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Thoughts and opinions....


The Red Telephone
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Hi all

Attended my first Glastonbury since 1997 over the weekend, had previously also attended in 92/94/95 too as a callow teenage indie-kid. Thought I would document my time on the farm over the 5 days and hopefully give an insight for those contemplating a return after a similar hiatus...

Background

As stated above, this was my first GF for a very long time! After my run of attending in the 90s, I either had no money or was living abroad so couldn't attend. Got heavily into dance music at the turn of the century, so was spending a lot on clubbing and products associated with such activities...Lived in NZ for 4 years, returned, got married etc. My wife and I always watched the TV coverage and ruminated on how great it would be to attend again (although she had never been before now).

With my 40th birthday arriving this year, we thought it would be as good a time as any to try for tickets. Roped in a few friends who wanted to go too, and we all prepared ourselved for ticket day. Amazingly, I was succesful in procuring 6 tickets!

Started to look at this forum and was hooked immediately! Have got so much help and guidance from posters on here, from travel tips to what kind of power bank I should buy!

Travel

Always used to get a jammy lift and pick up from Parents back in the day. Didn't like to ask this time. Being 40 and all.

Had a relatively good run down the M5 on Wednesday morning to the Bridgewater junction...it then took 10 hours to cover 14 miles on the A39. Although, by the sounds of it,I was quite lucky...Arrived at 5.30pm. Wife and friends came through Cheddar Gorge, and found less queues this way.

Was meeting my wife there, so was on my tod in the car, but had snacks and books to keep me occupied. Whilst in queues, I spoke to a few locals who said they had never seen it so bad. Understandbly, a few locals seemed a bit pissed off at the congestion.

I never got down about it, stuck Worthy FM on, read a bit...just added to the anticipation of arriving. Got my first view of the Tor and smiled broadly! Last 3 miles was done in a minute or two, had a seperate entrance because we were staying in...

Worthy View

....I know, I know. Please don't judge me too much!

Right then. Decided to explore the option of staying here, mainly due to convenience. I had previously stayed in Big Ground when attending before, had my tent and possessions stolen once (although I read that crime is not as widespread as it once was), and the expected noise at night might be an issue because (a) I'm an old man and need some sleep occasionally and(b) I wanted to come again, in principle, and thought it might put my Wife off. No issue with the noise itself, want kids to enjoy themselves, but thought if there were other options we would take them. Did a few overtime shifts to cover the extra cost - £260 for a two-man scout tent. Tent was good, quite roomy. Space in between for chairs/ stoves etc. Worthy View were very helpful in getting our group's three tents all together in the same row.

Car Park was virtully empty on arrival, queued for about 20 mins to get into the site. Cursory bag check, check of conformation email and then through. Liked being 5 minutes away from car, so could return whenever you wanted easily enough.

The facilties? Well, a bar/ cafe and a couple of boring food outlets at the top of the hill (dull refreshments/ wonderful view) - plenty of seats too. A coffee van and a shop in the middle of the campsite. Queue for coffee about 20 mins in peak times. Flushing portaloos with basins, cleaned regularly...queues at peak times about 20-25 mins. Showerblock - open from 7 to 2 then again from 4-7. Had two showers when there, walked into male ones with no waiting at 7.15am both times. By 10am queues were at least 1 hour long. Would not have bothered with it if I had to queue really! Communal changing areas, but there was a partition between showers. Only felt I had to have one on Friday to help with my hayfever. 

Only noise you could hear at night was music coming from Strummerville and some in the distance from the SE corner. Apparently there was a quiet policy for campers, but not rigidly enforced. Clientele was mainly 30+, not all braying middle-classes but heard some mentions of various children and their prep schools and one chap complaining about what Brexit was doing to his share portfolio.

The. Hill. Well, it's not too bad. I'm a fit-ish 40 year old functioning alcholic and I managed it fine. A bit out of breath at the top, but nothing horrendous. You can either walk up/ down steps or the slope (although this got closed when the mud made it dangerous). The view at the top, as mentioned, is fantastic though!

Would I stay there again? No. Although it was convenient having a pre-pitched quality tent and a separate entrance/ car park the atmosphere just wasn't there. We were so shattered from dancing/ walking in the mud/ booze that I probably could have slept anywhere! Found being detached from the main site meant we were missing out on something. Ended up most nights in Strummerville, which we would probably wouldn't have done if were staying on site somewhere, so that's the only bonus. Don't get me wrong, it's perfectly fine in WV...but it doesn't beat the real thing.

Weather/ Mud

Didn't find it as bad as 97, mainly because I was wearing more suitable clothing and footwear! Only really rained a few times before Sunday afternoon, before it got a bit miserable. Heavy going between some of the stages, but manageable in wellies. Sat on grass Wed/ Thurs in places, but this had all disappeared by Friday. Only got proper pissed off with conditions on Sunday afternoon...trying to move between Other Stage and Pyramid was a nightmare and before LCD came on I was considering calling it a day - tired, wet, fed up of people. Then LCD came on.

Areas

When I met up with my Wife on Wednesday we ventured to the hill above The Park with a drink and settled down to let it soak in. Her first words - "Fucking Hell!". The only festival she had attended before was Leeds in 2006. Had told her it was slightly different, but don't think she comprehended how much!

On previous visits, as stated, I was a dyed-in-the wool indie kid and spent almost all of my time on the Pyramid/NME stage with a few visits to the Jazz/ World stage. Very ashamed of this, knowing what I know now!

We started every day with an amble through the Healing Fields and Craft Field. A bit corny, but I felt so peaceful and refreshed having a sit in the gardens and gaining some energy for the day ahead. Tried some laughing yoga, which was an, erm, laugh and had a go at learning some meditation. Didn't get round to crafting anything, although it is on the to-do list.

Spent some time around William's Green on the Thursday, sat down and watched a few acts on the bandstand. Wish we could have done the same later on in the weekend, but conditions were really bad underfoot. Of all the new (to me) areas we loved The Park, The Glade and Avalon areas the most. Cracking atmosphere, music and people. Loved all the different bars and stages around the Park, would think it was so much better if you could sit in the grass!

Silver Hayes was just the dance tent last time I went, so amazed at how much it has changed. Only saw one act over there though. Ambled around the new wood area by the JP tent - nice, but didn't see any bands there. Ditto the Acoustic and Theatre stages.

Had really high hopes for the SE corner, but just didn't do it for me. Had read about access problems after the main stages had finished, so got up there for 10pm on the Saturday. My wife was having a few "paranoia" issues when coming up on a goody, so she was getting a but freaked out waiting for the Stanton Warriors to come on at The Common. We had a walk round Block 9 when some "difficult" tecno music was playing which didn't help matters. We decided to leave for The Glade and see a bit of Carl Cox via Avalon where Turin Brakes where on. Only at Glastonbury could you get nosebleed techno, being danced to by 6 or 7 hardcore ravers in a grey dystopian theme park, 100 yards away from families sitting in deckchairs drinking from flasks watching Turin Brakes in a tent. Maybe we needed to go when we were up and dance the night away, found it a bit intimidating for a first-timer. And a bit soul-less in the daytime. We had a long wander around the site instead, hearing snippets of different sets along the way. Was fab. Went and stood by the Stone Circle for a bit, then spent the rest of the night in bars up by the Park. Got a bit excited when we were sitting in The Rabbit Hole bar and they mentioned that something special was about to happen on the Park Stage and that all music from bars would be stopped for the next hour. My automatic reaction: Radiohead secret set! Got down to the front and was about to message the Whatsapp group when it suddenly dawned on me that it may the Bowie tribute! Glad I didn't send that message and ruin everyone's night!

As I said, we ended most nights up at Strummerville chilling with a cup of tea and listening to the DJs. Loved the vibe of that place. Being close to it was the best thing about WV.

All the stages I hung around in my younger years didn't seem to have changed much. The Other Stage is still a bit of a unlovable place, but the atmosphere during LCD was incredible. Wish I had spent more time at West Holts, but the one act I did see there gave me my festival moment.

The Talent

With the help of this forum and Clashfinder, I had identified a handful of "must-sees" but not pre-planned too much.

Someone on here had mentioned that The Mighty Peas were a good laugh and really enjoyed watching them on the Bandstand. Caught the end of Ultimate Power on the WG stage and it was absolutely rammed! Managed to get a decent spot for The Smyths and they were fantastic - my Wife, avowed Morrissey-hater even enjoyed it!. Great to start to the weekend, and one of the best things about the festival increasing in size and scope is the Thursday entertainment.

Hung around the Pyramid a bit on Friday. Despite being the oldest person I could see there, enjoyed Skepta. TDCC and Jess Glynee were bit meh, but others in the group enjoyed them. ZZ Top were good. Caught a bit of Foals, but didn't blow me away.

Had a bit of grub, then wandered over to WH to watch Underworld. Rest of the group love Muse, whereas I am definitely a hater. Underworld had soundtracked my transition from indie to dance and was really looking forward to seeing them. And trying out these improved pills everyone had been talking about (my first for 7 years). My Wife decided to come with me, even though she loved Muse back in the day. Bought her "Drones" for Christmas, it's still in it's wrapper however. We had one of the most amazing nights we've ever had together. Roisin Murphy had got us in the mood before with a great set...but Underworld were something else. Had a bit of a moment during "If Rah" when the synth chords come in! There wasn't a duff moment in the set and they were both on top form. The crowd were awesome and there was plenty of drink sharing and hugs all around. Watched it back again on TV yesterday and it was as fab as I remembered. Wow.

Only saw bits and bobs on Saturday. Beans on Toast was really good, then saw Jagwar Ma and Floating Points at the Park where we had a lazy afternoon. Saw a bit of Super Hans in the Stonebridge Bar which was a laugh.

Made the effort to watch a bit more stuff on Sunday - Cassetteboy v DJ Rubbish was hilarious and Paul Heaton/ Jacqui Abbott was perfect for a Sunday afternoon. Had a bit of a soul-sapping trek to watch ELO. Musically brilliant, could have done with a bit of chat as it had just started to piss-down. Ventured to Sonic to see Craig David ( I know, I know..,) but he was cheesily-brilliant. Had a good old dance and sing-song. Coming out of there was a bit of a nightmare though...only time I felt concious about my age...and the only time I saw boys (and girls) pissing on the ground. Horrible muddy damp walk back to the Other Stage to watch LCD. Now, if it had been any other band I was ready to pack home and go home. Energy was low and weather had gone a bit shit. Rest of group had gone to see Coldplay (see Muse) and I felt like trudging back up the hill and into the warm car. The crowd looked really small...before the festival started I had visions of going a bananas to LCD in big group of like- minded souls...and I wasn't really feeling it. Had drank too much and the Growler I had a few hours before wasn't sitting too kindly in my tummy. Well, you know what they say about the restorative power of music? An hour and half later, kanckered but elated it was everything I had dreamed about and more. "All My Friends" usually chokes me up when I listen to it in the car...from now on, full-on bawling. How good was "Losing My Edge"?!

Food/ Drink

Took a fair bit of booze with me, but thought the quality, variety and price on-site was good. Bought a steel cup and cider tasted much better out of that...and stayed colder. Good selection of ales insome of the inns too. Didn't buy any wine of soft drinks, so can't comment on those. Bought a Water Aid bottle which kept water cool and loads of places to fill up.

Had some great vegan/ veggie food there, loved the Parsnip Ship and the vegan breakfast in the Green Fields. Curries were tasty. Wanted to try the Mac And Cheese but queue was too long. Had only one really shit bit of food - Chorizo and scrambled egg breakfast thing from Argentinian/ Peruvian place by The Glade. Fucking awful!

Growler. Had one. Loved it. Regretted it. Still digesting it.

Toilets

Soooo much better than before. Hardly any horrible portaloos! Queues were bad sometimes, hopefully because of the no-pissing on the land pledge! Composters were good and loved the energy- crewting urinals by the Stone Circle. Long drops are long drops.

The Crowd

Still the same crazy, ecletic bunch of all ages. Obviously more middle-aged (like me) people there but crowd was still so much diverse than any other festival. Felt a bit out place around Silver Hayes where the average age seemed to be 16/17. But then, I felt a bit out of place around the camping chair set too!

Less dodgy folk openly selling drugs, but then more kids openly doing coke! Didn't see NOS being consumed.

Friendly crowd overall, lots helping folks being stuck in the mud or having a bad time. We chatted to a girl who had lost her friends and was having a downer...gave her a drink, took her back to her tent where she found her mates. Love the fact at Glastonbury you can go from having a chat with a bloke of pensionable age about Steve Hilage and Gong to having a discussion about the benefits/ downsides to doing mushrooms with teenage kids. As stated, was a bit intimidated by the sheer numbers and actions of kids around Sonic. But it's their festival too, why shouldn't they enjoy themselves? Just don't piss on the ground!

Stewards really cool and helpful, few Police I saw seemed to be enjoying it.

Conclusion

Thanks for everyone on this forum who has given me so much help and infor regarding attending again. I appreciate it greatly!

Had an absolutely incredible weekend, and my Wife can't stop talking about it. It is as good as it used to be....if not, a little better. Stay in Worthy View if you like, it's really fine. As soon as we got back though, we have bought a tent and are resaerching where to camp next year...if successful in the sale! Have cleared the first Sunday in October ready for it.

Kids. Don't do Growlers though. They're not worth it.

Thanks for reading, sorry for rambling on incoherently...

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1 hour ago, Craigston said:

Great read. Very brave I think taking by the plunge back in after 19 years. Informative as I'm hoping to take the wife next year for her first Glasto. Any further tips you've got for me to pass on to a 40 something first timer wife?

Do your research and ask loads of questions on here! Has she been to any festivals before?

My Wife's main concern was what kind of footwear to take - she ended up taking Docs and Wellies, which was an excellent choice. Just assure he she will have the time of her life at the best party in the world :)

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Nice post, really enjoyed reading that!

We are really tempted to return next year, it will be 10 years since our last one [and 27 since my first where I fell in love with the place and did the entirety of the 90s] so nice to know its still the same...

Lets face it, where else can you see Kangaroo Moon 4 days in a row if you so desire! :D

  

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3 hours ago, The Red Telephone said:

Do your research and ask loads of questions on here! Has she been to any festivals before?

My Wife's main concern was what kind of footwear to take - she ended up taking Docs and Wellies, which was an excellent choice. Just assure he she will have the time of her life at the best party in the world :)

Cheers. I've been doing that for years.

She been to a day or two at Leeds but like yourself, we would stay at worthy view or similar before if she liked it, we could stay on site the following year. I've done loads of Glastos over the years but she's never really been that up for it.

Tickets permitting, I think I'll do another one without her and then do 2018 with both her and my two daughters when the elder one has finished her GCSEs. It'll certainly be a different fest with the three of them in tow!

Edited by Craigston
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45 minutes ago, Craigston said:

Cheers. I've been doing that for years.

She been to a day or two at Leeds but like yourself, we would stay at worthy view or similar before if she liked it, we could stay on site the following year. I've done loads of Glastos over the years but she's never really been that up for it.

Tickets permitting, I think I'll do another one without her and then do 2018 with both her and my two daughters when the elder one has finished her GCSEs. It'll certainly be a different fest with the three of them in tow!

Good luck - sure the family will all love it!

Are we sure that it's deffo going ahead in 2018 or will it be a fallow year?

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1 hour ago, The Red Telephone said:

Good luck - sure the family will all love it!

Are we sure that it's deffo going ahead in 2018 or will it be a fallow year?

I'm pretty sure that it's 2019 they've scheduled as the next fallow year. All subject to change of course. I remember being gutted when Glasto 2001 was cancelled. 

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5 hours ago, Craigston said:

I'm pretty sure that it's 2019 they've scheduled as the next fallow year. All subject to change of course. I remember being gutted when Glasto 2001 was cancelled. 

Sorry. That's utter bollocks. 2018 is a fallow year and they're talking about having the fest somewhere else. 

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