Regrets? I've had a few...

[BluePaul]

We all know it's impossible to see everything at Glastonbury, and the trick is to go with the flow, enjoy the moment...but is there any particular occasion where you got it horribly, spectacularly wrong?  By missing something wonderful or, probably worse, persevering with something you really needed to get away from?

It was 2009.  I'd already seen Bruce and Neil headlining the Pyramid and in my head it felt very important not to spend all three headline slots at the same stage.  So on the Sunday I sloped off to see Roger McGuinn followed by Georgie Fame in Acoustic...so missed out on the (apparently) transcendental Blur set that year.

Almost as bad as the time back in 1980 when me and a group of mates were off to see Buzzcocks at the Top Rank in Sheffield and decided to have a few more scoops in the pub rather than see the support band.  "We'll see them next time round" we said.  Sadly Ian Curtis committed suicide a few weeks later...

[TiZuff]

Went to see crystal castles headline JP over Arctic Monkeys on the Pyramid.

Seeing New Order over Adele

Seeing Chems over the killers last time (chems were great but seen them loads).

[GeezLouise]

I think that the key thing to remember at Glastonbury is that there are so many things going on all the time, do not persevere and do not stay to see something just because your mates are.  One memory of this is when we were standing near a guy during Kanye who was complaining constantly about how hip hop and rap shouldn't be at Glastonbury and that the Pyramid should only have legends on. So part-way through, I tapped him on the shoulder and pointed out that Parliament and Funkadelic were playing on WH and he should go there if he was having a bad time.  I asked him to stop moaning as he was ruining his friends evening. He stopped complaining after that to be fair to him. 

I get away with stuff like this because I'm 5 foot nothing (100% a Napoleon complex), i would probably get clobbered if i was someone else. 

 

[Hotchilidog]

In retrospect missing Blur would be my regret, although at the time I wasn't particularly enamoured with them, so who's to say if I had watched them I would have got a lot out of it. Having watched the set since, it really was a true Glastonbury moment and I now wish I had been there.

[t0paz]

2000 when I didn’t see Bowie. Can’t even remember what I was watching instead…

[Fishman]

Just now, t0paz said:

2000 when I didn’t see Bowie. Can’t even remember what I was watching instead…

Well I wasn't on my own watching Basement Jaxx ....

[GeezLouise]

I always go to see the stages where there are gaps in the lineup in the hope there are secret sets and miss something great on another stage.  Having said that, I will never change and will always hold out for a secret set. 

 

[balti-pie]

i don't have any regrets at the time, cos i'm making decisions based on what i think is the right thing to do and it's all good. I sacked off Radiohead where all my mates were to go and watch the Flaming Lips at the park, even though i've already seen the Flips a lot of times - double figures now, itll be twelve in June 😅 - and i was never going to watch the Foo Fighters, cos the dead kennedys were on the Truth stage and were amazing, but pretty much everyone i talked to after that night were raving about the Foos - people there, people at home, basically everyone universally declared it A Big Glasto Moment but im still very happy i was at the DK's. I cant retrofit my decisions, i'm happy!

[kaytee...]

Did a friend a favour and saw Jake Bugg headline other stage in 2014. They're not a friend anymore 😆

[rubick]

My biggest regret is not going to Glastonbury sooner than I did.

Edited April 8, 2022 by rubick

[the wonderwhy]

My only regret is watching stupid Muse and the stupid Globalist instead of Underworld. 

Underworld - New Order - LCD would've been a GOAT headline trio, instead it is forever tainted. 

[Florian Saucer Attack]

5 minutes ago, Fishman said:

Well I wasn't on my own watching Basement Jaxx ....

lol

[balti-pie]

Just now, rubick said:

My biggest regret is not going to Glastonbury sooner than I did.

very much this! 

in 97 and 98 i was 18/19, and wanted to go - but none of my mates did. i didnt really have the gumption and/or the wherewithal to just crack on and do it on my own, so i didnt go. i didnt get my shit together til 2005, when i got together with a woman who had already been to glasto loads of times, so it was much easier. i missed out on the pre-fence days, i'd love a wander round that festival then . . . 

[blutarsky]

3 minutes ago, rubick said:

My biggest regret is not going to Glastonbury sooner than I did.

This!

[t0paz]

6 minutes ago, Fishman said:

Well I wasn't on my own watching Basement Jaxx ....

Having checked the lineup I’m pretty sure 2000 me would have though the clash between Basement Jaxx, Ozomatli and Mickey Finn too close to call. Bowie wouldn’t have got a look in!

[Jay Pee]

7 minutes ago, the wonderwhy said:

My only regret is watching stupid Muse and the stupid Globalist instead of Underworld. 

Underworld - New Order - LCD would've been a GOAT headline trio, instead it is forever tainted. 

I did that bottom line.  Not the best New Order set by any stretch but who cares

[ErnestWorthing]

4 minutes ago, balti-pie said:

very much this! 

in 97 and 98 i was 18/19, and wanted to go - but none of my mates did. i didnt really have the gumption and/or the wherewithal to just crack on and do it on my own, so i didnt go. i didnt get my shit together til 2005, when i got together with a woman who had already been to glasto loads of times, so it was much easier. i missed out on the pre-fence days, i'd love a wander round that festival then . . . 

So much this.  In 97 I was still at school and I remember sneaking a radio in so I could listen to the radio one coverage, I was SO excited.  Then all my mates went to Reading, they were into harder music so Glastonbury just fell off the radar until I finally went in 2009, can't believe I didn't go earlier.

Only regret I can think of is leaving the Hives, who were having a great show, to accompany my girlfriend to see Haim (who were meh).

[rubick]

Just now, Jay Pee said:

I did that bottom line.  Not the best New Order set by any stretch but who cares

Same here - actually saw LCD Soundsystem and New Order twice that year.

 

[buddiepaul]

11 minutes ago, balti-pie said:

i don't have any regrets at the time, cos i'm making decisions based on what i think is the right thing to do and it's all good. I sacked off Radiohead where all my mates were to go and watch the Flaming Lips at the park, even though i've already seen the Flips a lot of times - double figures now, itll be twelve in June 😅 - and i was never going to watch the Foo Fighters, cos the dead kennedys were on the Truth stage and were amazing, but pretty much everyone i talked to after that night were raving about the Foos - people there, people at home, basically everyone universally declared it A Big Glasto Moment but im still very happy i was at the DK's. I cant retrofit my decisions, i'm happy!

Our group was split for the Radiohead /Flaming Lips clash.  I went to Flaming Lips (never in doubt) and was by the barrier.  That was one of the best memories I have of that year.  Definitely the best decision.

[EMorgz92]

Had a stupid argument with my then-partner over where to go, ended up seeing the Jacksons (I think?!) On West Holts over the Foo Fighters. Was rubbish sound and couldn't find our group so really disappointing.

Also napped instead of Royal Blood, that wasn't intentional, but also gutting

[BluePaul]

4 minutes ago, ErnestWorthing said:

Only regret I can think of is leaving the Hives, who were having a great show, to accompany my girlfriend to see Haim (who were meh).

Oh man The Hives - that was so much better than I thought it was going to be!  Seeing them at Bearded Theory next month and can't wait! (Might even have to take a ladder for them...)

[t0paz]

2 minutes ago, buddiepaul said:

Our group was split for the Radiohead /Flaming Lips clash.  I went to Flaming Lips (never in doubt) and was by the barrier.  That was one of the best memories I have of that year.  Definitely the best decision.

Great gig. I got there early enough to work out where the platform was that Wayne would roll out to and made sure I was in the path and he went straight over me. Might be my favourite headline set

[Ingobernable]

I was 17 when I first went to the festival and in those first few trips I did way more bouncing around the main stages than I ever would now. I wasn't as online as I am now in 2002 so it took me a while to cotton on to all the extra fun that there is to be had. 

I definitely regret going Way Too Hard before the Rolling Stones in 2013. My friends TELL me I enjoyed it, and there's PICTURES of me enjoying it, but the memories aren't matched up. 

I've probably made plenty of choices that I wouldn't make now - because of group consensus or because it's raining and the band I want to see are miles away, or because it's two in the morning and I don't rally care what DJs are on anyway, or because Conor Oberst turns out to be a dickhead. The only one that's fresh in my mind is Tame Impala instead of Stormzy in 2019. Maybe Bryan Ferry instead of Dexys in 2014. 

Edited April 8, 2022 by Ingobernable

[BlackZeppelin]

Ed Sheeran over anybody else

 

I think we went to see what the fuss was about, and regretted it, ended up at Justice at WH, much better!

[mazola]

England vs Germany over Ray Davies

Janet Jackson instead of Lizzo, not sure what happened here think my brain boiled in the heat, was always intending to see Lizzo but it went out the window on the day