BBC reveals record Glastonbury viewing figures
The BBC has revealed its TV coverage of this year’s Glastonbury festival reached a record-breaking 23.1 million people.
The figures, which include the 30-day catch up period, were up 8% on 2022’s figure of 21.4m, with 8.6m people tuning in to Elton John’s Sunday night headline performance on BBC One over the same period.
Other high-performing sets at the 21-25 June event included Arctic Monkeys, Guns N’ Roses and Yusuf/Cat Stevens, as well as Blondie, Rick Astley, Fred Again.., Foo Fighters, Becky Hill and Lewis Capaldi. Glastonbury 2023 content on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds has also now been streamed 65 million times, up 54% on last year’s figure.
“This was an incredible year at Worthy Farm and I’m proud that we successfully matched the ambition and spirit of this iconic festival with our extensive coverage of it,” says BBC director of music Lorna Clarke.
The BBC, which recently inked a multi-year extension to continue to as Glastonbury’s exclusive multimedia broadcast partner, delivered over 40 hours of coverage across its TV channels in 2023, as well as 85 hours of live radio broadcasts, content on BBC Sounds, and an increase in scale and accessibility on BBC iPlayer.
“It’s wonderful that record audiences discovered and enjoyed our Glastonbury output on TV, radio and online”
For the first time, the corporation also streamed Pyramid Stage performances live in British Sign Language.
“It’s wonderful that record audiences discovered and enjoyed our Glastonbury output on TV, radio and online, as I know the teams across the BBC and BBC Studios worked around the clock to bring more performances and content than ever before to people at home,” adds Clarke. “A special thanks to Emily and Michael Eavis for allowing us to share the joy of Glastonbury with so many people across the UK.”
Glastonbury’s long-term future at Worthy Farm was secured earlier this year after it was granted permanent planning permission by the local council.
The festival will return to Worthy Farm, Somerset, from 26-30 June 2024.
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Glastonbury 2023 tickets sell out in an hour
Tickets for the UK’s Glastonbury festival sold out in just over an hour, despite a 26% price increase for the 2023 edition.
The Glastonbury onsale failed to beat 2019’s record of just 34 minutes due to a “technical problem”, as organisers reported “incredible demand” for the 135,000 weekend tickets. Coach packages sold out in just 22 minutes last Thursday.
“Demand far outstripped supply”
“Although we are thrilled that so many of you want to come to next year’s Glastonbury, we’re sorry that a huge number of people missed out on a ticket this morning – because demand far outstripped supply,” tweeted co-organiser Emily Eavis.
“Thank you for everyone who tried to buy a ticket. Your loyalty to this festival is deeply appreciated. There will be a ticket resale in spring 2023, so if you didn’t get one, please do try again then.”
General sale tickets cost £335 (€385) for 2023, up 26% on the £265 (€304) charged when tickets last went on sale in 2019. Tickets were subsequently rolled over until 2022 when the 2020 and 2021 festivals were cancelled due to the pandemic.
“We have tried very hard to minimise the increase in price on the ticket but we’re facing enormous rises in the costs of running this vast show”
“We have tried very hard to minimise the increase in price on the ticket but we’re facing enormous rises in the costs of running this vast show, whilst still recovering from the huge financial impact of two years without a festival because of Covid,” says Eavis on Twitter.
“In these incredibly challenging times, we want to continue to bring you the best show in the world and provide our charities with funds which are more vital than ever.”
Glastonbury previously posted a loss of £3.1 million for the year ending March 2021, according to Companies House documents.
Billie Eilish, Paul McCartney and Kendrick Lamar headlined the festival’s 2022 edition. No acts have yet been announced for the 2023 event, which is scheduled for 21-25 June.
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