Threat of Dolly Parton and Metallica fails to put off mud enthusiasts
Fans of unsanitary fields of muck descended on Worthy Farm in their thousands today for the annual Glastonbury Festival, uninhibited by gloomy forecasts of performances by Dolly Parton, Lily Allen, Arcade Fire and Metallica.Â  The Glastonbury Festival has long been the premier destination for aficionados of mud, and those who just want to âopen their mindsâ to new and challenging types of flooding. This yearâs festival promises a stellar line-up of waterlogged fields, fetid toilets and poor amenities. Â However, forecasters have predicted spates of shoegazing indie rock, unmitigating showers of experimental electronica, and a deluge of country & western scheduled for Sunday night. Revellers have also been warned to come prepared for outbursts of circus skills, poetry, theatre and comedy. Organisers are hoping to avoid repeats of the 2013 festival, in which the heavens closed and festival-goers were forced to endure fair, sunny conditions with little respite from The Rolling Stones, and the 2011 festival, when a wave of flash rapping left parts of the site entirely engulfed in F-words. âItâs all part of the Glastonbury experienceâ, said one reveller preparing for the long weekend in Somerset.Â  âYou hope for the best, but everyone knows thereâs always the risk of indie.â He added: âIf it happens, you just have to make the most of it and enjoy the effluent slurry regardless.â