Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis has denied claims made by former Spice Girl Mel B that this year’s festival has been cancelled.
Speaking to Nihal Arthanayake on BBC Radio 5 Live, Melanie Brown said she had been told on Monday that the event was off, indicating that the girl band were due to appear in the festival’s Sunday evening “legends” slot as part of their 25th anniversary celebrations.
Brown said: “I know that Glastonbury’s been cancelled, so a lot of big stage performances are on hold again this year, which is sad but we’ve got to get this virus under control.”
Eavis swiftly tweeted that they had “no news this end”, and that announcements would come direct from the event’s organisers.
Her father, 85-year-old Michael Eavis, was pictured receiving his first dose of the coronavirus vaccine on 31 December. He told NHS South West: “Wouldn’t it be wonderful to get the majority of our population vaccinated before June 2021, so that we can celebrate next summer in proper ‘Glastonbury style’?”
In December, Emily Eavis told the BBC: “We’re doing everything we can on our end to plan and prepare but I think we’re still quite a long way from being able to say we’re confident 2021 will go ahead.”
While many leading festivals – including Reading and Leeds, Download and Isle of Wight – have announced 2021 lineups and put tickets on sale, there is no clarity or certainty on whether such events will be able to go ahead.
On 5 January, MPs will hear from the organisers of Parklife and Boomtown as part of a hearing on how UK music festivals can survive the impact of Covid-19 and “the health and financial barriers to planning festivals in 2021”.
