pedmills

I personally dislike it when big acts play small stages - whether that's a 'secret' slot or a McFly on the Avalon or Calvin Harris on Arcadia type situation. But I'm not sure I'd bother writing to complain as I'm sure the festival see it as a way of encouraging people to travel round the site rather than camping out at the Pyramid stage all day.

that's from 2012 I think. I'm pretty sure it was 6 last time.

I think if you're trying as a couple or small group it really is down to luck. A lot of people seem to work in huge teams with spreadsheets now.

Glastonbury is basically a festival of mini-festivals - at certain times and places it will get a bit edgier or you will see quite generic pop acts that are booked elsewhere. You do get quite a mix of people in terms of ages and personalities, but certain types are more noticeable than others. I think most of us who keep going, keep going because it gives you a chance to sample lots of different experiences. Occasionally I want a quieter time and at other points I want something feels a bit edgy and more exciting. Sometimes I want to watch a weird cult act and other times I want to watch somebody huge. I get bored easily. It keeps me buzzing through the weekend that I can have so many different types of experiences. If you prefer the green fields vibe and more alternative/diverse music then there are definitely festivals that specialise in that - but then you don't get Paul McCartney & Arcadia. There are certainly people that spend most of their time in the green fields or T&C or West Holts or whatever, and then occasionally venture out for a headliner or Shangri La. Obviously they decide the ticket price and hassle is still worth it. You could try that next time and then decide afterwards if you still think it's worth it or there is a smaller festival that is better suited to you.

And me

I think the main issue, and this goes back years but is getting worse, is each field acting like it's a separate festival and booking a mix of acts, including big pop ones. West Holts is no longer a jazz/world stage, John Peel isn't just new bands, Avalon isn't just folk, Arcadia is a stage with big names instead of a visual experience, Shangri La has highly advertised scheduled lineups, the Pyramid Stage emphasises a mix of genres instead of booking just the biggest acts. When the West Holts and Avalon fields are closed, or the entrance to The Park is blocked by people trying to get into Arcadia, or the central sections are heaving because everyone's swarming to William's Green, it has knock on effects on the flow of people around the site. I'd much prefer if the simple rule was the most popular acts are on the biggest stages. Just put Mcfly on the Pyramid Stage at midday. It might seem more boring and obvious but it would solve so many crowd issues.

There are enough DJ & dance music stages now. It's Glastonbury's USP to have so much going on but it feels in the last few years that every bar is now turning into a music tent, every little corner has a stage crammed into it, everything has sound bleeding into it, you can't move for thudding bass. Shangri La has numerous sizeable stages now, when I don't feel like that was the point of it originally. Arcadia is just another dance music stage where Chase & Status and Chemical Brothers get booked, whereas I'm sure years back it was intended as more of a visual experience. There must be hundreds of DJs playing very similar music across the festival. I love that there is so much going on, but no more DJs and dance stages, please!

That's what i mean though - chucked it down once but then dry. What if doesn't chuck it down this year but there is 3 days of on/off very light rain (on previously dry ground)? Is there an example of that in recent years? Would the ground still eventually get really muddy?

Has there even been a festival that has had a dry start on dry ground and then a few days of light showers? What would that even do to the ground? All I can think of are either mudfests, heatwaves or ones where it has been mostly dry but then one big storm that made loads of mud that then dried up. Has there been a recent glastonbury which has had 3 days of (just) light rain?

I'm pretty certain the rain started lightly on Thursday night, and then there was a heavy downpour at something like 5am Friday morning. We're looking at an extra 24 hours of dry this year. (Plus much less volume of rain at the weekend than 2007 I'm hoping!)