franks

It was definitely a jokey "No! Never again!" and then they kept avoiding answering the question, so who knows. What was interesting to me was that in the same interview they said that the Wembley weekend was better than Glasto 2009. With the way they've spoken about it in the past I thought nothing could beat that, but there we are. Damon also said it means they've sort of run out of options and maybe it's 'the end', but it didn't feel very serious. I've always been resigned to the fact that I'll probably never see them at Worthy Farm, and was really nervous when they announced the Wembley shows/TBOD that they were past their prime. Very happy to admit how wrong I was now! They seem to be having so much fun at the moment, I honestly don't think I can rule them out for next year. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking...

So interesting to read everyone's debrief!! I managed to get in with Oxfam very last minute so I was so grateful to be there. I'd stewarded with them in 2015 so knew roughly what to expect, but I'd had incredible shifts (Gate A Wed 2pm-10pm, Gate B Thurs 6am-2pm, Gate B Fri 10pm-6am) so was expecting something a little tougher this time. Got there Tuesday afternoon which is probably my biggest regret, I'd offered someone a lift but they couldn't get there til much later so we didn't arrive until about 5pm, which meant our briefing was at 9pm! Fortunately I knew people in the Oxfield who were able to save a space for my tent. Ended up with C shifts (Weds 10pm-6am, Fri 2pm-10pm and Sun 6am-2pm) which I was happy with - free for Elton and Lizzo. The worst thing was that it was all at Gate D so had a lot more commuting time compared to my previous stint. Had a great group of people though, including really good supervisors and a great Team Lead who was really experienced and wanted to ensure we were safe and comfortable on shift - he let us have 15 minute breaks in the shade on the Friday shift on top of our actual break and the supervisors would regularly go and get water for us all. Also made sure everyone was signed out well before shifts ended. One of the worst things was the handover to the following shift - the briefings from the incoming team lead took forever! It was like he took each steward personally to where they needed to be and explained each role individually. Not ideal when we'd been so efficient at relieving the shift before us, especially after the night shift and I just wanted to get some sleep before it got too hot. Our Team Lead actually apologised on the next shift because we were relieved after our shift had technically finished. Fortunately we didn't have too many complainers on shift and throwing yourself into it really helps the time pass - I got really into being a human megaphone on Sunday morning. One thing I did notice (definitely don't want to start anything here) but as the stereotype for someone who might not be prepared for the work (woman under 35) there were definitely a few older blokes who were just sort of stood around wanting to have a chat even when it was busy? I get it's harder when you don't have a specific job and you're just meat on the gate, but when Sunday morning started getting really busy with people going out to their cars I found myself having to organise them a bit as it was like they were waiting to be told what to do. Overall I had an amazing time and I'm SO grateful I was able to get in I can't really complain. But it was tiring this year and I definitely didn't do the same level of exploration I normally do as a ticket holder. I had friends with tickets who I went to see when I wasn't working but I did miss out on the usual rituals our group has. Still weighing up whether I want to do another festival with Oxfam to get priority. The showers and quieter campsite were so welcome this year but I think I'd still prefer to have a ticket. But who knows, maybe I'll be back on this thread next year hunting for another Oxfam space! Going and volunteering is definitely better than not going.

This. There was no way we could do Barca or Madrid this year, just way too expensive. Decided to give Porto a go instead and I’m 100% converted. Even with the storms! Would love to do Barca again at some point but the only way I see that happening right now is if I have a huge windfall of cash or PS reduces prices, neither particularly likely….

😂 I set myself up for that really. No sign of mud last night despite the constant downpour but will have to see what the site is like today… Oh no, we got some flavoured water from the little Porto truck, but we didn’t find any water points either.

wet!

Ah yeah I remember being really confused by this, installing the chrome extension allowed me to monitor locally I think? Pretty sure it let me set shorter intervals that way too.

Yeah I had about 10 distill monitors tracking the same thing set up at 5 second intervals but all staggered, which did become a bit of a nightmare when they all went off, but made it more likely to pick something up! I also set notifications to come through the app on my phone. It was hard being on edge for an alert at all hours I have to admit, especially after missing the 7am drop, but it did pay off so keep at it!

Thank you!! I’d all but given up hope on Monday, started admitting to myself I wasn’t going but kept distill on and it happened! I hope you’ve had some success at getting in?!

Just got 2 spots for me and my partner! Absolutely over the moon!! Hopefully still there if anyone wants them

We were a 3 person team and won, so don't count yourself out! It was definitely suited to our collective knowledge though, made getting through the £50 bar voucher a fun challenge when were already a few pints deep....

Same here. It all went up so much that we decided to do Porto instead - everything was essentially half the price of Barcelona but still with a decent amount of the lineup. Glad to hear it's a much nicer experience for those who are there though, that first day last year was pretty hairy!

Oh congrats!! The clipart comment does feel unfair now, sorry, I'm not salty mine didn't get picked honest 😂 Very curious which one yours is now, best of luck!!

It does feel like the brief was ignored a little bit, or they simply had too many to get through in a day. Not going to get too upset though, will cast my vote and try and move past the fact that some of them are giving clipart...as well as confronting the FOMO!

There was defo a Glasto round, and a lot of music themed questions plus intros round but there was also the usual general knowledge and news rounds too - was a good long quiz on a sunny Wednesday afternoon in my favourite place, the dream! Definitely! Looks like we could have some healthy competition too!!

No need to apologise! I didn't mean for it to sound accusatory, sorry 😊 makes perfect sense - I was a punter last year, this was in the Shelter bar in West Holts. Congrats on your win! Excellent to know that there are 2 quizzes on the off chance I get in to work it....