The 2025 Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts took place between 25 and 29 June at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Glastonbury, and follows the 2024 edition of the festival. The three headlining acts were the 1975, Neil Young, and Olivia Rodrigo, with Rod Stewart performing in the traditional Sunday Legends slot.
This edition of the festival became famous after anti-Israel and pro-Palestine statements from the bands Kneecap and Bob Vylan led to international political controversy.
Background Rod Stewart was announced as Glastonbury's 2025 teatime Legend's Slot performer on 26 November 2024. Stewart made his only previous appearance at the festival in 2002 when he headlined alongside Coldplay and Stereophonics. A few days later on 29 November, Nile Rodgers accidentally confirmed that he and Chic would be performing at the festival immediately following Stewart's set during his acceptance speech at an awards show held at the Roundhouse in London. When informed that this had not been officially announced, Rodgers joked: "Am I not supposed to give that away? I always say too much." Chic previously performed at Glastonbury in 2017, coincidentally also following from that year's Legend's slot performer Barry Gibb.
On 1 January 2025, Neil Young announced that he would not be performing at Glastonbury 2025 in a statement expressing his belief that the festival was "now under corporate control", referencing their partnership with the BBC. The artist, who had been rumoured to perform but had not been confirmed or revealed by the organizers, released a subsequent statement on his blog two days later that he would indeed be headlining the festival alongside his new band, the Chrome Hearts, remarking that his initial comments had been due to a communication error.
An initial wave of performers, including both remaining headliners, was announced on 6 March 2025. The 1975 headlined for the first time after previous appearances at the festival in 2014 and 2016, while Olivia Rodrigo returned to the festival following a notable set on the Other Stage in 2022. Doechii made her Glastonbury debut headlining the West Holts Stage, while Charli XCX headlined the Other Stage on Saturday. Sunday's Other Stage headliners, The Prodigy, performed at the festival for the first time since 2009, and the first time to the death of their frontman Keith Flint in 2019.
The lineup for the Acoustic Stage was announced on 22 March, headlined by Ani DiFranco, Nick Lowe, and Roy Harper. It was announced the stage would feature a set by The Searchers, in what they have confirmed would be their final performance together. Having formed in 1957, they are considered one of the longest-running bands in history. Discussing the show, singer Frank Allen stated, “The Searchers are finally performing at the greatest music festival of them all. What a way to round off a tour and a career.” The Avalon Stage announced its lineup on 25 March. The West Holts Stage revealed the rest of its lineup on 27 March, including the remaining two headliners Maribou State, and Overmono. The Woodies lineup, featuring headliners Four Tet, Scissor Sisters, and Jorja Smith, was announced on 24 April, with the performance being the newly reunited Scissor Sisters' first appearance at the festival since 2010.
The full line-up was released on 3 June 2025. The bill included three "TBA" secret sets on the Pyramid, Woodsies, and Park stages respectively, and an unknown band billed as "Patchwork" on the Pyramid Stage. The Friday surprise sets were revealed to be Lorde on the Woodsies stage, and Lewis Capaldi on the Pyramid stage. "Patchwork" were ultimately revealed to be Pulp, performing on the Pyramid stage for the first time since their headlining set in 1998, and the first time overall since 2011 where they played a secret set on the Park stage. The final "TBA" set was revealed to be Haim. Deftones were forced to cancel their set on the Other stage due to illness, and were replaced by Skepta.
Tickets General admission tickets for the festival went on sale on 17 November 2024. The tickets, costing £373.50 for the full weekend, sold out in thirty-five minutes.
Coverage and controversies The BBC announced their presenting team and plans for two months of coverage for the festival on 3 June 2025. This included the usual livestreams of the five main stages, with on-demand sets available for catch-up on BBC iPlayer, along with select live broadcasts on BBC One, Two, and Four. Three visualised episodes of the BBC Sounds Sidetracked podcast also aired. BBC Radio 6 Music was announced as the "radio home of Glastonbury", and was dedicated to coverage of the festival.
In the weeks before the festival, several British politicians, including prime minister Keir Starmer, called for hip-hop group Kneecap to be removed from the line-up. Hours before the show, the BBC announced that it would not broadcast Kneecap's set live, but would make it available on-demand once it had reviewed the performance. The set was broadcast live from a festival-goer's cell phone via TikTok, reaching more than two million viewers. Kneecap led chants of "fuck Keir Starmer" and in favour of Palestine, while the audience waved Palestinian flags.
The BBC did broadcast the live set by lesser-known punk-rap duo Bob Vylan, who played right before Kneecap. The vocalist, Bobby Vylan, led the crowd in chants for Palestine and against Israel's actions in the Gaza war, including "death, death to the IDF", which ignited a political controversy. According to the Guardian, some see it as valid political speech, but others found it "antisemitic" and "incitement to violence". Prime Minister Keir Starmer described it as "appalling hate speech". Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the scene "grotesque". The BBC apologised for what it called "deeply offensive" content and removed the performance from iPlayer. The United States Department of State revoked their visas, forcing them to cancel their planned tour there. British police said on 29 June that they were assessing videos of the performances by Kneecap and Bob Vylan; the following month the police decided not to take further action against Kneecap due to "insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction for any offence".
The Community Security Trust (CST), a UK charity that monitors antisemitism, reported that 29 June 2025, the day after Bob Vylan's Glastonbury performance, saw the highest daily number of antisemitic incidents recorded in the UK during the first half of the year, with 26 incidents logged. Of these, 12 were direct responses to statements issued by Jewish organisations reacting to the performance. CST described the chants as "utterly chilling", and included it as an example of how rhetoric surrounding Israel can inflame antisemitic sentiment. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper acknowledged the report’s findings, calling the level of antisemitic incidents "shamefully and persistently high" and affirming that the government "remains steadfast in its commitment to root out the poison of anti-Semitism wherever it is found."
Line-up Pyramid Stage
Friday Saturday SundayThe 197522:1523:45 Biffy Clyro20:1521:15 Alanis Morissette18:1519:15 Lewis Capaldi16:5517:30 Burning Spear15:0016:00 CMAT13:3014:30 Supergrass12:0013:00Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts22:0023:45 Raye20:0021:00 Pulp18:1519:15 John Fogerty16:3017:30 The Script15:0016:00 Brandi Carlile13:3014:30 Kaiser Chiefs12:0013:00Olivia Rodrigo21:4523:15 Noah Kahan19:4520:45 Nile Rogers & Chic18:0019:00 Rod Stewart15:4517:25 The Libertines14:0015:00 Celeste12:3013:30 The Selecter11:1512:00 A. Neil Young's set included Micah Nelson and Spooner Oldham as members of his band, the Chrome Hearts. B. Billed as "Patchwork". Pulp's set featured Richard Jones as part of their band. C. Brandi Carlile's set featured Phil and Tim Hanseroth as part of her band. D. Olivia Rodrigo's set featured a guest appearance from Robert Smith. E. Noah Kahan's set featured guest appearances from Brandi Carlile and Laufey. F. Rod Stewart's set featured guest appearances from Ronnie Wood, Mick Hucknall, and Lulu.
Other Stage
Friday Saturday SundayLoyle Carner22:3023:45 Busta Rhymes20:3021:30 Gracie Abrams18:4519:45 Franz Ferdinand17:1518:15 Wet Leg15:4516:45 Inhaler14:1515:15 Rizzle Kicks13:0013:45 Fabio & Grooverider11:3012:30Charli XCX22:3023:45 Skepta20:3021:30 Ezra Collective19:0020:15 Amyl and the Sniffers17:0018:00 Weezer15:3016:30 Beabadoobee14:0015:00 Good Neighbours12:4513:45 Alessi Rose11:3012:15The Prodigy21:4523:15 Wolf Alice19:4520:45 Snow Patrol18:0019:00 Turnstile16:3017:30 Joy Crookes15:0016:00 Shaboozey13:4514:30 Nadine Shah12:3013:15 Louis Dunford11:1512:00 A. Loyle Carner's set featured a guest appearance from Sampha and Jorja Smith. B. Busta Rhymes' set featured Spliff Star and DJ Scratch as part of his band. C. Franz Ferdinand's set featured guest appearances from Peter Capaldi and Master Peace. D. Ezra Collective's set featured guest appearances from Kojey Radical, Loyle Carner, and Sasha Keable.
West Holts stage Friday Saturday SundayMaribou State22:1523:45 BadBadNotGood20:3021:30 Denzel Curry19:0020:00 En Vogue17:3018:30 Vieux Farka Touré16:0017:00 Glass Beams14:3015:30 Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso13:0014:00 Corto.alto11:3012:30Doechii22:4523:30 Amaarae20:3021:30 Greentea Peng19:0020:00 Yussef Dayes17:3018:30 Kneecap16:0017:00 Bob Vylan14:3015:30 Nilüfer Yanya13:0014:00 Infinity Song11:3012:30Overmono21:4523:15 Parcels20:0021:00 The Brian Jonestown Massacre18:3019:30 Goat17:0018:00 Black Uhuru15:3016:30 Cymande14:0015:00 Abel Selaocoe12:3013:30 Thandii11:0012:00 A. Overmono's set featured guest appearances from Kwengface and For Those I Love.
Woodsies Friday Saturday SundayFour Tet22:3023:45 Floating Points21:0022:00 PinkPantheress19:3020:30 Blossoms18:0019:00 Lola Young16:3017:30 Shed Seven15:1516:00 Fat Dog14:0014:45 Myles Smith12:4513:30 Lorde11:3012:15Scissor Sisters22:3023:45 Tom Odell21:0022:00 Father John Misty19:3020:30 TV on the Radio18:0019:00 Nova Twins16:3017:30 JADE15:1516:00 Fcukers14:0014:45 Sorry12:4513:30 The Amazons11:3012:15Jorja Smith21:3022:45 AJ Tracey20:0021:00 St. Vincent18:3019:30 Black Country, New Road17:0018:00 Djo15:3016:30 Sprints14:0015:00 Gurriers12:3013:30 Westside Cowboy11:1512:00 A. PinkPantheress' set featured a guest appearance from Just Jack. B. Blossoms' set featured a guest appearance from CMAT. C. Shed Seven's set featured a guest appearance from Elvana. D. Scissor Sisters's set featured guest appearances from Ian McKellen, Beth Ditto, and Jessie Ware. E. JADE's set featured guest appearances from Ncuti Gatwa and Confidence Man. F. Jorja Smith's set featured a guest appearance from AJ Tracey. G. AJ Tracey's set featured guest appearances from Master Peace, Aitch, and Big Zuu. H. Sprints' set featured a guest appearance from Kate Nash.
The Park Stage Friday Saturday SundayAnohni and the Johnsons23:0000:15 Self Esteem21:1522:15 Wunderhorse19:3020:30 Osees18:0019:00 English Teacher16:3017:30 Faye Webster15:1516:00 Jalen Ngonda14:0015:45 John Glacier12:4513:30 Horsegirl11:3012:10Caribou23:0000:15 Beth Gibbons21:1522:15 Haim19:3020:30 Gary Numan18:0019:00 Pa Salieu16:4517:30 Lucy Dacus15:3016:15 Japanese Breakfast14:0015:00 Ichiko Aoba12:4513:30 Yann Tiersen11:1012:10The Maccabees21:1522:30 Future Islands19:3520:35 Kae Tempest18:0019:00 Girl in Red16:3017:30 Royel Otis15:1516:00 Katy J Pearson14:0014:45 Geordie Greep12:4513:30 Melin Melyn11:3012:15 A. The Maccabees' set featured a guest appearance from Florence Welch.
Acoustic stage
Friday Saturday SundayAni DiFranco21:3022:45 The Searchers20:0021:00 Dhani Harrison18:3019:30 Billie Marten17:0018:00 Skerryvore16:0016:40 Hugh Cornwell15:0015:40 Gabrielle Aplin14:0014:40 Tift Merritt13:0013:40 Nadia Reid12:1012:40 Our Man in the Field11:3012:00Nick Lowe21:3022:45 Hothouse Flowers20:0021:00 Jeremy Loops18:3019:30 The Coronas17:1018:00