How the Central Somerset Gazette reported the first ever Glastonbury Festival in 1970

Glastonbury Festival is one of the most famous events in the world, bringing thousands of people to Somerset every summer to witness some of the biggest names in music.

The festival, founded by Michael Eavis, would have been celebrating its 50th anniversary this year had it not been for the cancellation of the 2020 instalment amid the spread of coronavirus.

However, this year still sees the 50th anniversary of the first-ever event, which in 1970 was known as the Pilton Pop Festival.

The festival's humble beginnings are a contrast to the powerhouse it has become and newspaper reports from the time are a testament to that.

The Central Somerset Gazette newspaper published a report on the event on Friday, September 25, 1970, describing the event as a "fantastic success" by Michael Eavis and played to a crowd of around 2,500 people.

Be it the fact that there were just 24 toilets on-site or that there were concerns that the crowd was too small, this report shows that in the 50 years since the first ever Glastonbury Festival, plenty of things have changed at Worthy Farm.

Read on to see the report of the event that spawned a cultural landmark that is now famous all around the world.

The report in full

Pilton’s first Blues Festival, staged at the weekend at Worthy Farm, Pilton, was described afterwards as a “fantastic success” by the organiser, Mr. Michael Eavis.

And although he did not quite manage to break even financially - 2,500 fans came instead of the 3,000 needed to pay expenses - Mr. Eavis is far from despondent with the result of the festival.

“The incredible response I have had from the people who did come has wiped out the gloom of not managing to make a profit,” he said.

“There is no question of my having to sell the farm or any part of it,” he added. “Although I don’t know exactly what my loss will be as yet, I can say that it will not be too great.”

Ever since the weekend, Mr. Eavis’ telephone has been busy with callers congratulating him on the show, and saying how sorry they were that he did not receive better support.

GROUPS ENTHUSIASTIC

“It was great to see everybody enjoying themselves so much,” continued Mr. Eavis. “All the groups said to me afterwards that it was a first-class show. Quintessence, especially, were very enthusiastic about it and said that if I ever decided to stage another one then they would come down and play for nothing to help me along.

“They said that the site was perfect and everything necessary was laid on, and that it was a shame that more people did not come along.”

Mr. Eavis said that where he went wrong was in the choice of groups. The Kinks and Wayne Fontana, who were top of the bill, did not play at the festival. The fans seemed delighted with the replacement bands, Tyrannosaurus Rex and Sam Apple Pie.

“I have since been assured by many people in the business that if I had advertised Tyrannosaurus Rex, Quintessence and Sam Apple Pie as the main attractions, then I might have had ten times the number of fans turning up,” said Mr. Eavis.

As to the question of staging a future festival at his Pilton farm, Mr. Eavis is as yet undecided. “At the moment I am not contemplating doing so,” he said, “but I wouldn’t like to say that the possibility doesn’t exist. It was all such a strain as I tackled the whole affair on my own. As it worked out I managed to get through without falling over, but near the end I was really spinning and there was a doctor standing by who kept telling me that I should take something.

“I was so tense because if the whole thing had been a flop then I might well have been in financially dire straits. But it wasn’t a flop and that atmosphere was really an experience,” he added.

50 OVERNIGHT GUESTS

Saturday dawned foggy and damp for the 50 or so pilgrims who spent Friday night on the site, but as the morning wore on the sun filtered through the mist and shone on Worthy Farm.

Everything was laid on for the crowds, which so far were yet to arrive. A first aid centre was already set up, provision tents were already selling goods and 24 very adequate toilets were in place and ready for use.

The police were on duty in force, ready to deal with any eventuality.

At around ten o’clock the entertainment started with a selection of records to put the crowd in the mood for the live groups that were to follow.

By noon, it had become a hot sunny day, perfect weather for a festival, and the crowd had grown to several hundred.

An announcement came over the public address system that a number of people had arrived from London under the impression that it was a free festival, and that they had no money to get in.

Mr. Eavis decided to let them in at reduced rates and a fund was started among those already inside to help pay for those without money.

The first group were scheduled to perform at midday but owing to the fact that their amplifiers had not arrived, there was two hours delay in getting started, but this gap was adequately filled with an excellent choice of records.

A massive great dane patrolled the fenced off stage area but it turned out that its services were not needed as there was no trouble at all. And the dog proved not all that ferocious, and quickly adapted to the loving attentions of a small girl.

MORE ARRIVE

As evening approached more and more people were arriving and the thousand mark was passed. At this point Mr. Eavis expressed the hope that he would still probably break even.

However, so far, although the groups had been competent they had failed to capture the imagination of the audience. This was dramatically changed by a wonderful set by Quintessence, which earned a deserved ovation from the fans.

Night was falling rapidly now and wood fires were started as the air grew colder. Then came the performance which transformed the festival from a highly pleasant and enjoyable event into something which was vital and throbbing with life.

Duster Bennett appeared on stage, curiously contrasting with his fellow musicians with his short neat hair and well-groomed appearance. But he soon made it clear that one does not need to be a ‘hairy’ to have a feel for the blues.

Hundreds of suddenly happy people abandoned their fires and leapt to their feet as Bennett’s pounding guitar work and gravelly vocals filled the air. Complete strangers danced together, forgetting their inhibitions, as they gave themselves up to enjoying the music.

The climax of this remarkable act came when Duster went into the old standard ‘Bright Lights, Big City’ which had the audience singing along and becoming completely involved.

When he left the stage, to chorused calls for more from the fans, he breathlessly proclaimed his gratitude at the warmth of the reception. “It was really wonderful and I am sure I didn’t deserve it,” he said modestly. “Everyone has been so good to me here. I am really glad that I came.”

COLOURFUL

It was an unenviable task to follow such an act but Steamhammer accomplished this capably. They had the help of a superb light show which was projected on to the back of the stage, from a tower just to the left of the enclosed arena.

Wildly gyrating colours and imagery captures and complemented the atmosphere of a blues festival. The combination of lights and music inspired one joyful spectator to remark that Mr. Eavis deserved a knighthood for making everyone so happy.

However, by ten o’clock the falling temperature and the wood smoke from the many fires which dotted the site were making conditions in some parts of the field a little uncomfortable.

Around this time what was possibly the only hint of trouble during the whole festival occurred. A burly character mounted on a powerful motor bike rode through the huddled massive near the front of the stage.

But the engine and headlight were extinguished straight away and trouble was averted.

Sam Apple Pie followed and had a good reception from the crowd which by now had grown greatly, probably almost to the two thousand mark. Several local groups came next. During the evening there was a minute’s silence as a mark of respect for blues guitarist Jimi Hendrix who had died the previous day. The sorrow for his death, felt by everyone at the festival, was well illustrated by the slogan painted on a van in 3ft. deep letters ‘Hendrix Lives’.

Top of the bill, Tyrannosaurus Rex came on soon after midnight and their arrival was greeted with delirious enthusiasm by their many followers.

Live music went on until some time after 4 o’clock when those fans who lived locally drifted off to their homes and those who had travelled from afar prepared to sleep.

FAIR WEATHER

The next day again brought fair weather and a few hundred people still remaining on the site at mid-morning, some making their own music, others still asleep, but most of them still in a happy frame of mind. Many of them had come from London and the Midlands and a few even from the North. The long journey home, in some cases with little or no money did not seem to make them despondent.

From the point of view of the police, too, everything went off satisfactorily. Two arrests were made, both in connection with alleged drug offences. Supt. M. J. Challes, press liaison officer for the Frome Division, who looked after the festival, said that to his knowledge there was no trouble at all and no damage was done to farm property.

“The police made arrangements to cover any contingency,” he said, “and an adequate and flexible force was laid on to do the job. There were no traffic problems at all and everything went off smoothly.”

Mr. John Barkle, of Barkle Bros. Store, Pilton, who had a stall on the site, was disappointed with the amount of business which he did, but had nothing but praise for the fans and also the event itself.

“We had catered for many more people,” he said, “but as far as those who did come were concerned then I have no complaints at all. They were happy, friendly and polite and said how sorry they were that we had laid on so many provisions and there was not enough people to buy them.”

And he added: “I also enjoyed the festival itself. It’s not my sort of music but on a nice night like that it was a pleasant experience to be there.”

Mr. Eavis said that many of the villagers after initially worrying about the effects of the festival, were favourably impressed by the event.

“A lot of them listened from the top of the hill and enjoyed the music,” he said. “Many of them have said to me afterwards that their fears were groundless, and that the festival was what it should be, a happy occasion for everyone.”