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Guitar World
Guitar World
Entertainment
Matt Owen

Glastonbury 2025: the iconic guitar moments that stole the show at one of the world's biggest music festivals

Wet Leg, The 1975, Olivia Rodrigo, Glass Beams performing at Glastonbury Festival 2025.

It saddens us to write this, but Glastonbury – the U.K.’s most prestigious music festival and one of the biggest in the world, which plays host to the best artists around the globe over a stacked weekend lineup – is officially over for another year.

That means, as the campsites get cleared up and the Pyramid Stage starts to make its way into storage, we can sit back and reflect on what has easily been the finest three days of live music this year has seen so far.

Of course, the Glasto lineup is always a diverse cast, but one thing remains constant: the show will always be stolen by some iconic electric guitar moments, and 2025 was no different. In fact, across the 3,000 performers at Worthy Farm, the biggest musical moments largely played out with a guitar in the picture.

Neil Young’s headline-making set, for example, had a de facto special guest in the form of Hank William’s iconic Martin D-28 – also played by Bob Dylan in the past – which was brought out for Looking Forward.

At the other end of the generational spectrum, Olivia Rodrigo’s history-making set was littered with guitar moments. While the singer herself stuck to offset Fenders, her bandmates Arianna Powell and Daisy Spencer opted for Jackson and Charvels, and Shabat offsets, respectively, in a move that continued the metal/pop guitar crossover that has gained steam over the past few years, thanks to the likes of Phoebe Bridgers.

In a similar vein, Wet Leg’s Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers flipped the script by playing a B.C. Rich Warlock (which, Guitar World has been reliably informed, was found on eBay a few weeks ago) and a Kramer Jersey Star, while Wolf Alice's Ellie Rowsell soundtracked her indie rock set with help from a Gretsch Super Chet jazz box.

For her history-making headline set, Olivia Rodrigo proved her guitar hero credentials once again by arming herself with a range of Fender offsets... (Image credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images)
...while her co-guitarist, Arianna Powell, busied herself on Jacksons and Charvels... (Image credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images)
...guitars you wouldn't usually associate with pop rock music, but ones that are certainly becoming more, erm, popular in the sphere (Image credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Olivia Rodrigo)
The 1975's Matty Healy played a Levi Perry Masterbuilt Telecaster, which has been Frankenstein'd to fit buit-in octave fuzz and delay circuits (Image credit: Harry Durrant/Getty Images)
Wet Leg's Rhian Teasdale lent into the B.C. Rich resurgence (previously championed by Phoebe Bridgers) by playing a zany acrylic Warlock that, Guitar World has been told, was purchased from eBay not too long ago (Image credit:  Joseph Okpako/WireImage/Getty Images)
Her bandmate Hester Chambers, meanwhile, jumped on the pointy guitar wagon, and played a gnarly Kramer Jersey Star for the set (Image credit: Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images)
'Players picking unconvetional tools for the job' was certainly a trend at Glastonbury this year. Wolf Alice's Ellie Rowsell did her part by playing a Gretsch Super Chet jazz box for the band's set (Image credit: Harry Durrant/Getty Images)
The ever-mysterious Glass Beams stayed true to form, when their anonymous guitarist picked an equally head-scratching guitar for the set. This Maton Ibis is just one of many obscure builds Glass Beams are known for... (Image credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images)
Saturday's headliner, Neil Young, didn't bring out any special guests, but he did bring out Hank William' Martin D-28 towards the end of the set, as well as his trademark Old Black Les Paul. (Image credit: Jim Dyson/Redferns/Getty Images)

Jackson’s domineering presence was certainly a theme this year, and hardcore punk outfit Turnstile – one of the heaviest bands on the lineup, following Deftones’ late cancellation – further repped the shred brand as guitarists Pat McRory and Meg Mills brought out a pair of Soloists of their own.

Then we have Matty Healy, who took to the stage with The 1975 playing a Masterbuilt Levi Perry Fender Telecaster loaded with fuzz and delay circuits, and Glass Beams, whose penchant for oddball builds was further demonstrated thanks to an especially bonkers Maton Ibis.

Stills and clips from the shows – which once again prove the rude health of the guitar in contemporary music – can be found above and below.

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