This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/entertainment/7476701.stm
The article has changed 15 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 10 | Version 11 |
|---|---|
| Soggy Glastonbury starts rocking | Soggy Glastonbury starts rocking |
| (39 minutes later) | |
| The Glastonbury Festival is getting into full swing, but wet weather means a spell in wellies for fans yet again. | The Glastonbury Festival is getting into full swing, but wet weather means a spell in wellies for fans yet again. |
| Heavy showers fell late on Thursday and there was further rain on Friday. Some 125,000 fans are on-site, police said. | Heavy showers fell late on Thursday and there was further rain on Friday. Some 125,000 fans are on-site, police said. |
| Kate Nash was first on the Pyramid Stage, with Kings of Leon, Pete Doherty, Jimmy Cliff, Fatboy Slim and Franz Ferdinand also on Fridayâs bill. | |
| Singer Nash told fans: "It's been an honour to open the festival and I hope you have such a good time." | Singer Nash told fans: "It's been an honour to open the festival and I hope you have such a good time." |
| A total of 137,000 fans are expected over the weekend. | |
| The event has not sold out. However, organisers made some day tickets for Sunday available to those who had previously applied but these were not on general sale and have now all gone, a spokesman said. | |
| Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis explains why the festival is so special | Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis explains why the festival is so special |
| Police said the number of thefts was up sharply on last year but there were fewer drug-related arrests. | |
| A police spokeswoman attributed the increase in thefts - from 19 at this stage in 2007 to 127 by Friday morning - to sunshine during the day on Thursday. | A police spokeswoman attributed the increase in thefts - from 19 at this stage in 2007 to 127 by Friday morning - to sunshine during the day on Thursday. |
| "When we have had sunny weather in the past, we tend to find tent-thefts go up," she said. | "When we have had sunny weather in the past, we tend to find tent-thefts go up," she said. |
| A suspected thief was also detained by festival-goers after allegedly disturbing two women in their tent overnight. | A suspected thief was also detained by festival-goers after allegedly disturbing two women in their tent overnight. |
| The wet weather on Thursday night left the site damp with some mud underfoot. | The wet weather on Thursday night left the site damp with some mud underfoot. |
| But fans are hoping further rain will hold off and prevent a quagmire on the scale of the last two festivals, in 2007 and 2005. | But fans are hoping further rain will hold off and prevent a quagmire on the scale of the last two festivals, in 2007 and 2005. |
| Those mudbaths have been partly to blame for putting fans off buying tickets this year. | Those mudbaths have been partly to blame for putting fans off buying tickets this year. |
| Everyone felt the same. They were banging them in and they were snapping One Glastonbury reveller says the biodegradable tent pegs did not work as planned | Everyone felt the same. They were banging them in and they were snapping One Glastonbury reveller says the biodegradable tent pegs did not work as planned |
| "I did think twice about coming back because last year was such hard work," said Naomi Hadfield, 25, from Liverpool. | "I did think twice about coming back because last year was such hard work," said Naomi Hadfield, 25, from Liverpool. |
| "But I thought 'I hope it's better weather', and I chanced it," she said, sheltering from the rain in a canvas café selling hog roasts and giant Yorkshire puddings. | "But I thought 'I hope it's better weather', and I chanced it," she said, sheltering from the rain in a canvas café selling hog roasts and giant Yorkshire puddings. |
| Another reason for the slow sales has been the choice of headliners, with particular criticism for Jay-Z's slot at the top of the bill on Saturday. | Another reason for the slow sales has been the choice of headliners, with particular criticism for Jay-Z's slot at the top of the bill on Saturday. |
| However, the line-up has also attracted many people to the festival for the first time. | However, the line-up has also attracted many people to the festival for the first time. |
| Keith Gorby, 27, from Limerick said the event was "huge". | Keith Gorby, 27, from Limerick said the event was "huge". |
| "We've been here since Wednesday and we're constantly on the go, trying to see it all. I don't think in five days you could possibly see it all." | "We've been here since Wednesday and we're constantly on the go, trying to see it all. I don't think in five days you could possibly see it all." |
| A look at how many people, stages, tents and loos there are at Glastonbury | A look at how many people, stages, tents and loos there are at Glastonbury |
| Lucy Coxhead, who is 19 and lives in Bury St Edmunds, was also making her first trip to Glastonbury. | Lucy Coxhead, who is 19 and lives in Bury St Edmunds, was also making her first trip to Glastonbury. |
| She said there was "a lot more diversity" than at events such as the Reading Festival, with "bands you wouldn't normally pay money to see". | She said there was "a lot more diversity" than at events such as the Reading Festival, with "bands you wouldn't normally pay money to see". |
| "We've been lost so many times," she said, adding she was "a little bit wet" and was "praying for sun". | "We've been lost so many times," she said, adding she was "a little bit wet" and was "praying for sun". |
| There was some criticism of the biodegradable tent pegs, made from potato starch, which have been offered to fans and are designed to rot so they do not harm the livestock normally in the fields. | There was some criticism of the biodegradable tent pegs, made from potato starch, which have been offered to fans and are designed to rot so they do not harm the livestock normally in the fields. |
| "We were asked to make an effort with these and we did," said Bob Casey, a 55-year-old from Reading. | "We were asked to make an effort with these and we did," said Bob Casey, a 55-year-old from Reading. |
| The overwhelming majority of festival-goers are now at the Glastonbury site"In non-stress areas [with the tent] they're fine, but in stress areas they're a bit weak. | The overwhelming majority of festival-goers are now at the Glastonbury site"In non-stress areas [with the tent] they're fine, but in stress areas they're a bit weak. |
| "Everyone felt the same," he said. "They were banging them in and they were snapping." | "Everyone felt the same," he said. "They were banging them in and they were snapping." |
| As well as the music, other attractions include a silent disco, a planetarium, a whirlpool bath and a replica New York nightclub. | As well as the music, other attractions include a silent disco, a planetarium, a whirlpool bath and a replica New York nightclub. |
| This year sees a new area called Shangri-La, which hosts the Jacuzzi Lounge, the Gramophon Salon - a Japanese café where waiters in kimonos serve records - and a 1950s-style US diner that doubles as a nightclub. | This year sees a new area called Shangri-La, which hosts the Jacuzzi Lounge, the Gramophon Salon - a Japanese café where waiters in kimonos serve records - and a 1950s-style US diner that doubles as a nightclub. |
| Some fans arriving on Friday have been facing delays in getting to the site after a nearby fire at a scrapyard a mile away. | Some fans arriving on Friday have been facing delays in getting to the site after a nearby fire at a scrapyard a mile away. |
| The fire is still burning and police said the A37 road would remain shut for much of Friday as a result. | The fire is still burning and police said the A37 road would remain shut for much of Friday as a result. |