FEATURE:
Glastonbury 2020
IN THIS PHOTO: Sir Paul McCartney is a favourite to fill one of the headline slots for Glastonbury next year/PHOTO CREDIT: MJ Kim/MPL Communications Ltd.
Will It Be the Greatest Music Event of This Generation?
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EVEN though we have just cleaned up…
IN THIS PHOTO: Taylor Swift is another favourite to take a headline slot in 2020/PHOTO CREDIT: Billy & Hells for TIME
the debris from this year’s Glastonbury, there is a lot of excitement about next year’s event. The grass is starting to recover and Worthy Farm is returning to its normal state. This year’s Glastonbury was, perhaps, the strongest we have seen in a decade. Not only were there great headline sets from The Cure, Stormzy and The Killers; the smaller sets were fantastic and the atmosphere was incredible. It was a year where there was a greater move towards equality. Women were included more and Glastonbury was closer to a fifty-fifty gender split. The line-up was one of the most diverse of recent years and one cannot fault the sense of togetherness, energy and range. In a very difficult year for us all, the weather stayed calm for the revellers and performers. We still have fond memories of this year’s event and, already, tickets have sold out for 2020’s festival. The tickets flew and there were problems with the official website. It is understandable there was such a rush, considering next year will be the fiftieth anniversary of Glastonbury. This article explains the enormity of demand:
“Tickets for the 50th year of Glastonbury have sold out in 34 minutes, as a record number of fans tried to secure a ticket for the event at Worthy Farm next June.
Emily Eavis confirmed that a record number of people had registered to be eligible for the sale, which started at 9am on Sunday and was finished in little over 30 minutes. A record 2.4 million people signed up to have a chance of securing a ticket.
“We have now sold out. Thank you all for your incredible, continued support,” she tweeted. “Demand was higher than ever … Bring on 2020!”
The festival confirmed that 135,000 tickets had been sold, with coach packages selling out on Thursday in 27 minutes. The ticket sale was the second fastest in the event’s history, with only the 2014 festival selling out a few minutes more quickly.
Glastonbury’s official Twitter account also confirmed the sellout and confirmed there would be a ticket resale in April – and “details of a special ballot for the sale of 50 pairs of tickets in the coming days”.
No acts have been confirmed for Glastonbury 2020, but the bookmakers’ favourites are Taylor Swift, Fleetwood Mac and Paul McCartney”.
People took to social media to express their delight at getting tickets: others were dismayed they did not get any; the fact there were website problems fuelled that sense of anger. It would have been impossible to please everyone but, with the demand so high, I wonder whether more tickets will go on sale. The excitement is still in the air and, naturally, there is speculation as to which acts headline Glastonbury 2020. The bookies’ favourites at the moment are Taylor Swift, Fleetwood Mac and Paul McCartney. The former is one of the biggest Pop stars at the moment and having two legend acts join her would please pretty much everyone.
This year had Grime artist Stormzy on the bill and, whilst it would be good to have another Rap/Grime artist headline, the fiftieth anniversary means there is stiff competition! One of Glastonbury’s biggest problems is the lack of female headliners. Having someone like Taylor Swift headline would be a rare occasion of a female headliner – long-overdue and, let’s hope, the sign of things to come! I think Emily and Michael Eavis (the festival organisers) have said booking Fleetwood Mac would be too expensive but, as Mick Fleetwood has cheekily suggested they would do it, one feels they would play for a lesser fee; maybe it is just a tactic to put people off of the scent! I do wonder whether there will be room for a fourth headliner or, as it is the fiftieth anniversary, maybe a new stage will be constructed that allows for more legends to play. I think a lot of upcoming artists will feature and, whereas this year saw the bill consist 53% men, I think 2020 will make it a fifty-fifty split at the very least! This year was also diverse and, given the spectacular albums that have arrived from every corner, I think we will see a hugely impressive field in 2020. It is eye-watering considering the artists who will be involved! We will all have our fantasy line-ups, and there is going to be speculation regarding headliners until the official announcement.
PHOTO CREDIT: @anniespratt/Unsplash
I think it is unlikely the current favourites will remain in place because, between now and the day itself, there will be other artists who are under the spotlight. Not only are the headliners going to be exciting, there will be other events happening around the site. In a normal year, there are different tents, attractions and events. I think the organisers will go all out for the fiftieth and turn Worthy Farm into a Mecca that combines the best new music with some true icons. I wonder whether there will be any sort of museum or monuments that combine all the greatest performances from the past fifty years. Whatever happens, I know Glastonbury 2020 is going to be this once-in-a-lifetime happening. After all the problems with Brexit and the strains we have faced this year, I think next year’s Glastonbury will be the biggest one ever. It will aim itself at providing celebration and escape; of coming together and a look at how the festival has changed since the start. The more one thinks about the possibilities, the more depressing it is realising I (and so many others) have not gotten tickets! This year is one many will want to see the back of. 2020 offers a lot and I do think it will be a new beginning in many ways. Even if you are not a huge fan of Glastonbury, it is impossible ignore the importance of its fiftieth anniversary.
IN THIS PHOTO: Michael Eavis/PHOTO CREDIT: Andrew Firth
If you need a Glastonbury fix between now and its fiftieth anniversary, there is a book coming out on 31st October. Here are the details:
“With the venerable Glasto celebrating a half century of mud-soaked musical mayhem next year, Michael and Emily Eavis, the iconic father and daughter team behind the festival, have produced a sumptuous visual history encompassing recollections from legendary artists, and seminal images from rock’s greatest photographers. The definitive companion to a British summertime institution.
Glastonbury 50 is the authorised, behind-the-scenes, inside story of the music festival that has become a true global phenomenon.
The story begins in 1970. The day after Jimi Hendrix's death... dairy farmer Michael Eavis invites revellers to his field in Somerset to attend a 'Pop, Folk & Blues' festival. Tickets are GBP1 each, enticing more than a thousand customers with the promise of music, dance, poetry, theatre, lights and spontaneous entertainment - as well as free milk from his own Worthy Farm cows.
Fast forward through five tumultuous decades and the Eavis's vision now encompasses a gigantic 'city in the fields', with a total annual population nearing a quarter of a million. Tickets sell out within minutes, the show is beamed live to more than 40 countries around the globe, and over 3 million people are registered to attend. Meanwhile, the bill has expanded to include big name performers, artists and designers from every branch of the creative arts. Glastonbury Festival is now the largest outdoor green fields event in the world.
IN THIS PHOTO: Emily Eavis/PHOTO CREDIT: Jason Bryant
In their own words, Michael and Emily Eavis reveal the stories behind the headlines, and celebrate 50 years of history in the Vale of Avalon. They're joined by a host of big-name contributors from the world of music - among them Adele, JAY-Z, Dolly Parton, Chris Martin, Noel Gallagher, Lars Ulrich and Guy Garvey. They're joined by artists - Stanley Donwood, Kurt Jackson and many more. Writers - Caitlin Moran, Lauren Laverne, Billy Bragg - and by a host of photographers, from Seventies icon Brian Walker to rock and roll legends Jill Furmanovsky and Greg Williams”.
Some might feel it is excessive to call Glastonbury 2020 the biggest and most important musical event of this generation, but I feel there is so much expectation and build. The desire to celebrate and unite will be incredibly strong, and who knows where we will be in a few months’ time after all the Brexit debacle?! There are fears whether artists will be able to travel in Europe and how musicians will be affected. All of this – plus the possibility of the acts who will play – means all eyes will be on Somerset between Wednesday, 24th June to Sunday, 28th June. I cannot wait to see just what is in store. For those lucky enough to attend, it will be a wonderful, you-had-to-be-there-to-believe-it event; the kind that you can only dream about. For those of us who will be watching on T.V., it will still be a defining moment…
PHOTO CREDIT: @jg/Unsplash
ONE day soon.