It’s that time of the year when thousands have been left disappointed because they haven’t been able to secure their spot at the UK’s biggest festival: Glastonbury.
Tickets this year took over an hour to sell out, with the provider See Tickets saying the site experienced technical difficulties.
Even when things were back up and running, many were left devastated – with festival organiser Emily Eavis saying that demand yet again outstripped supply.
She also reminded fans that there will be a ticket resale in 2023.
But if you’re still desperate to get to Worthy Farm, and you don’t want to risk the emotional journey of a resale, there are other ways to experience the Glastonbury vibes.
A few shifts for days of fun
WaterAid, Oxfam and Shelter are some of the charities partnering with the festival – and each organisation provides volunteers for the festival, which people can apply for.
Typically, if you volunteer for charities, you can expect to work three or four shifts over five days.
That can include things like working at a bar, cleaning toilets, checking people’s tickets or helping people find their way around the site.
Other charities also run property lock-ups on the site, where campers can store their valuable belongings. And volunteers can help run the festival’s litter picking and recycling operation.
The rest of the time is yours to explore the site or enjoy live music.
Community
For Aarabi Baheerathan, cleaning the toilets at Glastonbury this summer was the first time she’d been to a festival.
“We were there for almost a full week, which is a long time to be in a tent I learned,” the 26-year-old tells BBC Newsbeat.
“But you get there a day before everyone else, it’s actually really nice, because you see Glastonbury being set up.”
Though Aarabi admits the need for a “strong stomach”, she enjoyed the experience and plans to do it again.
She feels there is a “core” community spirit being part of the team of volunteers, which helps you feel part of the festival.
And festival friendships run deep for her, as she has plans to go on holiday with her volunteer mates.
First aid
But it’s not just toilets that have volunteers looking after them – much of the medical care at the festival is provided by medical students working for free.
Both Rosa Quinn and Lily Chadwick are medical students at the University of Exeter, helping at the festival this year.
Rosa, 28, was working in a medical tent and Lily, 23, was a first responder, with the pair working two shifts.
From doctors, dentists and nurses, to medical students and paramedics, lots of people from across the medical field volunteer, Lily tells Newsbeat.
Both Rosa and Lily echo Aarabi – that, if you get the chance to volunteer, you should.
“On the nursing side it was fantastic, something I’ve always wanted to do is go to Glastonbury and obviously all the tickets always sold out,” Rosa says.
“So getting through this way was amazing, being able to learn from it and gain loads of experience.”
For Lily, it was “one of the best experiences of medical school”.
“I would definitely recommend it, I think it was an incredible experience,” she says.
“But part of me wants to say no – so other people don’t sign up and become competition for my spots to volunteer in the future.”
Bonnie Mclaren, BBC Newsbeat Reporter, 8th November 2022
