Glastonbury 2022: Six of the biggest talking points from the Worthy Farm festival
US rapper Kendrick Lamar’s headline set closed an impressive weekend of live music
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Your support makes all the difference.The final day at Glastonbury ended with a jaw-dropping performance by American rapper Kendrick Lamar.
Over the course of five days, fans had danced to performances by top artists such as Paul McCartney, Little Simz, Pet Shop Boys, Sam Fender, and Billie Eilish.
On the last day of the festival, George Ezra turned up at the John Peel stage in what was possibly the worst-kept secret set in Glastonbury history, while jazz-fusion legend Herbie Hancock delighted crowds relaxing at the Pyramid stage with a virtuosic performance.
Here’s a look back at six of the biggest talking points from the entire Glastonbury 2022 festival...
Roe v Wade
News of the US Supreme Court’s highly controversial legal ruling broke on Friday, and it was clearly on a lot of people’s minds at Glastonbury. It certainly didn’t escape the attention of the artists, many of whom were American. From Billie Eilish, to Phoebe Bridgers, to Olivia Rodrigo, to Kendrick Lamar, lots of the performers included powerful statements about abortion rights in their sets.
From the youngest ever headliner…
Eilish made history with her Friday night headline slot, delighting fans with an intimate but lively set of songs from the 20-year-old’s two albums. As the festival’s youngest ever solo headliner, the pressure was certainly on Eilish’s shoulders, but as Mark Beaumont’s five-star review attests, she pulled it off with aplomb.
…to the oldest
On the other end of the spectrum, we had Paul McCartney, who delivered an absolute barnstormer of a set on Saturday. Performing a range of hits from his Beatles and Wings repertoires, as well as his solo career (and a couple of covers), Macca delivered a Glastonbury experience for the ages. At 80 years old, he became the festival’s oldest ever headliner.
Kendrick Lamar
Closing the festival on Sunday was Kendrick Lamar, who held the Pyramid Stage in the palm of his hand from the start of his electrifying, career-spanning set to the end. The stunning climax of his set – a rendition of “saviour” performed while blood dripped from his diamond crown of thorns, before he began a furious chant about women’s rights – was pure chills-down-the-spine stuff.
Ukraine
The ongoing war in Ukraine was also a core political issue for many of the festival’s acts and attendees. Ukrainian flags were spotted commonly around the festival site, with McCartney holding one aloft in solidarity as he took the stage for his encore. The Pyramid Stage also played host to Ukrainian band Dakhabrakha on Sunday, one of several Ukrainian artists the festival championed.
A little help from my friends…
While Kendrick’s set may have been all him, many of the festival’s other acts deployed some heavyweight guest stars. McCartney brought Bruce Springsteen and Dave Grohl on stage towards the end. Olivia Rodrigo welcomed Lily Allen for a duet of “F*** You”. Phoebe Bridges joined forces with Arlo Parks (who had her own full set at the festival) for a couple of numbers. Pete Doherty even showed up on stage during Hak Baker’s performance, having performed with the Libertines shortly before. It was a festival chock-full of unexpected – but thoroughly enjoyed – cameos.
Look back at our live blog below:
Wolf Alice at Glastonbury – review
Of all the bands spearheading the indie revival, none shapeshift quite like Wolf Alice. Theirs is a palimpsest of styles: some shoegaze here, some garage rock there. Folk, grunge and electronica also fall into the mix.
Emerging at a time when guitar music was becoming increasingly moribund, they’ve done pretty well to get where they have. Three top-five records (the last of which went to No 1). A Mercury prize. A Brit award. A Grammy nomination. Key to their alchemy is frontwoman Ellie Rowsell, whose flair for storytelling is matched by a voice that can flit from shimmering falsetto to brawling rage.
Full review:
Wolf Alice call on their reserves after almost missing Glastonbury – review
It’s when Wolf Alice slow things down – allowing the nuances of Roswell’s gossamer voice to be fully appreciated – that they are their most potent
For anyone who’s not been following the travesty unfolding in the US:
Supreme Court overturns Roe v Wade, striking down abortion rights across US
The high court rejects key rulings in stark reversal of bodily autonomy protections
Wondering how the weather’s looking for this evening and tomorrow? Here’s the latest forecast:
Latest forecast predicts scattered showers for Glastonbury
The Met Office has indicated scattered showers over the course of a cloudy Friday
Arlo Parks review – Park Stage
If anyone managed to turn pandemic lemons into pandemic lemonade, it was Arlo Parks. The London-born artist shot to fame at double speed thanks to her soothing, lo-fi indie-pop, which provided comfort to a nation in lockdown.
Whether she was articulating the weight of a friend’s depression in “Black Dog” or providing hopeful solace in “Hurt”, Parks was not just the musical star of 2020, but its saviour. Here at Glastonbury among the showers, the Mercury Prize-winning artist beams from the Park Stage with such confidence that you’re almost convinced it was named after her.
As the soggy crowd bobs to the vulnerable “Blueish”, the catharsis of listening at home isn’t just matched, but superseded. “Music has been that healing space for me” the 21-year-old tells us, as the delicate pangs of “Black Dog” begin. Parks, who released her debut album Collapsed in Sunbeams last year, glides effortlessly through the set. The crowd – who’ve waited for a moment like this since 2019 – revel in her diaphonous vocals. A moment of pure sunshine. ★★★★☆
Glastonbury through the years – in pictures
Glastonbury turned 50 in 2020, having begun as the Pilton Pop, Folk and Blues Festival in September 1970 with 1,500 people in attendance. Admission cost £1, which included free camping and free milk.
Here are some fantastic photos of Glastonbury through the years:
Glastonbury Festival through the years – in pictures
Glastonbury is celebrating its 50th birthday, as it returns to Worthy Farm for the first time since 2019
IDLES frontman Joe Talbot calls out Roe vs Wade overturning
Per The Guardian, Idles frontman Joe Talbot introduced the band’s song “Mother” with the following:
“They just reversed the laws back to the Middle Ages in America, where they’re just deciding whether it should be illegal to have an abortion or not.
“Long love the open minded. Long live my mother and long live every single one of you.”
Glastonbury sees ‘huge drop’ in crime numbers
Glastonbury has seen a “huge drop in crime numbers” this year but the festival has historically been a “very safe place”, police have said.
As of Friday morning, Avon and Somerset Police had recorded approximately 85% less crime so far this year compared with the last festival in 2019.
Eleven offences had been recorded since the gates opened early on Wednesday morning, ending a three-year hiatus for the Somerset festival.
Superintendent Oliver Cosgrove, silver commander for Glastonbury, told the PA news agency: “The police operation here is to support Glastonbury Festival to provide a safe environment for people to come.
“It is a very safe festival generally and although we have seen a huge drop in crime numbers this year, that is not from a huge place previously.
“Generally, the festival is a very safe place to come and Glastonbury Festival has employed a lot of stewards and has got a really sound security plan with a lot of high visibility stewards - and we support that plan to try and reduce crime as much as we can.”
Superintendent Cosgrove suggested a fall in the number of attendees bringing cash to the festival had played a role in the drop in crime numbers.
He added: “Certainly at the festival a long time ago, people would store huge amounts of money in their tents because they didn’t want to carry it around with them for fear of losing it, so then thieves would find the opportunity while people were watching the big acts on the main stage to go around the tents and just cut them open and steal the money.
“These days it is a more cashless society a vast majority of venues here can take cards.
Press Association
From Herbie Hancock to the Healing Fields: 18 highlights for Glastonbury Festival 2022
The wait is over. After a three-year hiatus, the legendary music festival is back and bigger than ever.
Every Glastonbury weekend, the transformation of Worthy Farm from a West Country dairy farm into the glorious festival site never fails to wow. Bars within bars, areas within areas, and festivals within festivals offer ticket holders a Russian doll of silliness and surrealism. The centre of which you’ll probably never reach – at least not without a comprehensive plan.
Planning is probably the least sexy part of festival-going, but you’ve paid the money and waited the years, so it’s time to milk Glastonbury for every absurd activity and secret spot it has to offer. From where to get the perfect pint to the woodland oasis awaiting tired, hungover bodies, here’s our pick of highlights for this year’s Glastonbury.
From Herbie Hancock to the Healing Fields – 18 highlights for Glastonbury 2022
As Glastonbury returns for a belated 50th birthday at Worthy Farm, Annabel Nugent and Roisin O'Connor pick some of the highlights you should try and make time for during the festival
How to watch Billie Eilish headline Friday at Glastonbury on the Pyramid Stage
We’re inching ever closer to Billie Eilish’s history-making headline set on the Pyramid Stage. For anyone watching from home, here’s how to tune in:
What time, date and stage is Billie Eilish performing at Glastonbury?
Eilish will be the festival’s youngest ever solo headliner
Phoebe Bridgers says ‘f*** the Supreme Court’ in response to Roe v Wade overturning
“It’s super surreal, but I’m having the s****iest time,” says Phoebe Bridgers during her set on the John Peel Stage. “Any Americans here?”
A few wave.
“Yeah... who wants to say ‘F*** the Supreme Court?’ One, two... F*** THE SUPREME COURT,” Bridgers shouts, to bellows of agreement from her audience.
“All these irrelevant old motherf***ers trying to tell us what to do with our fucking bodies. F*** it.”
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