28 Comments
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kelly.melrose's avatar

I used to love going..I first went about 79...i went most years up until around 99 when cash machines started to appear and the whole vibe started to change...i wouldn't go now even if someone give me a free ticket...thanks for all your hard work

Ben Rubin's avatar

You certainly saw the best of it

Bobby Artwood's avatar

That explains the relentless media coverage of the last few years.

And why there's something 'off' about it all...

Flowie Georgiou's avatar

went to glasto in 1985 ‘86 ‘87 but would never go back now….

and its very expensive

Peppy Scott's avatar

We must have been there at the same time!

Mike Kennedy's avatar

I was refused entry once, about 30 years ago, because I did not have a ticket, thank God.

And thank God I did not become the rock star I dreamed of being as a young man, I would not have sold my soul, but they could have tricked me into handing it over.

https://beyondcertainty.substack.com/p/the-ride?r=j4u5j&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=audio-player

Ben Rubin's avatar

Who was performing those years?

Flowie Georgiou's avatar

Ian Dury and the blockheads was good

Adam Dimond's avatar

Excellent one, Ben, very informative. Thanks for holding your nose and diving into the swamp so we don't have to. Another reason as to why Not my king' should be in the tower of london. It would be vaguely amusing if the tabloids started haranguing this lot, the biggest welfare scroungers in this country by far but I won't hold my breath.

Ben Rubin's avatar

Thanks for watching Adam

Mike Kennedy's avatar

Well done Ben, I appreciate that you must have done a lot of work to produce that, many thanks, I have shared it with my local sustainability group in the hope that the spell they have all been put under will be broken.

Very best wishes, see you at the next UK Column live event.

Ben Rubin's avatar

My pleasure Mike, thanks for watching

ROK3333's avatar

Nice Cactus

Philippa Rees's avatar

A good ( long departed friend) Dick Milford, was a founder of Oxfam after WW2, he started parcelling up packages in the tower of St Mary's for starving Greeks. One of the things to celebrate about his departure (although I still miss him) is that he never got to hear about Oxfam's new roles in child trafficking, money laundering and food-for-sex in Haiti's disaster 'relief'. Those alone would have killed him.

xela's avatar

Yep, remember the massive Zelensky screen where he talked about freedom.. wanted to puke...

Eliza's avatar

Great deep dive, Ben. I was surprised to hear from a friend that Google had a big tent backstage at Glastonbury with free food and drink (and no doubt some brainwashing / programming going on too!).

Shane Quentin's avatar

I first went in 1981 and kept going for another 12 times until 2000. It has morphed out of all recognition since then and like Kelly Melrose mentioned earlier I too wouldn't accept a free ticket to go now and I avoid the BBC radio/TV media overkill. There's no shortage of other enjoyable, smaller festivals across UK, and Europe that don't leave such a sour corporate taste.

Peppy Scott's avatar

WaterAid have been doing Glasto for some years now, their involvement isn't particularly new. (Maybe they've improved the toilet facilities at the festival since I went in the 1980's, haha!)

Bob Bunn's avatar

English Irish Scottish and Welsh not British. The British are the ruling communist class. The Fabian society has over 100 sitting MPs in parliament of all political persuasions. They promote Communist revolution by evolution. They intend to undermine our culture and sovereignty by diluting us out if existence. The English Constitution is the solution. End the union, you end the British. Null and void.

Bob Bunn's avatar

English Irish Scottish and Welsh not British. The British are the ruling communist class. The Fabian society has over 100 sitting MPs in parliament of all political persuasions. They promote Communist revolution by evolution. They intend to undermine our culture and sovereignty by diluting us out if existence. The English Constitution is the solution. End the union, you end the British. Null and void.

Bob Bunn's avatar

English Irish Scottish and Welsh not British. The British are the ruling communist class. The Fabian society has over 100 sitting MPs in parliament of all political persuasions. They promote Communist revolution by evolution. They ibtebd to undermine our culture and sovereignty by diluting us out if existence. The English Constitution is the solution. End the union, you end the British. Null and void.

Iain McCausland's avatar

Gladtonbury? Who gives a s**t?