Glastonbury 2024: Celebrity cameos, secret sets and a 10-week-old star – the festival highlights from a brilliant year

Published

1 year ago

July 1, 2024

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Glastonbury 2024 has come to an end, with US singer-songwriter SZA closing the show on the Pyramid Stage following a spectacular weekend of celebrity cameos, fireworks and crowd-surfing.

And music, of course.

Dua Lipa, Coldplay, Little Simz, Shania Twain, Janelle Monae and Cyndi Lauper were among the big names performing, and that was just on the main stage – which is one of more than 100 across Glastonbury‘s massive Worthy Farm site in Somerset.

It has been a record-breaking year. With SZA’s nature-inspired set on Sunday following Lipa’s on Friday, this year’s event is the first ever to feature two female headliners. And Coldplay have now headlined five times, more than any other act.

Let’s relive the highlights of another weekend that showed exactly why this is the greatest festival in the world, from the main events to the bits you might have missed.

Michael J Fox on stage, Tom Cruise backstage

Some sniffy corners of the internet had been sceptical about Coldplay’s return to headline Glastonbury for a record-breaking fifth time, but on Saturday night Chris Martin and co proved exactly why they are perfect for this slot.

Their celebrity fans certainly seem to think so. On stage, after appearances from other artists including Little Simz, they were joined by none other than Hollywood legend Michael J Fox playing guitar for the tearjerker Fix You.

Behind the scenes, Tom Cruise was among those watching stage-side, while Martin’s partner Dakota Johnson also appeared to be seen on camera.

Glastonbury founder Michael Eavis was also watching, and received a dedication ditty from the Coldplay frontman, who told him: “We just want to thank you, as humans go you’re the best of all sorts. You’re a musical charmer, you’re the world’s greatest farmer. Whoever got knighted wearing shorts? Thank you Michael, we love you.”

The following day, Fox shared pictures from the festival on Instagram. “Oh yeah in case you were wondering… it was f****** mind blowing. There is a time for every band and a band for every time. This is Coldplay’s time.”

Dua Lipa joins the crowd

During her headline performance on the Friday night, Dua Lipa explained to fans how she “manifested” the experience, saying she had “written this moment down… wished for it… worked so hard in the hopes that maybe one day I’ll get to do it”.

More than this, her wish was specifically to headline on a Friday, “because then I knew I could party for the next two days in the best place on Earth”.

Well, we can confirm that for the Saturday at least, the star did get to enjoy the festival as a punter (albeit one with access to a proper bed and a shower, probably). We spotted her walking through the crowd at the Other Stage ahead of The Streets’ evening slot, and later backstage in the hospitality area, with her actor boyfriend Callum Turner.

Other celebrity appearances

Ever since the days of Kate Moss in her micro shorts and wellies in the mid-2000s, Glastonbury has been synonymous with celebrity spotting.

This year was no exception, with former headliner Stormzy, Maya Jama, Alexa Chung, Paul Mescal, Sienna Miller, Cara Delevingne, Leo Woodall and Anya Taylor-Joy among the stars seen around the site.

Noel Gallagher and Dave Grohl (a surprise performer at last year’s event) were also reportedly spotted watching LCD Soundsystem stage-side, and Gallagher was later pictured with Belfast rap trio Kneecap, while Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett went to see Paloma Faith.

Russell Crowe was also on site – as a performer, not a guest – with his band Indoor Garden Party, while Idris Elba gave a speech on the West Holts stage to speak about knife crime and discuss his campaign, Don’t Stop Your Future.

Secret (and not-so secret) sets

“It’s Happening! See you 6pm at Woodsies @glastonbury.”

It was supposed to be hush hush, but with bookies and secret Glastonbury sources putting their money on Kasabian being the big surprise act in the days beforehand, the Leicester band decided to spill the beans a few hours ahead of the show.

Their message on X was all the confirmation needed to bring thousands to the Woodsies Stage – so many, in fact, the area was closed off almost an hour ahead of the group’s start time as a mass of people tried to gain access in sweltering sunshine.

Kasabian headlined the festival back in 2014, so the tent was in capable hands. Theirs was the biggest secret set slot – and featured crowd-surfing from frontman Sergio Pizzorno – but there were numerous others happening across the site.

Plus, lots of star cameos, such as Mel C and Tilda Swinton joining Orbital, Sam Smith making an appearance with Disclosure, and Sophie Ellis-Bextor teaming up with Peggy Gou.

Mike Skinner for PM?

Another set featuring some energetic crowd-surfing, The Streets slot on the Other Stage was one of the highlights of the weekend.

Mike Skinner was in and out of the crowd during a performance that embodied the spirit of Glastonbury, featuring hits including Blinded By The Lights, Weak Become Heroes, Fit But You Know It, Dry Your Eyes and more.

One fan at the front sharing messages on his phone managed to get them picked up by the cameras. “Mike Skinner for PM,” read one, getting a huge cheer.

Is it too late for next week, do you think?

Glastonbury’s youngest fan?

As DJ Annie Mac opened the Other Stage with a dance set on Friday morning, there was one fan in the crowd who stole the show.

Wearing stripey pyjamas and ear protectors, perched on top of his dad Tom Kay’s shoulders, 10-week-old Finlay was met with cheers as he appeared on the big screen several times throughout the set, with special effects turning his image turn into a hallucinatory visual.

“Oh my god, this baby, what a little legend,” Mac said to the crowd. She later signed off her performance by thanking “everyone, Glastonbury, and this baby”.

Asked what tips they would give to parents thinking of bringing their young children to a festival, mum Rosie Lewis said: “Do it – you can overthink it and it can put you off. But take more nappies than you think you’ll need and take more vests and outfits than you think you’ll need.”

She’s Still The One

In front of a sea of fans wearing cowboy hats, country star Shania Twain performed a “life-changing” set for the legends slot.

It has become a Sunday afternoon favourite at the festival, with stars including Kylie Minogue, Diana Ross, Dolly Parton and Tom Jones filling it in previous years.

And Twain revealed she had explored the festival site ahead of her debut performance. “This really is a city, it’s a community,” she said.

Political statements

Ahead of the general election, Glastonbury was bound to get political this year.

Damon Albarn was among the artists on stage urging music fans to vote next week, while artists including Charlotte Church made calls to “free Palestine” during their performances.

And an inflatable lifeboat that appeared hoisted into the crowd during Idles’ set on Friday was later confirmed to be the work of artist Banksy.

The small boat was filled with migrant dummies in orange life jackets, and was criticised by James Cleverly, the home secretary, and deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden.

“Festival-goers cosplaying as migrants, and celebrating the actions of people smugglers, while they party is awful,” Mr Cleverly wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Whatever your political views, this isn’t something we should trivialise.”

The boat appeared as Idles were performing Danny Nedelko, a 2018 release which begins with the lyrics: “My blood brother is an immigrant, a beautiful immigrant.” The band were reportedly not aware it had happened until after the set had finished.

The boat also appeared above the crowd during Lil Simz’s set the following day.

England v Slovakia courtesy of a 1D star

Officially, Glastonbury was not showing the Euro 2024 game, which started just at the end of Twain’s set and clashed with acts including Nothing But Thieves, Janelle Monae and Avril Lavigne – but that didn’t stop those England fans who determined to see it.

At one corner of the festival, near to the Silver Hayes area, a crowd gathered around one fan who had set up a flatscreen and a mifi unit to stream the match – who turned out to be One Direction star Louis Tomlinson.

Others were also spotted watching on phones around the site.

It was very almost a low-light, until extra time. Trailing 1-0 for most of the match, England were saved by a Jude Bellingham equaliser in stoppage time, followed quickly by a goal from Harry Kane in extra time.

Final score – 2-1 to England, who now face Switzerland in the quarter-finals.

See you next year?

Fans will be pleased to hear organiser Emily Eavis is already in talks with some acts for 2025.

Speaking to the Glastonbury Free Press, the festival’s resident newspaper, she said: “We’re taking a fallow year in 2026 to give the land a rest, and the festival before a fallow year is always a fun one to plan because you almost have to fit two years into one.

“We’re already in talks with some acts for it. It’s exciting.”

We’ll see you in the scramble for tickets in a few months’ time.

UK

Rachel Reeves hints at tax rises in autumn budget after welfare bill U-turn

Published

2 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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Rachel Reeves hints at tax rises in autumn budget after welfare bill U-turn

Rachel Reeves has hinted that taxes are likely to be raised this autumn after a major U-turn on the government’s controversial welfare bill.

Sir Keir Starmer’s Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment Bill passed through the House of Commons on Tuesday after multiple concessions and threats of a major rebellion.

MPs ended up voting for only one part of the plan: a cut to universal credit (UC) sickness benefits for new claimants from £97 a week to £50 from 2026/7.

Initially aimed at saving £5.5bn, it now leaves the government with an estimated £5.5bn black hole – close to breaching Ms Reeves’s fiscal rules set out last year.

In an interview with The Guardian, the chancellor did not rule out tax rises later in the year, saying there were “costs” to watering down the welfare bill.

“I’m not going to [rule out tax rises], because it would be irresponsible for a chancellor to do that,” Ms Reeves told the outlet.

“We took the decisions last year to draw a line under unfunded commitments and economic mismanagement.

“So we’ll never have to do something like that again. But there are costs to what happened.”

Meanwhile, The Times reported that, ahead of the Commons vote on the welfare bill, Ms Reeves told cabinet ministers the decision to offer concessions would mean taxes would have to be raised.

The outlet reported that the chancellor said the tax rises would be smaller than those announced in the 2024 budget, but that she is expected to have to raise tens of billions more.

It comes after Ms Reeves said she was “totally” up to continuing as chancellor after appearing tearful at Prime Minister’s Questions.

Criticising Sir Keir for the U-turns on benefit reform during PMQs, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the chancellor looked “absolutely miserable”, and questioned whether she would remain in post until the next election.

Sir Keir did not explicitly say that she would, and Ms Badenoch interjected to say: “How awful for the chancellor that he couldn’t confirm that she would stay in place.”

In her first comments after the incident, Ms Reeves said she was having a “tough day” before adding: “People saw I was upset, but that was yesterday.

“Today’s a new day and I’m just cracking on with the job.”

Sir Keir also told Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby on Thursday that he “didn’t appreciate” that Ms Reeves was crying in the Commons.

“In PMQs, it is bang, bang, bang,” he said. “That’s what it was yesterday.

“And therefore, I was probably the last to appreciate anything else going on in the chamber, and that’s just a straightforward human explanation, common sense explanation.”

UK

Diogo Jota and Andre Silva’s funeral in pictures

Published

3 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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Diogo Jota and Andre Silva's funeral in pictures

The family and friends of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva have been joined by Liverpool stars past and present and other Portuguese players at the pair’s funeral near Porto.

The Liverpool forward, 28, and his brother died in a car crash in Spain on Thursday.

Pictures below show the funeral at the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar church in the town of Gondomar near Porto. Click here for our liveblog coverage of the day’s events.

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Miguell Rocha played with Jota for around ten years with Gondomar Sport Clube in Portugal.

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The former captain was seen wiping away tears as he read messages and laid his tribute down.

UK

How Britain’s most notorious gangster turned up at a charity lunch to fact-check a retired detective’s talk

Published

8 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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How Britain's most notorious gangster turned up at a charity lunch to fact-check a retired detective's talk

Britain’s most notorious gangster and the detective who pursued him have been involved in a bizarre confrontation…at a charity lunch.

Former Detective Superintendent Ian Brown was at a Kent golf club and about to give a talk on the infamous £26m Brink’s-Mat gold robbery when he was summoned from the stage by officials.

Mr Brown, who appeared on the award-winning Sky News StoryCast podcast The Hunt For The Brink’s-Mat Gold in 2019, said: “I go outside and they say ‘he’s here’ and I say ‘who’s here’ and they say that table over there in the corner, that’s Kenny Noye with a baseball cap pulled down over his head.”

Noye stabbed to death an undercover policeman during the Brink’s-Mat investigation, but was acquitted of murder, though he was jailed for handling the stolen gold.

After his release, he used a knife again in the M25 road-rage murder of motorist Stephen Cameron.

“They said what are we going to do?” said Mr Brown.

“I said are you serving food? Well, just use plastic knives.”

Although Mr Brown had not personally arrested Noye over Brink’s-Mat he had identified him as a suspect months after the robbery.

Years later he met him during an ill-fated TV interview in which he quizzed him about his role in the robbery.

He said: “He told me everything I wanted to know except the truth. He still insists he had nothing to do with it.”

The interview was never broadcast after the prison authorities threatened to send Noye back to jail for a breach of his parole.

Mr Brown, 86, said: “I went over to him and said ‘thanks for coming, nice of you to pop in’, but I don’t believe you’ve turned up with your sons and grandkids to listen to me telling how you killed a police officer.

“And he said ‘I want to make sure you don’t say I’ve been dealing drugs’ and I said ‘I’ve never said that Kenny’.”

The retired detective told Noye he wasn’t going to change his presentation just because he was there.

“He said ‘mate, I wouldn’t expect you to and I’ll come up [on stage] if you want me to’.

“Can you think how he’s turned up with his family to listen to somebody talking about you killing the police? Now, you put logic on that.”

The bizarre story emerged when I rang Mr Brown after I’d been told about the meeting.

I also wanted to ask him about the recent BBC hit drama series The Gold which retold the story of the Brink’s-Mat heist at Heathrow Airport in 1983.

“It was an absolute shambles, far too much dramatic licence and the real story was so much better,” said the ex-detective, whose job had been to follow the trail of the 6,800 gold bars to the US and the Caribbean.

He said he chatted to one of the show’s writers for a long time in a phone call but then heard no more.

“They invented people, changed a bit here and there and made it politically correct in so many ways. I’m just very sad that that is what people will believe.

“And I couldn’t work out who my character was supposed to be. I could have been one of the female cops.”

He also criticised the portrayal of Noye, now 78, as a likeable jack-the-lad character when the truth about the double killer with a volatile temper was quite different.