use it for yourself. They are genuine lifesavers.'
Other essentials on Kemp's list include waterproof clothing, a fold-out chair, a water bottle and 'some form of outdoor game.'
But, his one warning to Glasto-goers this year is to avoid bringing a paddling pool because it 'doesn't go well'.
He said: 'I've seen a couple of paddling pools. I think any form of pool, especially paddling pools, shouldn't be anywhere near a festival because God knows what will end up in that water.
'I've seen it, it doesn't go well… the water turns brown, very quickly.'
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