The U.K.’s iconic Glastonbury music festival will return in September for a one-off event.
The license for the festival, located in the county of Somerset, was approved by the Mendip district council after consultation with local residents and authorities.
The event, which will take place over a maximum of two consecutive nights on Friday and Saturday, can go ahead as long as it meets several conditions. All the performances will take place at the festival’s main Pyramid stage at Worthy Farm, and the event will have a total capacity of 49,999, including all staff, traders, performers and crew. Public camping, a feature of the festival, will not be permitted.
Sam Phripp, councillor and chair of licensing at Mendip Council, said: “Whenever a license application is considered, Mendip rightly assesses the impact of an event on local people and seeks to find a decent balance. With regard to Glastonbury Festival Events Limited holding a concert in September, we’ve heard concerns from residents, and those concerns are reflected in more than 50 conditions that have been added to this license. We believe they’re sensible measures, and match the perceived risk of the event.”
“With a view to COVID-19, of course, any event would have to be COVID-safe, and Mendip will work with other organizations and the organizers to make sure that’s the case,” Phripp added. “It’s in everybody’s interest for events like these to be a success, but as chair of licensing at Mendip, I’m clear that we’ll keep our ears and eyes open and take on board feedback from residents in Pilton, just as we would with any other event.”
Coldplay and Haim are among acts that will perform at a live-streamed event at Worthy Farm on May 22. The concert was announced after organizers were forced to cancel the physical festival two years in a row over COVID-19 concerns and uncertainty.