Christopher BarrettFollowing her suggestion that Glastonbury Festival was likely to take a year out in 2026, Emily Eavis has confirmed the event will not be staged that year in order to enable the farmland site to recover.
In an interview with the Glastonbury Free Press Eavis 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.
“I really would like to say thank you to everyone who’s made this year so special. It’s got to be the best one yet. Every single one of our vast, incredible crew is crucial to making this event work. And, of course, it simply wouldn’t exist without the participation of the kind, brilliant, respectful festival-goers. I think people here show a better way to live, and that they do take a little bit of that back to the outside world with them. It honestly restores your faith in humanity.”
Glastonbury’s industry leading sustainability efforts, including it being powered by renewable energy for the first time last year, were acknowledged at the Access All Areas Awards, with Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis collecting the Editor’s Award.
Among the numerous sustainability initiatives at this year’s event was the worldwide festival debut of a 3MWh renewable energy battery (pictured) that powered the festival’s Arcadia zone, featuring for the first time a remarkable Dragonfly DJ booth built using the remains of an ex-military Royal Navy helicopter. Topped with solar panels, the battery was brought to Worthy Farm by longtime friends of Arcadia Claire O’Neill CEO at A Greener Future and Ecotricity founder Dale Vince. The renewable energy battery will next be seen this summer at WOMAD Ltd festival and then Massive Attack’s ACT1.5 Climate Action Accelerator show in Bristol.
Image: Simon Patterson
An economic report on Glastonbury Festival found the event generated around £168 million of income for UK businesses last year, including £32 million for local businesses in Somerset.
According to the report, the cost of putting on the 210,000-capacity event was approximately £62 million, paid across 922 organisations providing services to the festival. Of this amount, just under £12 million was paid to 258 companies in Somerset.