Glastonbury 2010

Newton Faulkner’s a very friendly fella. He took some time out of his day to have a chat about The Flaming Lips, what it is to be honest, and afternoon hangovers before going out on stage and performing a 50-minute set in Orange Chill and Charge.

The crowd in the tent absolutely loved him – everyone on their feet dancing and singing along. He finished off the set with a crazy one-man-and-his-guitar rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody which had to be seen to be believed!

Every year the artists and engineers of Arcadia – whose pyrotechnical wonders are usually based in the late-night entertainment zone – take their madcap vehicles on a daytime cavalcade round the festival site. Here’s some of them on their way past Chill and Charge.

Whilst we were enjoying I Blame Coco’s set in Chill and Charge, they were joined on stage by Liam Bailey. Together they did a storming version of The Chain by Fleetwood Mac.

Eliot Sumner – daughter to Sting and Trudy Styler – played Glastonbury for the first time this year with her band I Blame Coco. It was a flying visit but they still found time to stop off for a chat and a few songs at Orange Chill and Charge.

Ellie Goulding recorded a post for GlastoBlog when she dropped in to Chill and Charge to perform a quick set before her Glastonbury debut on the John Peel Stage at 6.10pm.

Looking at the line-up ahead, she says she’s jealous of everyone who’s here as straight after performing she has to head off to Switzerland where she’s performing at the Openair Festival in St Gallen on Sunday.

It’s hot.

It’s very hot.

So when your phone runs out of juice it can be a welcome relief to get a break from the sun in the Orange Chill and Charge tent. It’s also a chance to see some of the Glastonbury acts play more intimate sets on a mini-Pyramid stage.

It’s the sixth time Chi has been to Glastonbury and he says every year there’s been rain at some point.

“I’ve never known it wall-to-wall sunshine like this”.

The weather is supposed to last the weekend so we reckon there’ll be a few pink faces and quality t-shirt marks by Monday …

We’ve been having a drive round the Glastonbury site to see how all the preparations are going and, as you can imagine, it’s a hive of activity with builders, painters, engineers and artists all working to complete their own area before the first visitors start arriving next Tuesday.

We stopped off at the Orange Chill and Charge site to grab a photo of the work in progress.

Chill and Charge this year has three themed areas – past, present and future – and 800 phone-charging points at the ready.

You can see what the area will end up looking like in the artist’s impression on the left.

The area also includes a mini-Pyramid stage which will host a special line-up of acts. Check back on the blog in the next few days for more details of who’ll be playing.