SE Corner Tactics.

[Wilfko]

So like most people here i'm slightly obsessed with Glastonbury and (having been successful in the resale) I will be returning for my 4th tour (15, 17, 19), my excitement levels are off the charts.

I typically find the most joy out of bimbling around, popping my head into little gigs, eating food, checking out the green fields and all the little micro venues dotted along either side of the railway track etc etc

One thing I think i've never managed to quite 'nail' is the SE corner.. Don't get me wrong, ive been many times and danced for a bit, but I never quite find myself in a spot that feels 'right', this is despite me being a very enthusiastic dancer and generally really up for it. I think the problem I find is the sheer traffic inbetween each area makes it impossible to feel like you're in the centre of a venue and not just stuck out in the middle of a footpath, I somehow always end up feeling i've been Shepparded out of the one way system and by that point getting back in is a nightmare.. My favourite memory is getting into Temple at just the right time in 2017 and enjoying the vibe in there for a few hours before leaving to go somewhere else and encountering the above issue and kind of giving up, heading somewhere else like crows nest.

I'd absolutely love to turn up at this years festival with a bit more of a plan (if that doesn't sound too anti fun). any advice with regards to timings, specific areas that are a good place to shoot for? I still don't feel i've experienced it in the way i'd like to. 

I will dance to pretty much anything, but I have a particular love of funk and soul.. one of my groups annual traditions is Craig Charles on the Friday.

Edited April 12, 2022 by Wilfko

[whitehorses]

17 minutes ago, Wilfko said:

Yeah, this is clearly to just filter fucked people out as quickly as possible. If they didn’t organise it like this it (SE corner) would be chock full of fucked people stumbling around and the queues to get in would be even worse.

Knowing that this is the crowd management ploy is half the battle I guess. And then choosing where you’re going to head to and why. And also being alert to when you’re close to being filtered out and un-fucking yourself for a few minutes to reorganise:)

 

edit: oh sorry messed up the quote. I was quoting the bit about the one way system. 

Edited April 12, 2022 by whitehorses

[Wilfko]

2 minutes ago, whitehorses said:

Yeah, this is clearly to just filter fucked people out as quickly as possible. If they didn’t organise it like this it would be chock full of fucked people stumbling around and the queues to get in would be even worse.

Knowing that this is the crowd management ploy is half the battle I guess. And then choosing where you’re going to head to and why. And also being alert to when you’re close to being filtered out and un-fucking yourself for a few minutes to reorganise:)

 

edit: oh sorry messed up the quote. I was quoting the bit about the one way system. 

Yes this seems like exactly how we keep going wrong, it's so bloody frustrating!

[whitehorses]

2 minutes ago, Wilfko said:

Yes this seems like exactly how we keep going wrong, it's so bloody frustrating!

Haha yeah 😂 

It seems to get harder and harder each year to just explore in there rather than fight the one way system, so imagine this year will be quite tricksy.

[BambooShanks]

3 minutes ago, whitehorses said:

Yeah, this is clearly to just filter fucked people out as quickly as possible. If they didn’t organise it like this it (SE corner) would be chock full of fucked people stumbling around and the queues to get in would be even worse

Ah, I see you've witnessed me trying to navigate the SEC in the early hours of the morning.

Generally though when the full line out comes out, see which night has DJs / acts that catch your eye the most and hope that's on a night where you're not too bothered about the headliners so you can get an easy entry into the SEC / or see something at West Holts / Glade for similar reasons.

The other bonus with going early is usually you won't be as wobbly and you'll be more aware of when you're getting shepherded  through the 1-way system when you really don't want to be.

Basically, have a plan, get there early and then get as messy as comfortably possible.

[fred quimby]

19 minutes ago, Wilfko said:

So like most people here i'm slightly obsessed with Glastonbury and (having been successful in the resale) I will be returning for my 4th tour (15, 17, 19), my excitement levels are off the charts.

I typically find the most joy out of bimbling around, popping my head into little gigs, eating food, checking out the green fields and all the little micro venues dotted along either side of the railway track etc etc

One thing I think i've never managed to quite 'nail' is the SE corner.. Don't get me wrong, ive been many times and danced for a bit, but I never quite find myself in a spot that feels 'right', this is despite me being a very enthusiastic dancer and generally really up for it. I think the problem I find is the sheer traffic inbetween each area makes it impossible to feel like you're in the centre of a venue and not just stuck out in the middle of a footpath, I somehow always end up feeling i've been Shepparded out of the one way system and by that point getting back in is a nightmare.. My favourite memory is getting into Temple at just the right time in 2017 and enjoying the vibe in there for a few hours before leaving to go somewhere else and encountering the above issue and kind of giving up, heading somewhere else like crows nest.

I'd absolutely love to turn up at this years festival with a bit more of a plan (if that doesn't sound too anti fun). any advice with regards to timings, specific areas that are a good place to shoot for? I still don't feel i've experienced it in the way i'd like to. 

I will dance to pretty much anything, but I have a particular love of funk and soul.. one of my groups annual traditions is Craig Charles on the Friday.

I hear your story.

Often just get into the thick of it  front an centre, or front and side for me so I can flail my arms. Anywhere else and you are on the conveyor belt of the bumbling people either looking fior something to grab them or just having a look.

Having a plan on who you want dance to really helps. @bennyhana22has this down to a fine art form.

Oh and Craig Charles is a Friday must

[SouthbanKen]

After a daytime focussed festival in 2019, i have a feeling that this year will be a more nighttime focussed festival for me and Mrs SBK. I want to do a good few hours at Pangea and catch the show there (if there is one?) and I want to do a proper night in the SE corner. Our dancing last year was focussed around Silver Hayes, which whilst great, doesnt have the same level of otherworldness as the SE Corner. 

[Wilfko]

1 minute ago, SouthbanKen said:

After a daytime focussed festival in 2019, i have a feeling that this year will be a more nighttime focussed festival for me and Mrs SBK. I want to do a good few hours at Pangea and catch the show there (if there is one?) and I want to do a proper night in the SE corner. Our dancing last year was focussed around Silver Hayes, which whilst great, doesnt have the same level of otherworldness as the SE Corner. 

To be honest Silver Hayes is the only area of the festival that really does nothing for me, it's just a bit too generic.

[gooner1990]

2 minutes ago, Wilfko said:

To be honest Silver Hayes is the only area of the festival that really does nothing for me, it's just a bit too generic.

Whole area feels like Global Gathering.

[mazola]

I think half the problem is people just heading there, doing a circuit and coming back out again. To be fair I've been guilty of it in the past. Last few years I've only ventured there with a destination in mind, it's not really much fun having a bimble there anymore.

It always amazes me how the first few years I went (started in 2008) it was much easier to have a wander there especially when there wasn't so much late night entertainment anywhere else either

[SouthbanKen]

5 minutes ago, gooner1990 said:

Whole area feels like Global Gathering.

Couldn't agree more, really lacks anything in terms of the look and feel, but the acts there were, for me, too big a pull and we had a great time on the Thursday there plus Sub Focus vs High Contrast was possibly my highlight of the weekend. 

[BlackZeppelin]

I agree with the OP, the SEC can feel a bit transitory, like you're obligated to move on.

Apart from stewarding one year at Glasto-latino, when it was over there, I can't remember spending more than a couple of hours there at a stretch.

[Respectfatfrog]

16 minutes ago, Wilfko said:

To be honest Silver Hayes is the only area of the festival that really does nothing for me, it's just a bit too generic.

But its silent disco is great 

[whitehorses]

Silver Hayes is also relatively flat and tree-less compared to much of the rest of the site. And windy… So it always feels a bit barren compared to the enclosed wonder of the SEC

[FrancisH]

Relate with this a lot. For me queuing to get in somewhere for hours feels like a waste of precious time at Glasto - more often than not I will go with the intention of trying to see a specific act and found a queue for miles so just wandered around it for a bit instead, got forced through the one way system, had a dance at something random and then found myself elsewhere on site until the early hours.

[rubick]

You really have to hit it at the right time - which in most cases is about an hour earlier than the thing you want to see starts at. Love Craig Charles Funk & Soul Club but we haven't got near the place since 2016 - it's always totally rammed. 

[gooner1990]

I actually found getting in the SEC corner at 3am ish a doddle in 2019....not sure if the lack of big names on IICON was an influence but didn't seem as manic as before.

2017 we went in at a similar time on the Saturday night and spent a good 30 mins waiting at the barriers to get in which was a total buzz kill.

Edited April 12, 2022 by gooner1990

[Homer]

You've answered your own question: just go to The Temple, it's the best venue there by miles (I usually spend most after hours either there or Arcadia generally).

Top tip: there are usually queues to get in at the entrance facing the railway track. Just walk around to the other side and there is another entrance that rarely has any queue. I have spent hours in The Temple and this bit of knowledge has allowed me to go back and forth to the toilet all night, passing the queue at the front each time.

[Homer]

Also, if you have a headliner at West Hols then go to the SE Corner that night, as ever if you leave at the end, you will be ahead of the masses. (If my headliner is at the Pyramid/Other, I generally head to Arcadia that night.)

[Mezhyp1]

It was a doddle in 2019, certainly for Block 9. Though being around West Holts always helps if you're really in a rush in there 

[whitehorses]

1 minute ago, Homer said:

Also, if you have a headliner at West Hols then go to the SE Corner that night, as ever if you leave at the end, you will be ahead of the masses. (If my headliner is at the Pyramid/Other, I generally head to Arcadia that night.)

👆

[gooner1990]

23 minutes ago, SouthbanKen said:

Couldn't agree more, really lacks anything in terms of the look and feel, but the acts there were, for me, too big a pull and we had a great time on the Thursday there plus Sub Focus vs High Contrast was possibly my highlight of the weekend. 

The Blues bit is alright when they pump out the dnb in the early evening, not sure if that was there in 2019 as I worked the festival and didn't go down to that bit.

[gooner1990]

10 minutes ago, Homer said:

You've answered your own question: just go to The Temple, it's the best venue there by miles (I usually spend most after hours either there or Arcadia generally).

Top tip: there are usually queues to get in at the entrance facing the railway track. Just walk around to the other side and there is another entrance that rarely has any queue. I have spent hours in The Temple and this bit of knowledge has allowed me to go back and forth to the toilet all night, passing the queue at the front each time.

Oh a slightly related note, The Temple is open on the Thursday too albeit only until 3am so if you're on one and fancy it without the big crowds but not going on so late then give it a go then. (We did in 2019)

[fred quimby]

23 minutes ago, rubick said:

You really have to hit it at the right time - which in most cases is about an hour earlier than the thing you want to see starts at. Love Craig Charles Funk & Soul Club but we haven't got near the place since 2016 - it's always totally rammed. 

Ha, your timing comment is so true. For Craig we rocked up after he started and got a great space. It just depends

[Homer]

5 minutes ago, gooner1990 said:

Oh a slightly related note, The Temple is open on the Thursday too albeit only until 3am so if you're on one and fancy it without the big crowds but not going on so late then give it a go then. (We did in 2019)

Yeah, I usually go to the Temple opening party which is early evening on Thurs with the wife. When they open the doors, everyone charges in. Hold on, there are some pics on Facebollocks...