Overcrowding / Capacity (2022 vs 2023)

[moogster]

5 hours ago, Alvoram said:

Could it be that for 2 hours, for once, scheduling was absolutely spot on?

Nowhere was hectic, nowhere was dead. everybody spread out nicely around the site? 

.... Nah, what am I saying, ignore me, that'd never happen... 🙈🤣

That's my take on it too!

[CaledonianGonzo]

I think that can only happen if the 3 big outside stages are all pretty busy. 

Arctic Monkeys being rammo would account for it.  But if it was only 3/4 full I dunno if the jigsaw fits.

[philipsteak]

6 hours ago, Alvoram said:

Could it be that for 2 hours, for once, scheduling was absolutely spot on?

Nowhere was hectic, nowhere was dead. everybody spread out nicely around the site? 

.... Nah, what am I saying, ignore me, that'd never happen... 🙈🤣

Aliens. 

Obvious when you think about it

[parsonjack]

Only big bottleneck we experienced was post fireworks on Weds where folks were trying to squeeze out of Kings Meadow towards Park.  We were sitting in the Peace Dome in the bottom corner of the field when the crowd started building up, which then led to a a bunch of idiots climbing over the cute picket fence that surrounds the Peace Dome and schlepping through the garden as a shortcut.  The Peace Dome guy did his best to very politely ask them to stop but they kept coming like lemmings.

Utter ignorance.

[mandana]

The worst experience for me was trying to see Nia Archives at the Nowhere stage on Thursday. We arrived about 30 mins before her set and was promptly caught in a very big crowd that got worse quickly. I think it was too small an area for her.

I am usually quite bad with crowds - though better than I have been in the past. This crowd got so bad so quickly that it was very difficult even to turn round, couldnt move my arms at one point too.

Be interested to know if it was all like that or just trying to get close.

 

[Guest]

A friend of mine spoke to Michael about this yesterday. He just said that the crowd numbers at Elton were within the capacity of the ground. He didn't have a comment when asked about the pushing and fighting but took things a bit more seriously when told that she felt there was a possibility of a Hillsborough type situation occurring.

I guess it will all be discussed at the festival review.

[gordong]

1 minute ago, Ommadawn said:

A friend of mine spoke to Michael about this yesterday. He just said that the crowd numbers at Elton were within the capacity of the ground. He didn't have a comment when asked about the pushing and fighting but took things a bit more seriously when told that she felt there was a possibility of a Hillsborough type situation occurring.

I guess it will all be discussed at the festival review.

I’ve been concerned about the possibility of crowd crush, but I wouldn’t have thought there would have been the right conditions at Glastonbury to allow that to happen (e.g. a penned in area that only has one exit).
Suppose Roskilide in 2000 showed that you don’t need those conditions for a deadly crush to happen. 

[CaledonianGonzo]

You can always test, learn, tweak, adjust and improve, but Elton passing off without a hitch is a credit to everyone involved.

[st dan]

Also as mentioned in here at the time of the performance, I don’t think we’ll see numbers of that size for a single act ever again. 
If it successfully survived that, then I don’t think anything else will compare.

Edited July 2, 2023 by st dan

[CaledonianGonzo]

Maybe not to quite that capacity, but Swift or Madonna would give it a run for its money.

[FloorFiller]

4 minutes ago, st dan said:

Also as mentioned in here at the time of the performance, I don’t think we’ll see numbers of that size for a single act ever again. 
If it successfully survived that, then I don’t think think anything else will compare.

Yup, can’t see them ever topping that, or at least not with any currently existing acts. Like, Taylor would obviously be a massively popular and busy one if she were ever rebooked, but even she doesn’t have as broad appeal as Elton with all age groups of Glastonbury and has her fair share of detractors. 

[incident]

1 hour ago, CaledonianGonzo said:

Maybe not to quite that capacity, but Swift or Madonna would give it a run for its money.

Not sure about that.

There's still an awful lot of people out there, especially older demographic which Glastonbury has a lot of, who've still written off Swift based on their preconceptions from ages ago as music for 14 years old girls. I'd be there without question but I'd imagine someone like The Prodigy on the Other Stage could easily take most of the undecided folk.

Meanwhile Madge has the name value but a long and noted tradition of being utterly shite live. While for sure a "proper" Madonna greatest hits set could draw a huge crowd and acclaim, there's a huge question mark over whether she'd be inclined to even attempt to deliver that. Would still think that self indulgent reworkings are more likely.

[CaledonianGonzo]

All true.  But comparatively speaking - as Pyramid Headliners go - both would be on the fat-ass side, and will pack the place out way more than a Dua Lipa or 1975 or a Dave.

[Orange_rhyme]

6 minutes ago, incident said:

Not sure about that.

There's still an awful lot of people out there, especially older demographic which Glastonbury has a lot of, who've still written off Swift based on their preconceptions from ages ago as music for 14 years old girls. I'd be there without question but I'd imagine someone like The Prodigy on the Other Stage could easily take most of the undecided folk.

Meanwhile Madge has the name value but a long and noted tradition of being utterly shite live. While for sure a "proper" Madonna greatest hits set could draw a huge crowd and acclaim, there's a huge question mark over whether she'd be inclined to even attempt to deliver that. Would still think that self indulgent reworkings are more likely.

I agree.

Taylor Swift is obviously huge globally but wouldn't draw a huge crowd at Glasto. She's big enough to headline though obviously.

But she's not very popular with guys or older people or many types of girls also.

Elton had broad appeal and it was his last ever UK show so it's hard to beat.

 

[Boomtowner]

On 6/30/2023 at 7:16 AM, CaledonianGonzo said:

He jam packed the field - albeit lots more people sitting down / lazing back than during e.g. Kylie or Diana.

But I went to the facilities during If You Want To Sing out and when I tried to get back in they was a line of security directing people up to the top of the field. Luckily they let me through.

Got to disagree, Kylie was peak blankets and chair tossers, complaining that you've trod on their blanket. Took an age to get through.

[Boomtowner]

On 6/30/2023 at 9:21 PM, FuzzyDunlop said:

I assumed so, but someone earlier said 3/4 of the way back there was a lot of room. I appreciate that accounts for 70,000 or so, but it's still plenty of unaccounted for souls.

we left as they were murdering '505', it was really easy to get out, huge gaps to all through. Loads of people had left before we did.  

i thought the Friday night headliners were all a little disappointing, which is why I ended up at AM

[Boomtowner]

On 6/30/2023 at 5:30 PM, CaledonianGonzo said:

I honestly noticed no difference whatsoever. Thought last year was grand, same as this time.

Not really doing much to alter my 'with 3 years away people forgot what it's like being in an enormous crowd' theory.

this was my theory for last year too, glad I'm not on my own. 

[themuel]

Last year I really struggled with it and went this year planning for it to be my last. 

This year, much better.  Felt safer and more managed. 

Edited July 2, 2023 by themuel

[Avalon_Fields]

It did seem better this year. Only real crowd push was Shangri La and Elton for me, the vast majority of the time I was quite comfortable. 

It is difficult to imagine an Elton sized crowd again, unless the ‘last ever UK gig’ catches on and The Stones bow out at Glastonbury. That would be something. 

[Skip997]

17 hours ago, Boomtowner said:

i thought the Friday night headliners were all a little disappointing, which is why I ended up at AM

Kelis took a little bit of time to get going, but the last 45 minutes or so was superb, proper West Holts party!

[FuzzyDunlop]

Elton has a "young & old" appeal that very very few other acts can compete with. 

Over 35 males, which I am 1 (& there are lot of at Glastonbury) - a decent percentage of them would have no interest in T Swift. 

I'd be there, on my own from my friends group.

Obviously her crowd would still be massive, just not close to Elton's.

I cant really see anyone matching that. Even the TV audience was huge.

Oasis reunion? Nah. Unless it was their first show... which it wouldnt be. 

 

[Justcalledtosay]

Area through the Truth stage was dangerous this year. In areas there was no movement. People panicking and trying to turn around and go back. People from the truth stage trying to get out. Needs more thought before someone gets hurt. 

[09matthewsw]

7 minutes ago, Justcalledtosay said:

Area through the Truth stage was dangerous this year. In areas there was no movement. People panicking and trying to turn around and go back. People from the truth stage trying to get out. Needs more thought before someone gets hurt. 

I’ve always felt like with the SEC that about 50% of the people down there are just walking through looking for something to do. I think most people stay less than an hour. The festival are clearly trying really hard with the SH improvements to prevent this but late night people just seem to gravitate towards it still. 

[Guest]

Having spoken to Michael about this issue a couple of times in previous years, it seems his take is that as nothing happened, it was fine. Not sure that's the correct approach to take.

 

Edited July 3, 2023 by Ommadawn

[Skip997]

1 minute ago, Ommadawn said:

Having spoken to Michael about this issue a couple of times in previous years, it seems his take is that as nothing happened, it was fine. Not sure that's the correct approach to take.

 

Seems to be the general attitude.

IMO we've been very fortunate to have escaped a major crush with substantial injuries or worse, esp last year.