BBC HomeExplore the BBC
This page has been archived and is no longer updated. Find out more about page archiving.

24 September 2014
SomersetSomerset

BBC Homepage
England
ยปBBC Local
Somerset
Things to do
People & Places
Nature
History
Religion & Ethics
Arts and Culture
BBC Introducing
TV & Radio

Sites near Somerset

Bristol
Devon
Dorset
Wiltshire

Related BBC Sites

England

Contact Us

Features


Worthy Farm
Worthy Farm on Tuesday 21 June, 2005

Countdown to Glasto 2005

Ever wondered how a dairy farm in the middle of sleepy Somerset is transformed into the largest and most renowned music and performing arts festival in the world each year? Well, go behind the scenes at Worthy Farm with us, and wonder no more!


Since the beginning of May, we've been revealing just how the Glastonbury Festival site is transformed.

You can check out our photo gallery of Worthy Farm to see how it has metamorphosed by clicking on the link at the top of this page.

Tuesday 21 June

With only a couple of days left before Glasto gets underway, the Festival site is a hive of activity.

Security at the site is tight, and there are people on the roads going into Pilton, manning the entrances to the various car parks.

There's a definite buzz at Worthy Farm, and with all the areas clearly marked out now, there's lots of energy and anticipation about the big event.

Delivery trucks, vans, and tractors are everywhere as the final preparations are being made. The all-important food stalls are being set up, along with the market stalls and, of course, the beer tents!

The Pyramid Stage, the Other Stage, and the Jazz World Stage all have their covers on now, and the final bits of work are being done.

The beautiful brightly coloured signs welcoming people to the different areas of the Festival have been made, and are now in place.

Bin-painting is still going on, as is rubbish-clearing and litter-picking. The metal pathways have now been laid too.

The wooden griffen, constructed by chainsaw sculpture team the Tree Pirates, is now finished in the King's Meadow. There's a peace garden being created in the King's Meadow as well, for people to chill-out in.

A sculpture called 3 Cows in a Pile is in place now. It's in the Green Fields and is designed and created by John Kelly. Made from bronze, the sculpture weighs six tons, and measures seven metres long, and six metres high.

The tents in the new Dance Village have gone up now, complete with the Glasto flags!

Sculptor Aragorn Horner was hard at work on his interactive space pod, which will be situated in the Dance Village. Make sure you check it out at night - it lights up and everything!

It's hard to believe the transformation that takes place at Worthy Farm, from it's life as an ordinary dairy farm, to the home of Glastonbury Festival.

But, with a lot of hard work, transform it does, just in time for the gates opening to thousands of Festival-goers tomorrow.

Will the loos be as bad this year? You can listen to an interview with Bob St Barbe, the head of site services at the Festival, by clicking on the link on the right.

Tuesday 14 June

Car parking signs have been put up on the roads leading into Pilton, in preparation to direct Festival traffic.

The Portakabins which house the banks and cash machines have arrived.

Barrel-painters are out in force all around the site, painting and decorating the rubbish bins ready for the Festival.

Glastonbury founder Michael Eavis was out and about, checking on the set-up in the Green Fields. You can listen to an interview with him talking about the countdown to Glasto, how he's feeling about this year's Festival, and the artist line-up, by clicking on the audio link at the top of this page.

There are two tents up in the Dance Village which is new to the Festival this year. There will be a series of tents, bars, lounges, performance areas and open-air stages in this new area.

The ID Spiral Chillout, where there'll be global, ethnic and psychedelic music, is also under construction in the Dance Village.

The frame of the Jazz World Stage is in place, and parts of the Other Stage are being lifted into place by a crane.

Benches are being fixed together all around the Festival site.

A wooden structure called the Sunrise Gateway is being built by a local chainsaw sculptor in the Croissant Neuf field. It will be in the same place as the wooden scorpion was in 2004.

The John Peel Stage, formerly the New Bands Tent, is in the process of being set up.

WaterAid toilets have arrived in the King's Meadow at the top of the Green Fields, and the wooden griffen, also in the King's Meadow, is still under construction.

Tuesday 7 June

The grass has now been cut, and the 'ring of steel' fence is nearly finished - you can see it from all around the Festival site.

The Pyramid Stage covers are on, and the structure of the Other Stage is in the process of being built.

The dreaded Glasto loos have been delivered, and the plumbers have arrived and are working hard!

There's lots of activity on site now: the different areas are being marked out, some signs have been put up, the painted drums are being put into place, and timber is being sorted for various Festival structures.

The head of the wooden griffen, constructed by chainsaw sculpture team the Tree Pirates, has arrived in the King's Meadow. The 15-foot-high creature, which has a 30-foot wingspan, was created at the Bath and West Show, earlier in June.

There are also lots of Glastonbury site workers clearing rubbish, finishing the wooden fencing, and mulching, which protects the young trees.

You can see the transformation of the Glasto site for yourself by checking out our photo gallery - the link's at the top of this page.

Tuesday 24 May

The 'ring of steel' fence started going up on Tuesday 10 May. Despite the inclement weather, it's well on schedule.

Before anyone can drive on the land, the grass needs to be cut for silage, which means waiting for the weather to be just right.

The main stage covers will go on in the next few days.

Friday 6 May

Apart from the basic structure of the Pyramid Stage, which stays up all year, Worthy Farm looks like... well, err... a farm!

Yep, Michael Eavis' pad is still a working dairy farm, with 350 cows, when it's not playing host to 150,000 festival-goers and some of the world's top bands.

So there's not too much to report just yet; however, the big clear-up of the Festival site is already underway.

Worthy Farm Site Manager Rob Kearle, and Glasto veterans Des and Cloud, have been clearing up the rubbish, cleaning out the ditches, and unblocking the drains in preparation for the Festival.

You can hear them talking to BBC Somerset Sound's Steve Haigh about the work involved by clicking on the audio links at the top of this page.

last updated: 29/06/05
SEE ALSO
home
HOME
email
EMAIL
print
PRINT
Go to the top of the page
TOP
SITE CONTENTS
SEE ALSO

BBC Glastonbury logo
Thurs 25th to Sun 28th June

Glastonbury 2008
Glastonbury 2008




About the BBC | Help | Terms of Use | Privacy & Cookies Policy