Lolza Mvula
If any of you are into comedy I’ve got a little caption-based gag for you …
I’m here all night! Actually I’m not here all night, I’m about to clock off. Tim Jonze will be in control of the liveblog from 7pm onwards, chatting about headliners Coldplay, LCD Soundsystem and anything else that pops into his brain.
And while you’re waiting for that, here’s some excellent additional Glastonbury content to read:
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Glastonbury’s not just about music and politics. It’s also an excuse for people to forget all of their adult woes and behave like giant, nappyless toddlers for three days straight. Here is some video evidence.
Bat For Lashes at the John Peel stage
Ben Beaumont-Thomas went over to watch Natasha Khan at the John Peel stage. Here’s what he thought:
Dressed in a gown that nods to new album The Bride, Natasha Khan doubles down the torrid emotions of her work to date, bringing powerfully heartfelt songwriting that oscillates between the desperation and rapture of true love. Her driving disco numbers cruise with pure confidence, but the likes of Laura challenge Adele for the weekend’s ballad crown.
Could a battle of the balladeers be on the cards? I definitely do not condone violence but I’m thinking of trying to arrange a fight between the two artists in a mud pit later on. Who would win do you think? I imagine Adele’s tactics would be quite shove-based while Natasha concentrates more on strangulation and kicking. Just a hunch.
Thanks for following this liveblog, I totally understand if it’s not the Pulitzer prize quality journalism you were expecting.
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Jeff Lynne's ELO play the legend slot
For all the great tracks that precede it – a stirring Telephone Line, the sprightly disco of You Shine a Light on My Life, the mass boogie of Roll Over Beethoven – there’s only one thing everyone’s here for. As the bouncy opening chords to Mr Blue Sky make an appearance, you wonder if the clouds above the Pyramid might take the hint and part, but they stay stubbornly in place. No matter, the communal sing-song that follows is enough to lift anyone’s spirits.
Project Escape Worthy Farm comes unstuck
I tell you what, once ticketholders leave those golden gates, all manner of adult atrocities face them.
According to our reporters Lisa O’Carroll and Hannah Ellis-Petersen, Glastonbury has suffered the worst rain and mud since the festival began 46 years ago, consuming the area’s entire supply of woodchip in the process.
Founder Michael Eavis says he will not consider moving the festival to later in the summer to avoid the wet blaming the torrential rain that hit the 1,000 acre site in the weeks before the gates opened on global warming.
He said he was amazed at how the 180,000 festivalgoers remained cheery despite the weather.
“I drove round the whole site last night. It took right up until 4.30am and the sun was up and there was just thousands of happy people with smiles on their faces despite the adverse conditions. It is extraordinary. I do not know how they do it, but they love it so much,” he said.
“Every single bit of woodchip in the south of England, all of it is here over 1,000 acres,” he said.
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Bowie flashmob: Hero worship on the Pyramid stage
There’s nothing I dislike more than a flashmob. Other than maybe self-service checkouts, earwigs and people who put their bags on the empty seat on a busy bus. Could the impromptu Bowie dance-athon over on Pyramid stage convince me otherwise? I don’t know, I didn’t go! But my dear friend and esteemed colleague Marta Bausells popped along. Here’s what she thought:
Starman flashmob at Pyramid stage (vid doesn't remotely reflect its awesomeness etc) #guardianglasto pic.twitter.com/bi8hgP9xs8
— Marta Bausells (@martabausells) June 26, 2016
There’s nothing like a Starman flashmob to wake up the hungover crowd hanging at the Pyramid Stage. Laura Mvula had just finished an electric and emotive show and the sleepy crowds were slowly making their way into other fields, when a member of the production crew took over the mic and started to pay homage to the many musical stars that passed away this year – Prince, Lemmy, Bowie – before adding that “there’s a lot other going on in the outside world. Here at Glastonbury we’re going to recharge ourselves.”
He said the crew wanted to pay tribute to Bowie by screening his final performance at the Pyramid stage – which took place in 2000 – on the screens. The crowd immediately switched back on and embarked in a mass singalong. Amazingly, this was followed by a Starman flashmob with choreography directed by a group of dancers on stage. The perfect way to recharge the collective spirits if there ever was one.
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The second half of Sunday ...
Hi world.
It’s me, Harriet Hope Gibsone. I’m 30 years old, relatively terse and am wearing a leather bumbag.
I’ll be your Glastonbury guide for the next few hours – we’ve got reviews of Jeff Lynne’s ELO, Bat For Lashes and much more on the way.
Before then, here’s a picture of our present setting, just so you can sense the mood, stench and all-round rancid atmosphere as I type.
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Glasto drag queens pay tribute to Orlando victims
Glastonbury’s first gay club, NYC Downlow, is always riot of expression and celebration, but in the wake of Orlando, its performers reflected on why now is the time to “respect each other” and why it’s “more important than ever” to introduce people to queer culture. Hannah Ellis-Petersen reports from the drag queen dressing room, and check out these amazing portraits by David Levene …
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Eavis speaks!
Lisa O’Carroll is at the annual Michael Eavis Glastonbury press conference. A full report to come but here are some highlights:
- It’s the worst rain and mud for 46 years.
- Glastonbury is to remain home of festival. May not even do Longleat in 2019.
- Would love Fleetwood Mac to play, but they asked for too much money.
- Woman who collapsed at Adele gig did a “Lazarus”. “Came off in stretcher, was helped up and just walked away”.
- A human procession is taking place from Greenpeace site to Glastonbury sign in hills to form a massive “Glastonbury loves Europe” sign.
- He will not consider moving date of festival to avoid rain. “It doesn’t make any difference”.
Gong to the Green Fields
Meanwhile, in what looks like the cleanest tent in the whole of Worthy Farm, our multimedia team have spied someone having what is called a gong bath. What is a gong bath, you say? It’s something to do with gongs, and healing, and really spotless hippies. Which actually, as I sit here listening to what sounds like Fatman Scoop holler over the speakers in the backstage area and contemplate my grubby fingernails, looks like heavenly, heavenly bliss.
Kamasi Washington serves up a funky Sunday service
Six years ago, the Jazz World stage was retitled West Holts, with a promise to bring “the best groove-based music from around the world” to the festival. For today’s huge lunchtime crowd, Kamasi Washington and his band did just that. But the 35-year-old Los Angeles saxophonist – who cropped up on the left-of-mainstream’s radar thanks to his playing on Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly before he really made his mark with his own album of last year, The Epic – didn’t shy from real hardcore jazz either. Bassist Miles Mosley and keyboard Brandon Coleman helped produce a thunderous sound that recalled early to mid-70s Miles Davis at his most badass. Washington, meanwhile, powered through, aided by a special guest – his own father Rickey Washington – on soprano sax and flute. Often it felt like a Sunday religious service, only of the funkiest kind.
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What the Dickinson!
Gwilym also overheard Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott – who were playing on the Other Stage – share some insight into their key demographic…
“It’s so nice to see some young people here. Usually our crowds are like the queue for the Antiques Roadshow. No, worse – Dickinson’s Real Deal!”
For the uninitiated, look out for Heaton and Abbott fans that resemble this photo around the Glasto site.
TV presenter David Dickinson backstage at the British Academy Television Awards at the London Palladium. Photograph: Westian Ian West/EMPICS
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Hinds: a fawning review
Just as the Park crowd has been gently lulled into a reverie by C Duncan (see below), Hinds singer Carlotta Cosials marches up to the mic and lets out a guttural howl that jolts everyone awake. It sets the tone for a set that never lets up on the noise levels, with the Madrid group’s Breeders-style surf rock clattering off every available surface. I need a lie down!
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A love letter to the best disco on the Block
There is a reason why, every year, the Guardian Glasto team (and this year, even Noel Gallagher) find themselves holed up in Block9, pressed into the sweaty backs of bears, leather guys, fabulous drag queens and on fleek festivallers and dancing – or trying to, at least – to the best house and disco. The Guardian’s resident rave dad Will Dean captures its very special magic …
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The best way to propose at Glasto?
During Gregory Porter’s set, of course! (Or Adele’s. Or Coldplay’s. There’s blatantly going to be at least five proposals during Yellow alone, isn’t there?) Over at the Pyramid stage, love was in the air for the soul man’s show. Ben Beaumont-Thomas got emotional …
With a sizeable crowd needing heads soothing, ever-ascendent jazz superstar Gregory Porter applies a caramel-rich balm. His soul-pop hits have people clapping delightedly along, but there’s still room for improv and bop; the languid Take Me to The Alley sees Porter deliver saintly lyrics with gorgeous precision. It’s so swoony that a couple get engaged on stage – my eyes rapidly moistening – before Porter hits the crowd with a cover of Papa Was a Rolling Stone. His status as the biggest crossover jazz artist of the decade is further cemented with one of the weekend’s best sets.
Gregory Porter getting the crowd started at the Pyramid Stage. Congrats to Tom and Zoe who just engaged on stage! BC pic.twitter.com/7k8x81RmPv
— Glastonbury Live (@GlastoLive) June 26, 2016
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Never a troll moment
Howdy y’all. K-Hutch here, back on the blog for the next two hours after my encounter with Glastonbury’s troll squad. Here’s how they’d describe the festival in three words…
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Handing over!
Freed from the grips of the trolls, Kate Hutchinson is taking over on the live blog. Thanks for your company!
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Don’t feed the trolls!
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Love is in the air
You may be familiar with the Guardian’s Weekend magazine, and its Blind date column. Well, they took it to Glastonbury, and two people agreed to participate. I pity the fools. Mind you, maybe love really is in the air – because Ben Beaumont-Thomas has sent a carrier pigeon from the Pyramid stage with the news that a couple just got engaged on stage during Gregory Porter’s set. More on that later.
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Rumour time!
Could it be true that C Duncan and PJ Harvey (who plays the Other stage this evening) are going to perform Let’s Get Ready to Rhumble on the Pyramid stage later, billed as PJ and Duncan?
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Some music!
It’s hard to think of a better balm for the Sunday lunchtime sore heads than the pastoral bedroom pop of C Duncan. The winding melodies of the multi-instrumentalist’s Mercury-nominated album, Architect, have lost nothing in transit to the Park stage, where the lovely three-part harmonies of his live band hover soothingly over the crowd. As hangover cures go, it definitely beats a Berocca.
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In the meantime, some reviews
Our lot were out and about all day yesterday, catching bands opening stages and closing stages, and playing in the middle of the day on stages. Here are our thoughts about what we saw …
Straw men
To counter the conditions at the front of the Pyramid stage, they’re carting in tons of straw to lay down on the mud. To create what I like to call “muddy straw”.
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How Adele owes it all to the Guardian
The Biggest Star in the World® was nothing until the Guardian picked her up and let her appear in our old lounge at Glastonbury nine years ago. Our then editor, Alan Rusbridger, gave her some tips on lyric writing, and the rest is history.
From a small tent in 2007 to headlining on a Saturday night. What a journey, @Adele. #Glastonbury pic.twitter.com/GxWwKTAFHL
— BBC Two (@BBCTwo) June 25, 2016
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Star news!
Top Actor Stephen Mangan has been on Twitter.
Couldn't make #Glastonbury this year so have recreated it in my local park pic.twitter.com/AUitQhQ3Sz
— Stephen Mangan (@StephenMangan) June 26, 2016
The petition begins here!
I’m anticipating getting a good dozen signatures over the next year, but lend your support please. I want Saxon to appear at next year’s Glastonbury. I want to hear Denim and Leather washing over the unwashed hordes. I think you do, too.
Glastonbury memories
This year has been my first ever Glastonbury, and I was dreading it. It’s not been as bad as I feared. And before going down I read this excellent piece by Dorian Lynskey about more than 20 years of going to Glastonbury, which lessened the fear a little. Give it a read. It’s fantastic.
The adventurers
We have remarked frequently over the last few days that, given the conditions, getting around the site is a little like an alpine expedition: you could fancy having three or four camps with supplies along the way. These chaps obviously agree.
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Circus news!
News from the circus tent, where the MC is trying to whip up the crowd:
‘I know it’s Sunday morning, but come on: Give me a C! Give me an I! …’ It’s all very chilled, with some geezer having just spun himself round the stage in a giant hoop. Now ‘the amazing Oscar and Tony’ – two chaps in black pants – are being pulled up into the air to perform some extraordinarily acrobatic, balletic moves together, which looks all the more poetic if you’ve been trudging through the mud for three days.”
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Politics update!
Tom Watson, the deputy leader of the Labour party, was apparently spotted at the silent disco last night. “At 3.29am he was singing and dancing at a silent disco with a wide grin on on his face, but less than seven hours later he was snapped at a train station checking his phone,” notes the Mail, with an unmistakeable tone of disapproval. Mind you, you’d think he might have better things to do this weekend than get tanked up and dance.
Also spotted this weekend: our picture guru Ranj is convinced he saw Top Hollywood Star Bradley Cooper rescuing a woman who had fallen off a barstool into the mud by the Park stage around 1am last night. This news brought a chorus from the women in our cabin: 1) Imagine being rescued by Bradley Cooper 2) And then imagine your horror when you realise you’re covered with mud and so drunk you fell off a barstool.
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The sun rising
The second task given to our video Swat team, before they changed into their ninja clothes and sneaked between the tents, was to film sunrise at Glastonbury from the stone circle in real time. Now they have completed those two tasks, their names can be expunged from the record, and no trace that they ever lived will be left for the world to discover.
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Setting sun
Our highly trained video Swat team have had years of instruction. They were told they had to complete two tasks and then be terminated by the shadowy secret powers of Guardian towers. The first was to make a timelapse film of sunset at Glastonbury. They completed that task last night, before heading back to the underground video bunker, where they were debriefed. Here are the fruits of their labours …
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Coldplay tonight, pop pickers!
On the way in to the site this morning, our Coldplay superfan Harriet Gibsone – a woman who has tried auctioning her kidneys on eBay to finance a pilgrimage to the place where they make those Xylobands that light up – got awfully excited for a moment when we thought ver Play were doing a Sunday morning soundcheck on the Pyramid stage. They weren’t. They were just playing bits of Coldplay tracks through the PA to check the lighting triggers. Anyway, that will have whetted your appetite for more hot Coldplay action, I imagine. So why not give a read to Sophie Heawood’s interview with them from Friday’s G2 Film & Music. It’s an excellent read, and if you don’t like them, you’ll find yourself warming to Mr Martin and co.
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Our writer feels Torn …
Wandered over to the Pyramid stage in that bimbling way you do at Glastonbury, and was confronted by the sight of Natalie Imbruglia delivering a set with a bold new electro-swing direction. Quite the coup, Michael Eavis! Beer goggles were clearly misting my vision however, and 10 minutes in I realised I was just watching a terrible electro-swing band [Caravan Palace – ed] – is there any other kind? – fronted by a woman who looked a lot like Natalie Imbruglia. Not an auspicious start to the day.
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The last morning
Our photographer Gary Calton has been around the site this morning, capturing the fall out from the night before.
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And if you actually want to hear the Heroes Symphony …
You can do so here.
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Heart of Glass
The Park stage closed last night with the first piece of classical music ever to headline Glastonbury, Philip Glass’s Heroes symphony, in tribute to David Bowie. We spoke to Glass last week, and he told us: “As to what David would have made of the Glastonbury tribute, I really have no idea! He might have showed up and not even told you he was coming, or he might have enjoyed it from afar but not come. You never knew with David. He was a master unto himself.” You can read the piece here.
But, you want to know, what did the performance look like? Good job we have some photos, eh?
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Adele – the world reacts!
Adele headlined the Pyramid stage last night. So what have the reviewers been saying? Our own Alexis Petridis, despite standing on his own while everyone else went to see New Order, was impressed:
As it turns out, her performance works really well. There’s something endearing about the vast contrast between Adele the singer – slick and professional and, almost uniquely among mega-selling divas, not given to rococo embellishments – and Adele the person, who speaks into the microphone between songs, who swears so profusely that, she proudly announces, the BBC have had to put a warning out about her language before broadcasting the show live, and who inquires about the state of the front row’s bowels.
You can read Alexis’s full review here.
The Daily Telegraph’s chief rock fella, Neil McCormick, thought she a bit of terrific, too:
There is something about Adele so unmediated and utterly authentic she can make every other pop star seem somehow artificial. ‘It’s amazing the way music brings people together,’ she said, a cliche that has never sounded more true than this quite wonderful night at Glastonbury.”
Billboard’s reviewer was even more certain about her greatness:
This is Adele’s Glastonbury. We are all just camping in it.”
Sadly, the Independent didn’t send the chap who wrote an incredible review of Flume, but it still thought she was good. If not as likely as Flume to prompt interracial relationships.
Even if you’ve never liked her songs, Adele undeniably won over everyone at Glastonbury, her charisma, charm and down to earth attitude so authentic it’s impossible not to love her.”
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Good morning!
Hi-de-hi, campers! Welcome to the final day of Glastonbury 2016! This is Michael Hann, here with you till 2pm, followed by Kate Hutchinson, and then Harriet Gibsone. Come the evening, Tim Jonze will be running our traditional blog, as he watches the telly with a pizza, a six-pack of Carling Black Label and a king size raisin and biscuit Yorkie. It’s just started raining here on Worthy Farm, and the Sunday exodus has begun – albeit at a trickle so far. Though not everyone is finding it easy to leave the site …
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