Glastonbury Festival is returning for its 50th anniversary.
After a three-year hiatus due to Covid-19, thousands flocked to Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, for day one of the event.
Attendees arrived at the site in the early hours of the morning for the much-anticipated festival, which will see Sir Paul McCartney, Kendrick Lamar and Billie Eilish headlining across the weekend.
Festival founder Michael Eavis, who said it will be “the best show in town”, opened the gates to Glastonbury on Wednesday morning.
Hundreds of Glastonbury attendees queued for hours with their bags, with festival-goers delighted to meet Eavis when the gates opened at 8am.
Traffic built up around the site as many attempted to battle travel delays on their journey to Somerset, amid three days of major rail strikes.
Fans turned up under blue skies as forecasters said this year’s weather outlook promises to be “one of two halves”.
Temperatures could reach 27C (81F) at the site, however showers and thunderstorms predicted from Friday onwards could see the mud synonymous with Glastonbury make an appearance.
The Independent will be liveblogging Glastonbury from 23 June.
You can find the latest weather forecast for Worthy Farm here.
Everything else you need to know about Glastonbury Festival can be found here.
Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis has spoken of the emotional moment her father opened the gates to Worthy Farm.
“To actually be able to see people there and welcome in, watch them streaming in and running to pitch their tents up… it’s an amazing feeling,” Emily Eavis told Lauren Laverne in an interview with BBC Radio 6.
“We were doing so much towards the 50th [anniversary], obviously some of that is still playing out this year and we’ve melded all these ideas into this one festival.
“I think every detail and part of the process has been devoured and savoured by everybody, it’s so precious.”
