I got in on the Thursday. Glastonbury 2025 - late June, Worthy Farm. The site was already heaving: that slow crawl from the car park to the gate, then the first sight of the Pyramid in the distance. Nothing prepares you for the scale. The buzz hits you straight away - stages tucked into every corner, flags everywhere, and that feeling that something special is about to happen. I'd been before, and it still gets me every time.
Friday: rain and The 1975
By Friday the weather had turned. Not a washout - just enough rain to pull on a poncho and accept you're at Glastonbury. The place runs on its own logic; a bit of mud never stopped anyone. Friday night on the Pyramid belonged to The 1975. They know exactly how to headline: big songs, big production, and a connection with the crowd that's rare at that scale. Matty Healy had us from the first line. "Love It If We Made It" felt like a national anthem in that field - I was halfway back and the whole place was singing every word. One of those sets you know you'll remember for years.
Over on the Other Stage, Loyle Carner was doing something beautiful - intimate and warm, the kind of set that makes 10,000 people feel like they're in a room together. I caught the tail end and immediately wished I'd seen the whole thing. That's Glastonbury: you're always missing something great somewhere else, and that's part of the magic.
Saturday: Neil Young and the Pyramid
Saturday was the one I'd been waiting for. Neil Young and The Chrome Hearts on the Pyramid. I had a clear view and a decent patch of grass - and for nearly two hours we got "Heart of Gold," "Rockin' in the Free World," "Harvest Moon" and more. That voice. Still unmistakable, still cutting through the night. Around me people were in tears - the kind of moment that only happens when a legend meets a crowd that's waited a lifetime for it. I stayed put and didn't regret a second. Charli XCX was headlining the Other Stage the same night; I could hear the bass from across the site. The place was alive from one end to the other.
Sunday: Rodrigo, Rod and The Prodigy
Sunday gave us Olivia Rodrigo on the Pyramid - and she absolutely owned it. She's built for stages like this: the songs, the presence, the way she had the crowd in the palm of her hand. "Vampire," "Good 4 U," "Bad Idea Right?" - the place went off. A proper headline moment and proof that the next generation of pop stars can fill the biggest slot in British music. Earlier in the day, Rod Stewart had the Legends slot. Full band, full swagger - "Maggie May" with 100,000 people singing along. One of those Glastonbury moments that reminds you why this festival still matters.
I also caught Wolf Alice, Loyle Carner again, and The Prodigy closing the Other Stage - the kind of full-throttle chaos only they can deliver.
By Monday morning I was wrecked, happy, and already thinking about next year. Glastonbury is the pilgrimage: the one you plan for months, the one where you discover stages you didn't know existed and lose your friends for six hours. I'll be back in 2026.