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Britain's Glastonbury Festival gets going with a squelch
2007-06-22
The Glastonbury Festival kicked off Friday with Arctic Monkeys and Bjork headlining as rain began to turn the vast site into the traditional mudbath. The planet's largest greenfield music and performing arts festival is back and bigger than ever after taking a break in 2006, with 177,500 people packing out Worthy Farm in southwest England to catch some of the world's hottest acts. But the 800 acres (320 hectares) of rolling Somerset countryside was gradually descending into a muddy bog as heavy rain soaked the giant tent city. Spaced out men in skinny jeans and women in flip flops and hotpants picked their way across the squelching grass between the treacherous tent guy ropes. Michael Eavis, 71, the farm owner-cum-festival supremo, had pledged that new flood defences would guard against a repeat of 2005, when 300 tents were washed away as a month's rain fell in less than two hours. Youthful British rockers Arctic Monkeys headline Friday's bill, following the remarkable success of their debut album last year. "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" broke the record for the largest first-week sales of a debut album in British history, on the back of Internet file-sharing of their songs between fans. On the main Pyramid Stage, Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian, The Fratellis, Bloc Party and Magic Numbers lead the line-up. Meanwhile on the second Other Stage, Icelandic songstress Bjork, Arcade Fire, Rufus Wainwright, The Coral and Super Furry Animals were set to perform. "It's time to forget about your job and turn into a hippy for three days, because you're at Glastonbury and it's the best festival on Earth," said Ricky Wilson, the lead singer with Kaiser Chiefs, who play the penultimate set on the main stage Sunday. "I'm looking forward to The Who and Arctic Monkeys, but Glastonbury's about more than just headliners, so this year I'll hopefully be checking out some of the smaller bands. "Glastonbury's about stumbling around randomly and seeing what amazing stuff you bump into." The site was as crowded as any rush-hour city high street as revellers wandered around the fields, tents and distractions. Away from the main stages, there is plenty to keep people entertained into the night. The 80 different stages -- including the Acoustic Tent, Dance Village, JazzWorld and the John Peel stage for up-and-coming bands -- host more than 700 acts throughout the festival. More distant fields contain tents and stages hosting comedy, circus acts, theatre, political discussion, poetry, alternative health treatments, Trash City -- an "intergalactic red-light district" -- and the "inordinate mayhem" of Lost Vagueness. The gates opened Wednesday for those determined to claim the best camping spots. So far there have been 33 arrests, the vast majority for drug offences. Sniffer dogs were deployed at train stations and bags were searched at the entry gates, but still the whiff of marijuana wafts around the site. Glastonbury has garnered a reputation as a fashion hotspot, with the likes of supermodel Kate Moss turning up with her bad-boy rocker boyfriend Pete Doherty and setting the trend for looking chic while bogged down in mud. Despite the conditions, there were plenty of fancy dressers cruising around Worthy Farm, including women in flamenco dancer dresses and men in full tartan suits, top hat and tails, and even tight-fitting angel costumes. But waterproof ponchos were out in force Friday. Refreshment prices are not cheap, with pints of beer and cider costing at least three pounds (six dollars, 4.50 euros) and burgers costing at least four pounds. But most had come prepared, bringing in cases of beer -- one inventive reveller even dragging a sledge full of cases through the mud. On the Pyramid Stage, The Killers, The Kooks, Paul Weller and Dirty Pretty Things play Saturday, and The Who, Kaiser Chiefs, Manic Street Preachers and Shirley Bassey perform Sunday. On the Other Stage, Iggy and the Stooges, Editors, Maximo Park and Babyshambles appear Saturday and Chemical Brothers, The View, The Rakes and Cold War Kids play Sunday.
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