Why do I sometimes feel like I am the only person in Britain who loves Coldplay?

When Glastonbury revealed Coldplay will headline the festival for a fifth time, the news was greeted with predictable groans from some quarters. It makes being a superfan feel very lonely, says Jonathan Margolis. But... are there signs that Coldplay have suddenly become cool?

Chris Martin performing on the Pyramid Stage in 2011 (Getty)

It was 2015. The occasion: the London launch of the first smartspeaker, which I was attending as a technology journalist. “Alexa,” said the nice middle-aged American demonstrating the gadget, “Play music by Coldplay.” A fraction of a second later, the haunting first few organ notes of “Fix You” were filling the conference room.

Even at 10 on a weekday meeting in a corporate setting, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Apart from “Fix You” being among my favourite ever songs, the technology to summon it up by voice was unlike any we’d ever seen.

But the choice of music didn’t seem to impress the too-cool-for-school young pair behind me. “Oh my god,” muttered the young man to the woman, “This is where we leave.” The two of them then stalked out of the event, shaking their heads in ostentatious disapproval.