Hello, my name is Paul, and I would like to talk about Glastonbury Festival. I see it as an annual musical pilgrimage. People have asked me what is so special about Glastonbury, especially since it is primarily a music festival when I have hearing difficulties. All I can say is you have to experience it yourself to realise how great Glastonbury is, no matter what kind of person you are.
There is a reason why many other festivals in this day and age with the current financial climate have difficulty selling out their tickets. Glastonbury is the only exception where it is immensely popular, selling out more than 125,000 tickets online in less than half an hour without announcing their lineups.
The atmosphere is exceptional and incredible, offering the chance to meet so many like-minded people in the space of 5 days. There are so many things to see and do and try to achieve with so little time. Glastonbury has such a unique atmosphere that it is impossible to match anywhere else in the world.
2010
My Best ever gig was Pulp in 2010, when the band was announced at one of the smaller stages on a Saturday afternoon. I found out at a bar talking to a random person, and I immediately texted the deaf zone, which is responsible for allocating BSL Interpreters at the festival. Rushing to the stage and met up with the BSL Interpreter quickly. So soon afterwards, the stage was full to capacity even many famous people, including Kate Moss, couldn’t get in. Pulp gave an amazing performance, and the interpreter was spot on as, luckily, she was a big fan of Pulp. I was so impressed with the Interpreter, including the crowd. At the show’s end, many people gave positive feedback to the interpreter even though a Guardian journalist wanted to interview her.
2016
A remarkable occurrence this year, 2016, I made an interpreter booking to see Låpsley as I consider myself a fan; the show itself was great, and afterwards, I found out the two interpreters had bumped into the artist much later in the day and said they interpreted her performance. She was really overwhelmed that a Deaf person wanted to see her and made her day, and she also commented that her auntie is Deaf as well. I consider it a bit of a magical experience for everyone.
It’s for everyone – not just music lovers
I would highly recommend it to any deaf people who are considering going to a music festival. You don’t have to be a fan of music to go to Glastonbury. It is a common notion that you can go to Glastonbury for five days and go without seeing any bands; you can still have a wonderful time. There are Circus, Cabaret, Politic discussions, Poetry, Craft Making, Spa Sessions, Massages, Tea shops, Cafes, and Art Installations, and you can partake in salsa dance lessons. The most important thing I would advise to a firstcomer is to get the correct footwear. Festival goers will spend 90% of their time on foot. My motto is ‘Happy Feet – Happy Mind’. It doesn’t matter whether or not to bring wellingtons or waterproof boots as long you feel comfortable in them. Personally, I prefer walking boots as wellingtons’ give me terrible blisters.
Yes, tickets are extremely hard to get and get harder to obtain yearly. I would advise you to get helpful hints and tips on getting Glastonbury tickets on the DeafZone Facebook page. Or you can email me – at hpaul1@hotmail.com
I hope you enjoyed reading my blog
Thanks
Paul Hull
