What you need to know about Glastonbury 2023

Glastonbury will reopen its doors this week and it promises to be another momentous spectacle of musical talent and culture.

The world-famous festival will be welcoming back music fans to Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, to celebrate its 51st year.

Festivities will take place from Wednesday to Sunday and if you are going in person or watching from afar, here is what you need to know:

Who are the headline acts?

Sheffield rock stars The Arctic Monkeys will take to the stage as the first of this year’s headliners on Friday, after being forced to cancel a Dublin show on Wednesday due to frontman Alex Turner suffering from acute laryngitis.

It will be their third time headlining the festival having previously done so in 2007 and 2013.

Big US names dominate the Saturday slot with rock legends Guns N’ Roses headlining, shortly after a slot by pop superstar Lizzo.

Sir Elton John will top the bill on Sunday which is set to be a historic event as it marks his final UK tour date of his farewell tour.

After touring the globe on the marathon Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour over the past few years, Sir Elton previously said Glastonbury was a “fitting way” to say goodbye to his British fans.

What surprises are in store?

Glastonbury has a long history of surprising festival-goers with unexpected performers, both spontaneously and pre-planned.

Friday’s main stage has a mystery band listed as The Churnups set to perform before Arctic Monkeys and rock duo Royal Blood, which has been rumoured to be the rock band Foo Fighters.

On Tuesday, The Pretenders announced they would be giving a surprise performance at the festival on Saturday.

Due to perform from 7.45pm at The Park Stage, the band said they will be bringing some “friends” along with them for their performance at Worthy Farm.

Sunday headliner Sir Elton has also got fans speculating after announcing he has created an entirely new show for his performance.

During his final US shows at the Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium last year, the veteran musician brought out Kiki Dee, Brandi Carlile and British pop superstar Dua Lipa.

What will the weather be like?

In line with the festival’s historic tradition of churning mud, the Met Office predicted “impactful” thunderstorms on Tuesday ahead of the festival’s opening on Wednesday.

The forecaster said thunderstorms in Devon and Cornwall and eastern areas of England could cause “potential transport disruption” as the first campers arrived in the area.

But despite some showers, temperatures are expected to remain warm at 22C on Wednesday and Thursday.

Towards the weekend, the rain is expected to clear, making way for dryer and brighter conditions with highs of 26C expected on Sunday for Sir Elton’s headline performance.

Controversies facing the festival

The festival has been criticised after fans noted the acts closing the Pyramid Stage throughout the 2023 festival will be all-male.

Co-organiser Emily Eavis told the BBC she aimed for gender balance and this year they had a female headline but “she unfortunately had to pull out”.

Taylor Swift was confirmed as a headliner for the cancelled 2020 festival and there had been speculation she could have headlined this year.

Earlier this week the festival announced it would no longer be screening a “conspiracy theory film” about former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn following claims that it was antisemitic.

Organisers said that although the film, titled Oh, Jeremy Corbyn: The Big Lie, had been booked “in good faith”, it had decided that it was not appropriate to screen.

Eavis previously explained a significant price hike in ticket sales as being due to “incredibly challenging times”, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.

Tickets for the 2023 festival cost £335 plus a £5 booking fee for standard tickets, compared with £280 plus a £5 per ticket in 2022.

Environmental concerns

Organisers have urged festival-goers not to bring a number of items, with disposable vapes top on the list as they “pollute the environment and can be hazardous at waste centres”. Gazebos, non-biodegradable body glitter, disposable wipes, knives and anything made of glass are also all on the “what not to bring” list this year.

WaterAid has also invited Glastonbury Festivalgoers to its leafy “Living Loos” brought to life by toilet compost from past festivals.

Comedy and culture available during the festival

Festival-goers will be able to enjoy much more than just live music acts as there is set to be a theatre and circus performers as well as film screenings and speeches.

Labour MP Ed Miliband and British-Iranian charity worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe are among those scheduled to debate at the festival while Joe Wicks will be leading an exercise class on Friday morning.

Greenpeace are also set to unveil a short film, created by Oscar-winning director Sir Steve McQueen and starring actor Will Poulter, which reimagines Fleetwood Mac’s Don’t Stop into a call to action and rallying cry for climate activism.

Carhenge, the festival’s own Stonehenge made out of vintage cars, will open for the Summer Solstice on Wednesday.

Where can you watch the action on TV?

The BBC will once again bring audiences at home coverage of the festival as its exclusive, multi-media partner – following a recent multi-year extension.

More than 40 hours of coverage will be broadcast across all four of the linear TV networks – BBC One, Two, Three and Four – as well as BBC iPlayer and online.

For the first time, the broadcaster will be streaming Pyramid Stage performances live in British Sign Language, in order to make the coverage more accessible.

The BBC’s Glastonbury webcam will also return, having launched as a soundtracked live stream from Monday and running until Sunday from 4.30am-10pm.

Programmes will be presented by by Clara Amfo, Lauren Laverne, Jack Saunders and Jo Whiley with BBC One joining the celebrations from Friday as The One Show reports live from the festival from 7pm to 7.30pm.

What radio stations will be airing Glastonbury content?

The BBC will broadcast more than 85 hours of live broadcasts on its pop radio networks, launching with Lauren Laverne’s 6 Music breakfast show live from the Glastonbury gates as they open on Wednesday.

New podcasts, collections and playlists will also be available on BBC Sounds, with BBC Radio 6 Music providing all-day Glastonbury coverage from Wednesday until Sunday.

The BBC’s New Music Fix Daily, hosted by Tom Ravenscroft and Deb Grant, will see the pair roam Worthy Farm to bring listeners the atmosphere from the festival and news of additional features on the site.

Glastonbury festival 2023 will run from June 21 to 25 at Worthy Farm in Somerset.