Axl and Slash: Young owls rescued from Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage after Guns N’ Roses set named after rock stars
Two young owls found under the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury – one during Guns N’ Roses’ headline set – have been named after members of the rock band.
The team at Secret World Wildlife Rescue (SWWR) in Somerset said the recovery was “the most unusual disturbance case” this year.
According to the rescuers, one of the owls, which has been named Axl after the band’s vocalist Axl Rose, was discovered under the steps of the prestigious Pyramid Stage during the rock group’s set on Saturday 24 June.
Axl Rose, center, Slash, back left and Duff McKagan, back right of Guns N’ Roses perform during the Glastonbury Festival on 24 June. Pic: AP
The next day, SWWR received a call about a second owl found under the stage.
It was called Slash in honour of guitarist Saul Hudson’s stage name.
Axl and Slash, who are thought to be siblings, were quickly reunited at the RSCPA West Hatch Wildlife Centre in Taunton before being transferred to SWWR.
It is thought the chicks were abandoned by their parents and it is not known how long they were left alone, although SWWR believes they were exposed to loud music.
David Plant, fundraising manager at SWWR, was worried for the young owls’ safety, saying they “must have been terrified”, but expressed his gratitude to the people who helped find the chicks.
The stage is now synonymous with the Somerset-based festival
He said: “When Guns N’ Roses were playing Welcome To The Jungle, I’m sure they didn’t realise how close they actually were to wildlife.
“This is possibly the most unusual disturbance case we’ve heard about this year, but it just goes to show the importance of checking your surrounding for wildlife before any activity.
“It looks like the parents sadly abandoned their nest once festival preparation began, so it’s difficult to say how long the chicks were left alone.”
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He added that they must have been “terrified after enduring almost two full days of loud music”.
Mr Plant urged people to check long-standing structures or materials for any wildlife and avoid disturbing nests.
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Typically, owls are cavity-nesting species and prefer making homes in old trees, though some have been known to nest in rabbit holes and man-made boxes.
For these little owls, it seems the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury made for an ideal nesting spot, despite the booming music.
Mr Plant said the pair are safe and well in the SWWR aviary and were “pleased” to be reunited.
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Joy star James Norton on the ‘postcode lottery’ of IVF – and playing the scientist who was part of creating the first ‘test-tube baby’
Actor James Norton, who stars in a new film telling the story of the world’s first “test-tube baby”, has criticised how “prohibitively expensive” IVF can be in the UK.
In Joy, the star portrays the real-life scientist Bob Edwards, who – along with obstetrician Patrick Steptoe and embryologist Jean Purdy – spent a decade tirelessly working on medical ways to help infertility.
The film charts the 10 years leading up to the birth of Louise Joy Brown, who was dubbed the world’s first test-tube baby, in 1978.
In the UK, statistics show the proportion of IVF cycles paid for by the NHS has dropped from 40% to 27% in the last decade
Norton, who is best known for playing Tommy Lee Royce in the BAFTA-winning series Happy Valley, told Sky News he has friends who were IVF babies and other friends who have had their own children thanks to the fertility treatment.
“But I didn’t know about these three scientists and their sacrifice, tenacity and skill,” he said. The star hopes the film will be “a catalyst for conversation” about the treatment and its availability.
“We know for a fact that Jean, Bob and Patrick would not have liked the fact that IVF is now so means based,” he said. “It’s prohibitively expensive for some… and there is a postcode lottery which means that some people are precluded from that opportunity.”
Bill Nighy, Thomasin McKenzie and James Norton star in Joy. All pics: Netflix/ Kerry Brown
Now, IVF is considered a wonder of modern medicine. More than 12 million people owe their existence today to the treatment Edwards, Steptoe and Purdy worked so hard to devise.
But Joy shows how public backlash in the years leading up to Louise’s birth saw the team vilified – accused of playing God and creating “Frankenstein babies”.
Bill Nighy and Thomasin McKenzie star alongside Norton, with the script written by acclaimed screenwriter Jack Thorne and his wife Rachel Mason.
The couple went through seven rounds of IVF themselves to conceive their son.
Norton portrays scientist Bob Edwards, while McKenzie plays embryologist Jean Purdy
While the film is set in the 1970s, the reality is that societal pressures haven’t changed all that much for many going through IVF today – with the costs now both emotional and financial.
“IVF is still seen as a luxury product, as something that some people get access to and others don’t,” said Thorne, speaking about their experiences in the UK.
“Louise was a working-class girl with working-class parents. Working class IVF babies are very, very rare now.”
In the run-up to the US election, Donald Trump saw IVF as a campaigning point – promising his government, or insurance companies, would pay for the treatment for all women should he be elected. He called himself the “father of IVF” at a campaign event – a remark described as “quite bizarre” by Kamala Harris.
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“I don’t think Trump is a blueprint for this,” Norton said. “I don’t know how that fits alongside his questions around pro-choice.”
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In the UK, statistics from fertility regulator HEFA show the proportion of IVF cycles paid for by the NHS has dropped from 40% to 27% in the last decade.
“It’s so expensive,” Norton said. “Those who want a child should have that choice… and some people’s lack of access to this incredibly important science actually means that people don’t have the choice.”
Joy is in UK cinemas from 15 November, and on Netflix from 22 November
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